Unedited VersionClearfield rice varieties for 2014 planting offer yield and qualityDelta Farm PressJan. 14, 2014

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The Horizon Ag portfolio of Clearfield varieties includes three proven long-grains.

Rice farmers looking for consistent yield and quality performance in 2014 have

outstanding Clearfield variety planting options.

"We are very excited about the 2014 lineup of Clearfield varieties," said Randy

Ouzts, general manager of Horizon Ag. "With rice acres expected to increase in

2014, Horizon Ag and its seed partners are well-positioned to provide farmers

with quality planting seed of the best-performing Clearfield lines on the

market. Horizon Ag continues to focus on helping U.S. farmers harvest rice

with milling and quality that buyers demand. Our varieties are preferred over

hybrid rice by many markets, both domestic and foreign, and are proven

performers in the field."

The Horizon Ag portfolio of Clearfield varieties includes three proven long-

grains: 

CL111 has the earliest maturity of any Clearfield variety available for planting in 2014 and offers excellent vigor, high yield potential and outstanding grain quality and milling. It is ideal for early planting, staggering harvest timing and for ratoon cropping. CL111 is a Kellogg's preferred long grain variety.

CL151 offers very high yield potential, according to several years of trials, and is also a Kellogg's preferred long grain variety. CL151 uses nitrogen very efficiently. The NSt*R program is recommended, where available, and may help reduce nitrogen input costs and improve disease control.

CL152 offers superior lodging resistance, and good grain quality and milling. It offers strong seedling vigor and fast tillering. CL152 also uses nitrogen very efficiently. The NSt*R program is recommended where available and has shown to help reduce nitrogen input costs and improve disease control with this variety.

Two new Clearfield rice varieties have been released by the LSU AgCenter, an

improved Jazzman line and a medium grain variety. Both will be available for

seed production this year and commercial production in 2015.

The new CL271 medium grain shows much better blast resistance and higher

yield potential, and should be a good replacement for CL261, according to Dr.

Steve Linscombe, rice breeder and director of the LSU Rice Research Station

in Crowley, LA.

The new CL Jazzman out yields the Jazzman and Jazzman 2 lines, according to

testing, and it retains the aroma aimed at competing with imported aromatic

rice.

"It probably has the prettiest grains of all the Jazzman types," says Linscombe.

Horizon will be at the 17th Annual Conservation Systems Cotton & Rice

Conference on January 15 and 16 in Tunica, MS, Horizon Ag encourages

farmers to attend the event for information on rice variety management and

many other important topics for maximizing yield and profits in 2014.

Q&A with Dr. Glenn Gregorio: The Magic of Salt-Tolerant Rice

ELOISE QUINTANILLA

January 07, 2014

In a new series for Impatient Optimist you’ll hear from different voices at the foundation about various “sustainable” approaches to agriculture we believe can benefit farmers and the environment. Yesterday, Josh Lozman explained what we mean by “sustainability” and why helping farmers to grow more food sustainably is so critical. In future posts, Laura Birx will discuss the links between gender, nutrition, and sustainability; and David Bergvinson will tell us about a project to store hundreds of thousands of seed samples in “gene banks.” Stay tuned for more in the week ahead.

Meet Dr. Glenn Gregorio, a senior scientist and plant breeder at the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) in the Philippines.He is helping to develop a new variety of rice that can withstand exposure to salt water. Why?Climate change is threatening the livelihoods of poor farmers, who are disproportionately affected by droughts, salt and fresh water floods, and other “stresses.” But new varieties of “stress-tolerant rice” are helping them withstand these climate-related threats. 

At IRRI, researchers like Dr. Gregorio are putting 'Stress-tolerant Rice for Africa and South Asia' (STRASA Rice) through stringent tests with heat, humidity, and salt, hoping they can provide even greater benefits to farmers to help them adapt and become more resilient in the face of climate change.

I followed Dr. Gregorio to the greenhouse where he works and asked him a few questions. 

Why are you developing salt tolerant rice?Rice production areas are becoming smaller and smaller because of urbanization. At the same time, these areas are being affected by sea water intrusion since most are found in deltas. With climate change, sea water levels have risen, and during high tide, sea water tends to go up rivers and irrigate these rice production areas.

The areas that are most affected by salinity are India and Bangladesh, but Burma and

parts of Africa are also affected. 

Why does this problem affect the poorest disproportionately?Most of the salt, drought and flood-affected areas are the marginal areas, where the poorest of the poorest live. These areas tend to be highly populated and on the coast, where people can do other work like fishing. In many cases, the rice land has been developed and they have been pushed out into these non-productive areas.  

What got you interested in this work?

I was attracted to join IRRI when I was young because of my interest in scientific investigation, but also because of IRRI’s mission to help the poorest of the poorest.

I sometimes visit Bangladesh, and seeing the farmers plant this rice that came from your hand, you feel like you are someone that is really doing a magical thing for these people.  It’s a really big bonus as a scientist – not only publishing the paper, but people are eating this, and these are the poor farmers, and they are happy with their varieties.

What's the biggest challenge you've faced so far in your work with this rice?The biggest challenge is in these depressed and marginal areas, every village, every location has different problems. Sometimes you have salinity; sometimes you have salinity and drought; sometimes you have an area with salinity and acidity; some salinity with phosphorous deficiency -- all of these combinations of stresses. That's why we are combining all traits into one to make a perfect variety fitting all locations. And the good thing is we have new technologies now that can fast-track the development of different varieties.

 

TAGSClimate, International Rice Research Institute (IRRI), Rice, sustainability, sustainable agriculture,Sustainable Agriculture 2014