UC Rice Blog

 Additional authors: Dima Jones (Student 3, UC Davis) and Cara Razma (Student 3, UC Davis) In muddy rice fields where the water lies still, Tadpole shrimp lurk with a sneaky-slick skill. They're brown like the bottom, they blend in just right, And then—bam!—they appear, a big buggy fright! They…

How deep is too deep to drill rice in California? I’ll get the obvious answer out of the way first: it depends! If you’re thinking of trying out drill seeding in the future, there’s going to be a learning curve. Much like with water-seeded rice, your variety selection matters as much as the weather,…

The two most problematic species I have been seeing in grower fields this year are sprangletop and, of course, watergrass. The two require slightly different management strategies, which I will elaborate on below. One of the most important things for planning for the next year, however, is knowing if…

Three to four weeks ago I sent out a blog on the potential for blanking due to cool nighttime temperatures during booting. Low nighttime temperatures are a concern because blanking (floret sterility) can occur during meiosis (pollen formation) when they drop below 58 oF. Blanking can cause reduced yields…

Floating mats of dark green leaves and bright yellow flowers is a common sight in most irrigation canals and waterways around our rice fields. For the most part, these mats are comprised of creeping waterprimrose (Ludwigia peploides) and Uruguay waterprimrose (Ludwigia hexapetala), which are prolific…