It is that time of year again. Rice is heading and our thoughts are turning to harvest. As we have been doing since 2015, we will be running the UCCE Rice Yield Contest. We continue to learn a lot from this contest which we share with all of you. This week we picked up the prize for the winner. It is a John Deere Gator (see picture) and is made possible by our generous sponsors:

FMC, Gowan, Nichnio, UPL, Valent, Valley Truck and Tractor, and Wilbur-Ellis.

Details can be found at http://rice.ucanr.edu/Rice_Yield_Contest/, but briefly,

1. You need to enter by Aug 25. This is the day of the Rice Field Day. We will have a place to sign up there if you have not already done so.
2. You are competing with growers in your general region of the Sacramento Valley.
3. We have made some changes to the contest rules so that participation is as minimally disruptive to your harvest operations as possible.
4. You must harvest a minimum of 3 continuous acres of rice (most growers harvest more in order to fill a set of doubles). The grain will be put in an empty trailer and taken to a drier for weight and moisture content. The exact area will be measured and yields determined based on weight and grain moisture.
5. We will be present for the entire operation (harvest to drier).