“Everyone repeat after me,” said Dr. Chris Tingle, University of Arkansas (U of A) soybean specialist, “No soybean rust!”

After his audience of visitors to the annual field day at the Rice Research and Extension Center dutifully repeated his mantra against Asian soybean rust, Tingle said, “We do not have it in Arkansas.”

He then continued his update on the soybean crop in Arkansas and production challenges facing the state’s producers.
More than 600 farmers, agricultural industry representatives and others visited the RREC Wednesday (Aug. 10) for the field day that exhibited U of A Division of Agriculture research and extension programs in rice, soybeans, corn and other Arkansas crops.

“Our annual field days give us the opportunity to briefly describe and showcase the research here at the center by resident faculty and faculty from other Division locations,” said Dr. Christopher Deren, director. “The field days draw a wide range of visitors from agricultural industries and farmers who want to know what’s coming down the pipeline that will help them.”

Rice breeders Dr. Karen Moldenhauer and Dr. James Gibbons showed test plots and described the characteristics of new and experimental varieties. Of particular interest to producers was “Spring,” a new long-grain rice variety from the U of A that offers very early maturity, cold tolerance and resistance to common rice blast.

“Spring matures about 10 days earlier than other varieties,” Moldenhauer said. “Its cold tolerance allows producers to plant earlier and take advantage of spring rains to help save water.”

Soybean breeder Dr. Pengyin Chen described how the breeding program for soybeans was heading down two paths.
 
“People sometimes say I wear two hats; one for the university and one for industry,” Chen said, as he removed a U of A golf hat to reveal a U of A ball cap underneath. “I do wear two hats, but as you can see, they’re both for the university.”

Chen said most of his breeding efforts were focused on developing improved conventional varieties with disease resistance and drought tolerance. But he is also developing specialized soybeans that may offer producers opportunities to grow for niche markets such as tofu, natto and other soy products.
 
Other tours and presentations during the field day covered topics in insect and disease control, soybean variety testing, conservation tillage, weed control, milling quality, plant physiology, agricultural economic outlook and the 2007 farm bill.
 
“The demonstrations and exhibits focused on the applied research that producers want to see,” Deren said. “The field day gives them an opportunity to discuss with faculty the research that piques their interest and that has particular importance for them.”