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| Arkansas Agricultural Experiment Station, University of Arkansas Division of Agriculture Dale Bumpers College of Agricultural, Food and Life Sciences Weekly Vision is e-mailed weekly to faculty and staff of Bumpers College and the Arkansas Agricultural Experiment Station, Division of Agriculture. This service is primarily for timely announcement of news and events for the AAES and Bumpers College. Submit items to hmedders@uark.edu. You may also wish to submit items to headline@uark.edu for posting on "UA Daily Headlines" for campus-wide distribution. |
| Aug. 24, 2009 |
1. Web videos highlight rice, soybean research in 'virtual field day'
2. Bumpers College welcomes new and returning students
3. 'Something new' theme of Pine Tree Station field day
4. Judd Hill Foundation field day to feature university research, Sept. 3
5. Student computer labs moved from Agri Annex to AFL B108
6. Bumpers College launches Twitter page
7. NAADA taps Harris as student programs chair
8. Save the Dates for faculty reception and scholarship luncheon
9. Save the Date for Division of Agriculture Awards Luncheon, Jan. 8
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1. Web videos highlight rice, soybean research in 'virtual field day'
Presentations from the Aug. 12 field day at the Division of Agriculture's Rice Research and Extension Center are available for viewing online and for downloading to Blackberries, iPhones and other mobile devices.
Fourteen Web videos provide a virtual field day, covering all the topics presented in four field and indoor tours. The videos can be found on the Arkansas Agricultural Experiment Station Web site: http://aaes.uark.edu/ricefielddays_videos.html
The annual field day highlights research and extension programs by division scientists. The USDA Dale Bumpers National Rice Research Center next door also participates.
Field day topics in the virtual tours include development of improved rice varieties; rice and soybean fertility; managing rice and soybean diseases, weeds and insect pests; rice quality, tillage and the economics of irrigation.
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2. Bumpers College welcomes new and returning students
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| HELP A HOG -- Bumpers College Ambassadors Chelsea Ahrens, seated at left, and Amanda Simpson help freshman Adyson Bohanon find her way on the first day of classes. The Ambassadors are participating in the "Help a Hog" program. |
Students were well prepared for the first day of classes in Bumpers College Monday. Based on participation in summer orientation, the freshman class is expected to approximately offset the large graduating class of last spring.
New or returning students with questions can contact the Bumpers College dean's office at
575-2252 or visit the college's Web site. Resources for future and new students can be found at http://bumperscollege.uark.edu/50.htm.
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3. 'Something new' theme of Pine Tree Station field day
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| SUSTAINABILITY -- Jennifer James, volunteer chair of the new USA Rice Federation Sustainability Task Force, said the rice industry can benefit from being proactive in addressing sustainability issues. |
"Something new" could have been the theme at a field day Aug. 20 at the Pine Tree Research Station near Colt. It has been a recurring theme at field days by University of Arkansas Division of Agriculture scientists all summer.
At the Pine Tree Research Station, where the focus is on row crops, the topics included new rice seed treatments, a new nitrogen soil test, two new rice varieties, the new USA Rice Federation Sustainability Task Force, a new ATV safety training program for teens and a new rice recipe by Lydia Holmes, Miss St. Francis County Rice.
One exception to the theme was a warning about an increase in herbicide-resistant weed populations from weed scientist Jason Norsworthy.
"We are quickly running out of modes of action. We need new chemistries," said Norsworthy. Herbicide resistance in Arkansas has been confirmed in four of the five chemistries approved for rice, he said.
"Resistance is the number one issue we are facing in rice weed control," he said.
Keys to preventing herbicide resistance include use of different herbicide chemistries and proper application to ensure complete control of weeds, Norsworthy said. One healthy barnyardgrass plant can produce 100,000 seeds, so just a few resistant plants in a field can create a large soil bank of resistant weed seed, he said.
On a happier note, in 2010 rice producers will have new insecticide seed treatments that promise to add 15 to 20 or more bushels of grain yield per acre, entomologist Gus Lorenz said.
"With rice water weevil in every rice-growing county and grape colaspis (lespedeza worms) in the higher producing counties, everybody should try them," Lorenz said.
Based on his field test results, Lorenz said the seed treatments not only provide excellent control of insect larvae that damage rice plants, they also increase seedling vigor, which results in higher yields.
The products are Dermacor from DuPont and Cruiser from Syngenta, which should be available for the 2010 planting season, and NipsIt Inside from Valent, which is expected to be available in 2011.
They will fill a gap left by the loss in 2004 of the highly effective Icon seed treatment that was taken off the market due to crawfish kills attributed to the product in Louisiana.
Two improved Arkansas rice varieties with unique combinations of genetic traits, Taggart and Templeton, will be available to farmers as registered seed in 2010 and certified seed in 2011.
The new varieties were developed in the University of Arkansas Division of Agriculture's rice breeding program based at the Rice Research and Extension Center near Stuttgart and directed by Karen Moldenhauer and James Gibbons.
Large kernels along with high yield potential and milling quality are major assets for Taggart, Moldenhaur said. Large kernels are good for parboiling.
Taggart is rated moderately susceptible to sheath blight disease and is susceptible to most races of rice blast disease, but it has good field resistance to blast when a deep flood can be maintained on the rice throughout the season, she said.
Templeton is the only Arkansas adapted variety with resistance to all known blast disease races in the state, Moldenhauer said. It has the major gene, Pi-ta, which confers resistance to the common races of rice blast disease in Arkansas, and minor genes for moderate resistance to the race IE-1k.
Templeton has performed well in state trials with very high grain yield potential and milling yields better than Wells, a variety released in 1999 from the Arkansas breeding program and the most widely planted variety in 2009.
Jennifer James, a Jackson County rice farmer, gave a presentation on the USA Rice Federation's Sustainability Task Force. James is the volunteer chair of the task force. The goal is to document practices that impact the sustainability of rice production as a benchmark for future improvements, she said.
James said sustainability is defined in economic, environmental and social terms of satisfying human food and fiber needs, while maintaining the economic viability of farm operations; enhancing environmental quality and the natural resources base; and enhancing the quality of life for farmers and society as a whole.
The year 2011 is the target date for implementation of a new soil test for nitrogen in rice, if large-scale trials in producers' fields in 2010 go as expected, soil scientist Rick Norman said. He and his University of Arkansas graduate students have developed the first-ever, site-specific soil test for nitrogen in any crop.
Current nitrogen fertilizer recommendations are based on past performance of a variety over a broad soil classification, which can result in too little or too much nitrogen being applied in any given field, Norman said.
The Nitrogen Soil Test for Rice, or "Nstar," will be provided by the Arkansas Soil Testing and Research Program operated by the Division of Agriculture.
A site-specific test for soil nitrogen has eluded soil scientists, until now, because soil nitrogen in the form available to plants changes constantly in the soil. Norman and his students have identified measurable stable compounds in the soil that are highly correlated to availability of nitrogen to rice plants.
The concept can be used for site-specific nitrogen soil tests in any crop or system, including organic production, Norman said. He is now working on a test for wheat.
Lorenz, the entomologist, reviewed the now-familiar bad news for soybean producers that insect pests are gearing up for their own field day.
"Scout your beans. If you can't, find someone who can," he said.
A wet spring and early summer resulted in late planting of many fields, giving insects time to build up for a feeding frenzy. As in most crops, an early soybean harvest is desired to avoid late-season pest infestations, which are also increased by insects moving in from harvested fields further south, Lorenz said.
John McFarland, Craighead County extension agent, and Subodh Kulkarni said a new Division of Agriculture safety training program for riding all terrain vehicles is designed for teens. Arkansas has a very high rate of teenagers killed and injured in ATV accidents, McFarland said. For details, contact your county extension office.
For a "Rice Romanoff" recipe created by Miss St. Francis County Rice, Lydia Holmes, and other rice dishes and nutrition facts, contact the St. Francis County extension office. Holmes is available for presentations in the county on the nutritional benefits of rice.
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4. Judd Hill Foundation field day to feature university research, Sept. 3
The Judd Hill Cotton Technology Field Day Sept. 3 will provide a look at research on the Judd Hill Plantation near Trumann in Poinsett County by agricultural scientists at Arkansas State University, the University of Arkansas System's Division of Agriculture and commercial agricultural companies.
Congressman Marion Berry of Gillett will be the keynote speaker following research tours from 8:30 to 10:30 a.m. A complimentary lunch will conclude the 15th annual field day sponsored by the Judd Hill Foundation.
Topics on the research plot tour will include precision agriculture, cotton varieties, herbicide resistant weeds, organic sources of nitrogen and the economics of a cotton and corn crop rotation, according to Matt Moon of Jonesboro, chairman of the field day committee. New equipment, products and services will be on display at a trade show.
The research is an extension of projects conducted at Arkansas State University in Jonesboro and at the Division of Agriculture's Northeast Research and Extension Center at Keiser, NEREC director Fred Bourland said.
The Judd Hill Foundation is a major supporter of agricultural research at Arkansas State University and also provides an area for Division of Agriculture experimental plots.
"This allows us to expand our research on soils that have very high yield potential for cotton," Bourland said. "We also are able to work on a variety of issues in cooperation with Billy Baker, who manages the commercial cotton farm."
The foundation, founded in 1985 by Ester Hill Chapin, produces cotton on 3,800 acres. Farm profits help fund agricultural research and other philanthropic activities.
In 1991, Ester Hill Chapin, who received the 4,000-acre plantation as a wedding gift from her father, Judd Hill, bequeathed the plantation to the foundation.
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5. Student computer labs moved from Agri Annex to AFL B108
New technologies in Bumpers College classrooms and student computer labs were listed recently by Brenda Wideman, technology director for the Arkansas Agricultural Experiment Station and Bumpers College.
The final preparations in all rooms are under way and we thank the college, our units, and our students for the funding that has made the following improvements possible.
Student computer labs previously in the Agricultural Annex building are moving to AFLS B108. A brand new lab facility is being constructed housing 40 computers with instructor station and projection. Classes that were taught in Agri Annex are being relocated to the new facility. Final details are under way and further information will be sent as details become firm.
Labs are located this semester in:
AFLS B108 - 40 stations
HOEC 217 - 25 stations
POSC L101 - 25 stations (limited software availability, daytime walk-in use only)
Specific hours will be posted as soon as plans are finalized.
Software available in computer labs this semester includes:
Adobe Creative Suite 4 Design Standard - HOEC 217
Adobe Creative Suite 4 Design Premium (includes Dreamweaver and Fireworks) - AFLS B108
Kaledo Apparel Software - HOEC 217
Gerber Apparel Software - HOEC 217
Mathematica Player - AFLS B108 and POSC L101
Visual Retailer Apparel Software - AFLS B108
AutoCAD 2009 - AFLS B108
Food Processor - POSC L101
GAMS, QuickBooks, and other AEAB software in AFLS B108
Camtasia - AFLS B108
SAS - 9.1.3 or later (being determined), AFLS B108
MS Office 2007 - in all labs
JMP 8 - in all labs
Classrooms:
AGRI 332 - technology remodel including new projector and screen, audio system, and Sympodium
AFLS E107 - new projector
Echo360 Lecture Video Recording resource expanded to AGRI 332 and FDSC D2 (also in AGRI 115)
HOEC 206 and ROSEN 110 have new computers
JMP 8 - in all classrooms
MSOffice 2007, web browsers and plug-ins available in all rooms
Discipline specific software available in specific rooms by request only
To ensure your classroom technology use goes as smoothly as possible, we encourage all faculty to attend training prior to the first use of the equipment. Be aware, faculty who have never taught in our rooms or those who have not taught recently are required to attend training before access to the podium combination will be given. Also the technology in AGRI 332 has totally changed, we request all faculty scheduled in that room attend training. Each session can be expected to last approximately 30 minutes; Echo 360 training (where available) is expected to take an extra 15 minutes . The training schedule is attached.
Anyone planning to use the Echo360 video recording resource should let us know during training or as quickly as possible. Advance setup is required prior to the first day of classroom use. This is available in AGRI 332, AGRI 115, and FDSC D2.
If you need training and are unable to attend at the scheduled times, please call 5-3420 to request additional training assistance.
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6. Bumpers College launches Twitter page
Bumpers College is starting to tweet to the world. The college now has a Twitter page at http://twitter.com/bumperscollege. Twitter is a social media outlet known for limiting its posts to no more than 140 characters.
It's not necessary to have a Twitter account to see what the college posts there, but anyone who does have an account is encouraged to become a "follower" of Bumpers College to receive all the college's posts announcements on their own Twitter home page. Anyone with an account needs only to go to the college's Twitter page and hit the "follow" button.
The college will post links to its news releases, announcements of events and other information from personnel who want to get the word out quickly to the college's friends.
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7. NAADA taps Harris as student programs chair
Ashley Harris, Bumpers College coordinator of student and alumni relations, was named student programs chair at the National Agricultural Alumni Development Association annual meeting June 14-17 in Minneapolis. She will work with NAADA members who are responsible for student programs at their institutions to promote their involvement in NAADA programming.
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8. Save the Dates for faculty reception and scholarship luncheon
The annual Fall Faculty reception is scheduled for September 24 and the Bumpers College Scholarship Luncheon will be October 9.
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9. Save the Date for Division of Agriculture Awards Luncheon, Jan. 8
Faculty and staff awards will be presented at the Division of Agriculture Awards Luncheon Jan. 8, 2010, in Little Rock.
AAES and Bumpers College Web sites:
http://aaes.uark.edu/
http://bumperscollege.uark.edu/