ESTIMATING RICE YIELD POTENTAL BY PLANTING DATE UTILIZIING OBSERVED DATA FROM THE RICE RESEARCH VERIFICATION PROGRAM
Applied Research
Stewart Runsick
County Extension Agent - Staff Chair
University of Arkansas Division of Agriculture
Corning
Abstract
Late planting of rice in Arkansas often results in substantial yield loss. This study utilizes the entire data set of 319 commercial rice fields enrolled in the Rice Research Verification Program (RRVP) from 1983 to 2009 to estimate yield potential by planting date. The RRVP represents a public demonstration of the implementation of research-based recommendations in actual field-scale farming environments. Over the past 27 years, the majority of the RRVP fields were planted during weeks 16, 17 and 18 but were planted beginning in week 13 through week 25. Casual observation of the average yields per week in the RRVP would suggest optimal yields occurred when planting during week 13 with a linearly decline in yield for the following weeks. However, normalizing data across weeks and time shows a more accurate picture of the impact of planting date on yields. A ‘base period’ rather than a base week was defined for this study as the most frequent weeks planted (16, 17, and 18) each year. Yields were then normalized dividing actual yields in a given year by the average yield calculated for the base period in the given year. The data suggests that yield potential is maximized between the 13th week to the 20th week of the year; after which yield penalties are expected, although early planting does have the risk of frost damage. The general trend is that earlier planting results in higher yields and late planting results in yield losses from 10% to 40%.
Poster has NOT been presented at any previous NACAA AM/PIC
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Authors: S.K. Runsick, T.W. Griffin
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Runsick, S. Area Agronomist-Rice, University of Arkansas Division of Agriculture, Arkansas, 72112
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Griffin, T. Assistant Professor-Economics, University of Arkansas Division of Agriculture, Arkansas, 72203