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Florida's 2000 Rice Variety Census1
T. J. Schueneman and C. W. Deren 2The 2000 Florida Rice Variety census is now complete. The authors wish to thank the rice growers and the mill manager for their cooperation in returning the data in a timely fashion.
The 2000 Florida rice crop was grown entirely in Palm Beach and Hendry Counties (Table 1 ). For the first time in many years Glades County had no rice acreage. This is attributed to low rice prices and increased transportation costs due to the closing of the rice mill closest to Glades County. Rice is grown in an area of Florida designated as the Everglades Agricultural Area (EAA), characterized by organic soil deposits surrounded by sand soils. Table 1 shows that the majority of rice continues to be grown on these muck (organic) soils, due to both the better fertility status and water holding capacity of these soils and their proximity to the rice mill.
Rice farming in the EAA results in only marginal returns on investment. However, the soil conservation and conditioning benefits attributed to rice are extremely important. For this reason, 98.5% of the rice grown is as a summer rotation with either sugarcane or vegetables. The remaining rice acreage is maintained in rice year after year in order to comply with organic farming certification.
All varieties except Bengal are U.S. long grain and all rice is drill seeded. Rice planting begins in late February and continues into May. Harvesting of the ratoon-crop is usually completed by early November.
Nine rice varieties were planted on a total of 19,277 acres (Table 2 ). The 2000 rice crop was produced by 8 growers and processed at one local rice mill. This is down from 16 growers in 1998 and 10 in 1999, but the acreage is within normal yearly variation. The loss of rice producers is primarily on the sandy soils of Glades and Hendry Counties. Cypress and Alan continue to be the two most widely planted varieties and represented 57.3% and 25%, respectively, of the total. Kaybonnet and Cocodrie were planted on 7.9% and 5.9% respectively, while Bengal, Jasmine, Lagrue, Drew, and Jefferson combined for a total of 3.9%. Cocodrie, not grown on any scale previously, was planted on 1,132 acres while Drew dropped from 614 to 31 acres and Katy and Dellrose were not planted at all.
A total of 7,891.2 acres of rice were ratoon-cropped (plant crop harvested, allowed to regrow, and harvested a second time) in 1999 (Table 3 ). Total ratoon-crop acreage was 40.9% of the plant-crop acreage, down from 64.6% in 1999. This reduction in ratoon-crop acreage is attributable to low rice prices and crop rotation demands. Cypress and Alan were the varieties most widely ratoon-cropped and represented 77% and 14% of the ratoon acreage. Thirty-one percent of the Cypress and 6% of the Alan planted acres were ratoon-cropped. Additionally, 413 acres of Cocodrie and 285 acres of Bengal were ratoon-cropped, accounting for 3.7% of the plant-crop acres and 9.1% of the ratoon-crop acres.
The total rice acreage harvested is the sum of the plant-crop and ratoon-crop acres. Cypress continued to be the most widely planted variety and Alan was a distant second (Table 4 ). A total of 27,168 acres of rice were harvested in Florida for the 2000 crop.
The market for specialty rice seems to be increasing. A total of 1,070 plant-crop acres and 782 ratoon-crop acres of Cypress were organically certified. Also grown under organic certification was the 285 acres of Bengal, all of which was ratooned. Bengal is a medium-grain rice sought after for rice flour for baby food.
Nearly all of the rice grown in the EAA is planted in rotation with other crops. Rice growers' land-use decisions and crop-rotation patterns are illustrated in Table 5 . The trend toward a longer rotation between rice crops continues. The typical planting sequence is 5 ½ years in sugarcane and 6 months in rice. Depending on the intensity of the individual farming operation, a sweet corn crop might be squeezed in before or after the rice crop. In 2000, approximately 3.5% of the rice acres involved such a rotation.
Winter vegetables such as radish, lettuce, and celery account for 9% of the rice rotation acres and represent a further intensifying of the rotation cycle. A 12-month rotation consisting of lettuce / radish / lettuce / radish / rice, or some other mix of these crops, represents the intense pressure placed on farm managers to fully utilize available land. A small amount, 1.5%, of the rice acreage was dedicated to rice only, and represents organically grown rice.
A historical record of EAA rice acreage by variety beginning in 1987 and total rice acreage estimates since 1977 are presented in Table 6 and Table 7 . While rice production in Florida is currently below the 1992-1993 production levels, the 2000 acreage of 19,277 is very close to the 10-year average of 19,467 acres (Table 6 ). Low worldwide rice prices are a factor in reduced rice acreage. Also, even though sugarcane planted after rice produces significantly more sugar per acre than sugarcane following sugarcane, the better economic returns represented by two sugarcane crops and then rice, rather than rice after every sugarcane crop, has cut the land available for rice production by a third.
Changes in varietal selection are shown in Table 7 . Disease resistance and yields are the major factors in selecting a variety. Resistence to lodging and ability to produce an acceptable ratoon harvest are also very important characteristics. Cypress, introduced in 1994, and Alan, introduced in 1991, the leading varieties, are both semi-dwarf varieties.
Tables
Table 1. Soil Type and County where Florida Rice is Grown.
1997
1998
1999
2000
% of 2000 Crop
---------------------------Acres--------------------------------------
Soil Type
Muck
17,484
16,803
15,911
17,921
93.0
Sand
817
1,904
1,953
1,356
7.0
County
Palm Beach
16,386
16,018
15,761
17,633
91.5
Hendry
432
1,663
1,953
1,644
8.5
Glades
1,483
1,026
150
0
Table 2. Florida's 2000 Main-Crop Harvest.
Variety
Main-Crop Acres
% of Main Crop
Cypress
11,048.3
57.30
Alan
4,810.6
24.96
Kaybonnet
1,528.0
7.93
Cocodrie
1,132.0
5.87
Bengal
285.0
1.48
Jasmine
221.2
1.15
Lagrue
185.0
0.96
Drew
36.0
0.19
Jefferson
31.0
0.16
TOTAL
19,277.1
100.00
Table 3. Florida's 2000 Ratoon-Crop Rice Acreage.
Variety
Ratoon-Crop
Acres
% of
Ratoon Crop
% of
Main Crop
Cypress
6,063.6
76.84
31.46
Alan
1,111.1
14.08
5.76
Cocodrie
431.5
5.47
2.24
Bengal
285.0
3.61
1.48
TOTAL
7,891.2
100
40.94
Table 4. Total Florida Rice Acreage Harvested in 2000.
Variety
Main Crop
Acres
Ratoon Crop
Acres
Total Acres
Cypress
11,048.3
6,063.6
17,111.9
Alan
4,810.6
1,111.1
5,921.7
Kaybonnet
1,528.0
0
1,528.0
Cocodrie
1,132.0
431.5
1,563.5
Bengal
285.0
285.0
570.0
Jasmine
221.2
0
221.2
Lagrue
185.0
0
185.0
Drew
36.0
0
36.0
Jefferson
31.0
0
31.0
TOTAL
19,277.1
7,891.2
27,168.3
Table 5. Land-Use Preceding 2000 Rice Planting.
Acreage
Percent
Sugarcane 16,660.1
86.4
Vegetables
1,682.0
8.7
Rice
288
1.5
Sweet Corn
647
3.4
TOTAL
19277.1
100
Table 6. Florida Rice Acreage Since 1977.
Year
Acreage
1977
280
1978
325
1979
7,670
1980
9,998
1981
8,900
1982
8,500
1983
8,000
1984
8,340
1985
9,722
1986
6,182
1987
8,500
1988
14,430
1989
13,847
1990
12,282
1991
20,201
1992
23,163
1994
23,127
1995
22,088
1997
18,301
1998
18,707
1999
17,864
2000
19,277
Table 7. Rice Acreage, by Variety, Planted in Florida Since 1987.
1987
1988
1989
1990
1991
1994
1997*
1998
1999
2000
Alan
0
0
0
0
21
6,168
5,000
5,200
7,632
4,811
Bengal
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
285
Cocodrie
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1,132
Cypress
0
0
0
0
0
1,358
6,096
7,332
7,914
11,048
Della
300
325
7
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
Dellrose
0
0
0
0
0
0
288
278
18
0
Drew
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
614
31
Gulfmont
0
850
436
623
2,453
4,802
0
0
0
0
Jasmine
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
221
Kaybonnet
0
0
0
0
0
0
884
2,766
1,373
1,528
Katy
0
0
0
0
0
927
0
0
100
0
Jefferson
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
175
31
Lagrue
0
0
0
0
0
5
0
0
38
185
Lebonnet
6,900
6,465
6,140
5,389
6,273
5,495
3,025
2,410
0
0
Lemont
1,150
4,010
2,634
3,250
6,423
995
0
0
0
0
Maybelle
0
0
0
19
0
366
0
0
0
0
Millie
0
0
0
0
21
0
0
0
0
0
Skybonnet
0
0
0
0
1,391
0
0
0
0
0
Tebonnet
150
2,780
4,630
3,001
3,619
3,047
0
0
0
0
TOTAL
8,500
14,430
13,847
12,282
20,201
23,163
15,293
17,986
17,864
19,277
Footnotes
1. This document is SS-AGR-76, one of a series of the Agronomy Department, Florida Cooperative Extension Service, Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences, University of Florida. Revised December 2000. Reviewed March 2005. Please visit EDIS web site at http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu.2. T. J. Schueneman, Extension Agent IV, Palm Beach County, UF-IFAS, Belle Glade and C. W. Deren, Rice Agronomist, Everglades Research and Education Center, UF-IFAS, Belle Glade, Cooperative Extension Service, Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences, University of Florida, Gainesville, 32611.
The use of trade names in this publication is solely for the purpose of providing specific information. UF/IFAS does not guarantee or warranty the products named, and references to them in this publication does not signify our approval to the exclusion of other products of suitable composition.
The Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (IFAS) is an Equal Opportunity Institution authorized to provide research, educational information and other services only to individuals and institutions that function with non-discrimination with respect to race, creed, color, religion, age, disability, sex, sexual orientation, marital status, national origin, political opinions or affiliations. For more information on obtaining other extension publications, contact your county Cooperative Extension service.
U.S. Department of Agriculture, Cooperative Extension Service, University of Florida, IFAS, Florida A. & M. University Cooperative Extension Program, and Boards of County Commissioners Cooperating. Larry Arrington, Dean.
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