Planting Recommendations

Plant early and target 6-8 plants/square foot.

RiceTec hybrids adapt well to planting from early to late. April planting in the Midsouth and March planting in southern Louisiana and Texas maximizes yield potential; however, the hybrid advantage continues throughout the planting season.
RiceTec hybrids should be planted no earlier than April 1st in the Midsouth and March 15th in the Gulf coast; when the soil temperature at planting depth is 65°F or greater.
The preferred planting method for RiceTec hybrids is drill seeding. The 2012 RiceTec Hybrid Stand Guarantee Policy does not fully cover water planting or broadcast seeding, but if RiceTec products are water-seeded they should be pre-soaked for a minimum of 24 hours before seeding.
The standard RiceTec hybrid seeding rate is 450,000 seeds/acre or 10-11 seeds/sq ft to reach the target stand of 6-8 plants/sq ft. Recommendations for some products may vary from the standard; specific seeding rates for each product will be printed on the seed container but are at the discretion of the grower.
Seeding rates may need adjusting for specific field conditions, cultural practices, customer preferences, customer equipment, and planting dates. Please contact your local RiceTec Representative to discuss possible seeding rate adjustments.

Nutrient Recommendations

Recommendations are regionalized.
Delay second Nitrogen application until boot.

Nitrogen requirements for RiceTec hybrids involve different timing than conventional varieties. Two major nitrogen recommendation areas have been defined:

**(120-0-30) = Preflood N-Midseason N-Late Boot N
Factors that can increase nitrogen use efficiency and protect your yield potential include:

Applying urea to dry, crusted soil to ensure that nitrogen will move down the soil profile once flooded.
Applying the recommended nitrogen rate for each soil type to maximize yield potential.
Applying the flood immediately following preflood N application.
Using Agrotain® to protect preflood urea from ammonia volatilization or if applications of urea are made when dry soil conditions can not be obtained.

Agrotain® has been shown to reduce nitrogen loss in less than ideal conditions and when the establishment of the permanent flood takes longer than 5 days.

These recommendations may be adjusted according to specific situations on your farm; e.g., if nitrogen deficiency symptoms are evident at midseason, then apply 30 lb N/A at midseason in addition to the base recommendation.
Nitrogen rates and timings are evaluated each year for increased precision in managing RiceTec products. Guidelines for any nitrogen recommendation changes will be available prior to March 2011 through local RiceTec Representatives and at www.ricetec.com.
Apply other nutrients (P, K, etc.) per soil test recommendations.

Herbicide Recommendations

Follow an integrated weed management approach.

Apply herbicides as desired per manufacturer and/or University recommendations.
Carefully read and follow all label instructions.
Excessive rates and/or overlaps of Command™ in association with stressful growing conditions may reduce final plant stand and should be avoided.
In CLEARFIELD® hybrid populations a low percentage of plants are not tolerant to the CLEARFIELD® system herbicides (Newpath®, Beyond™, and Clearpath®) and are not expected to survive once these chemicals are applied.
CLEARFIELD® hybrid plant response is likely after Newpath®, Beyond™, or Clearpath® applications under stressful growing conditions.
Apply Beyond™ to CLEARFIELD® products per BASF label recommendations. CLEARFIELD® hybrid plant injury may result when Beyond™ is applied past panicle initiation.
Although rare, CLEARFIELD® rice injury has been documented when Ricestar HT® was applied a few days before the 2nd Newpath® application and should be avoided.
Beyond may be applied as the second application following an application of Newpath® or Clearpath®.
Read the 2012 BASF CLEARFIELD Stewardship Guidelines (PDF).

Disease Characteristics

Hybrids offer best available disease package.

Although current RiceTec hybrids normally do not require fungicide treatment, fields should be scouted closely for disease and treated with fungicides when necessary. Consider field history and environmental conditions when making fungicide decisions.

Click image to download PDF of this table.

Grain Retention

Begin harvest at 18-20% grain moisture.

Current RiceTec products are very easy to thresh and should be harvested as soon as grain moisture reaches 18 to 20% to reduce possible grain loss and maximize milling yield.

Ratoon Management

Apply 100 lb N/A at ratoon crop flood up..

Ratoon crop nitrogen should be applied at a rate of 100 lb N/A, preferably onto dry ground. Nitrogen should be applied and a flood should be established immediately after harvest. Increased nitrogen rates and/or flail mowing may cause up to a 2 week delay in maturity, but grain yield increases of 500 to 1,000 lbs/A have been routinely documented in flail-mowed fields.

Crop Rotation after Hybrids

Follow hybrid with hybrid, CLEARFIELD* rice or another crop.

Planting conventional rice following hybrid rice may result in unappealing cosmetic effects due to contrasting plant appearances.
Follow non-CLEARFIELD® hybrid rice with another hybrid, CLEARFIELD® rice or another crop such as Roundup Ready® soybeans, corn, cotton, or grain sorghum.
Follow the BASF CLEARFIELD® stewardship program for all CLEARFIELD® products. RiceTec does not recommend planting CLEARFIELD® rice back-to-back in the same field. Stewardship agreements must be signed before CLEARFIELD® seed is shipped.
RiceTec advocates a three-year rotation program. Ex. CLEARFIELD hybrid, soybeans, conventional hybrid.

Management Guidelines