The 47th annual Eagle Lake Rice Field Day is scheduled for 5 p.m. June 29 at the Eagle Lake Community Center, 100 N. Walnut Ave., in Eagle Lake.
“We are looking forward to hosting our local rice producers and industry stakeholders in person for this year’s Eagle Lake Rice Field Day,” said Laramie Kettler, Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service agent for Colorado County. “Our local Colorado County Rice Committee is eager to host this event this year despite a complete indoor program. This year’s format will be no different than it would be if we were rained out and not able to listen to the research scientists in the plots at the Eagle Lake Rice Research Station.”
The field day is sponsored by Texas A&M AgriLife Research, AgriLife Extension and the Colorado County Rice Committee, which is comprised of local producers who meet throughout the year to identify topics for the event that are relevant and applicable to producers in the area, Kettler said.
There is no registration fee thanks to the support of area agribusinesses, Kettler said.
“The program will offer an opportunity for producers to hear research updates from AgriLife Research scientists on rice breeding, nutrient management, management options for heat stress, disease control, weed control and storage pest management.”
Program topics and speakers
- Update and Introduction on Rice Research in Texas, Ted Wilson, Ph.D., director of the Texas A&M AgriLife Research and Extension Center at Beaumont.
- Performance of Trinity and Elite Rice Lines Nearing Commercial Release, Omar Samonte, Ph.D., AgriLife Research hybrid rice breeding researcher, Department of Soil and Crop Sciences, Beaumont.
- High-Quality Wide-Compatible Parental Lines – the Foundation for Texas A&M Rice Hybrids, Samonte.
- Improvements to Rice Nutrient Management, Fugen Dou, Ph.D., AgriLife Research crop nutrient management researcher, Department of Soil and Crop Sciences, Beaumont.
- Management Options that Reduce Rice Yield Loss Caused by Heat Stress, Lee Tarpley, Ph.D., AgriLife Research crop physiology researcher, Department of Soil and Crop Sciences, Beaumont.
- Rice Disease Control Research Update, Shane Zhou, Ph.D., AgriLife Research plant pathologist, Department of Plant Pathology and Microbiology, Beaumont.
- Rice Weed Control Research Update, Muthu Bagavathiannan, Ph.D., AgriLife Research weed scientist in the Department of Soil and Crop Sciences, Bryan-College Station.
- Aeration as an Alternative to Insecticide Control of Rice Storage Pests in Texas, Yubin Yang, AgriLife Research senior research analyst, Beaumont.
Following the research presentations, a catered evening meal will be served. After the meal, Philip Shackelford, Ph.D., AgriLife Extension regional program leader, Bryan-College Station, will discuss careers in agriculture. Joe Outlaw, Ph.D., co-director of the Agricultural and Food Policy Center and AgriLife Extension economist, Bryan-College Station, will provide an economic update concerning the rice industry.
One continuing education unit will be offered to all Texas Department of Agriculture licensed pesticide applicators who attend the program.
For more information, contact the David R. Wintermann Rice Research Station at 979-234-3578 or the AgriLife Extension office for Colorado County at 979-732-2082.
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