Rice planting in Arkansas, which provides about half of the country’s total crop, is always a weather-dependent process. Whether the preceding winter is harsh or mild, the spring wet or dry, every turn of the calendar page presents a new challenge. But in 2026, this real battle began after most of the crop was in the ground.
Jarrod Hardke, extension rice agronomist for the University of Arkansas Division of Agriculture, said most of March and April were abnormally dry and warm, with both daytime and nighttime low temperatures falling significantly with May’s arrival.
“That really put the crop into an interesting position, over seven to 10 cooler days and nights, with cloudy weather every day,” Hardke said. “It was very stressful for the crop. Add in unrelenting winds through the entire spring — the crop didn’t like that any more than the drought conditions.”…