A field study was conducted during the 2016 and 2017 crop seasons at the LSU AgCenter H. Rouse Caffey Rice Research Station to evaluate weed control and rice yield after quizalofop-p-ethyl applications in water-seeded coenzyme A carboxylase (ACCase)–resistant ‘PVLO1’ long-grain rice production utilizing different flood systems, application timings, and quizalofop rates. The initial application of quizalofop was applied at five timings beginning when ‘PVLO1’ rice was at the coleoptile stage (PEG) through the one- to two-tiller stage. A total quizalofop rate of 240 g ai ha–1 was split into two applications: 97 followed by 143 g ha–1 or 120 followed by 120 g ai ha–1 in both pinpoint and delayed flood water-seeded management systems. A second quizalofop application was applied 14 d after initial treatment (DAIT). At 14 DAIT, a reduction in control of barnyardgrass and red rice was observed by delaying the initial quizalofop application to the two- to four-tiller stage compared with rice treated at earlier growth stages. At 42 DAIT, control of barnyardgrass was 94% to 96%, and red rice was 98% following the second application of quizalofop, regardless of initial application timing. Rice treated with quizalofop at the PEG and two- and three-leaf stage resulted in a rice height of 104 cm at harvest compared with 96 to 100 cm when the initial application of quizalofop was delayed to later growth stages. Applying the initial application of quizalofop to rice at the PEG timing in the pinpoint or the delayed flood system resulted in a total gross value per hectare of $450 and $590, respectively. Within each flood system, delaying the initial application of quizalofop to the one- to two-tiller stage resulted in a gross per-hectare value reduction of $100 ha-1 in the pinpoint flood and $110 ha-1 in the delayed flood.

Acetyl co-enzyme A carboxylase (ACCase)-resistant rice allows quizlaofop-p-ethyl to be applied as a POST control of troublesome grass weeds. A field study was conducted in 2017 and 2018 at the H. Rouse Caffey Rice Research Station near Crowley, LA, to evaluate the influence of a crop oil concentrate (COC), a silicon-based surfactant plus a nitrogen source (SNS), or a high-concentrate COC (HCOC) in overcoming the grass weed control antagonism of quizalofop-p-ethyl when mixed with bispyribac-Na. Quizalofop-p-ethyl was applied at 120 g ai ha−1, bispyribac-Na was applied at 34 g ai ha−1, and all adjuvants were applied at 1% vol/vol. Antagonistic interactions were observed at 14 d after treatment (DAT) when quizalofop-p-ethyl was mixed with bispyribac-Na with no adjuvant for control of barnyardgrass, the non–ACCase-tolerant rice cultivars ‘CL-111’ and ‘CLXL-745’, and red rice. At 14 DAT, antagonism of quizalofop-p-ethyl for control of barnyardgrass was observed when mixed with bispyribac-Na plus COC, SNS, or HCOC, with an observed control of 43%, 63%, and 86%, respectively, compared with an expected control of 95% for quizalofop-p-ethyl alone. However, the antagonism of quizalofop-p-ethyl when mixed with bispyribac-Na plus HCOC for barnyardgrass control at 14 DAT was overcome by 28 DAT, with an observed control of 91%, compared with an expected control of 97%. Synergistic or neutral interactions were observed at 14 and 28 DAT when COC, SNS, or HCOC was added to a mixture of quizalofop-p-ethyl plus bispyribac-Na for CL-111, CLXL-745, and red rice control. According to the results of this study, HCOC is the most effective adjuvant for quizalofop-p-ethyl and bispyribac-Na mixtures for control of weedy rice and barnyardgrass.

A study was conducted at three locations in Louisiana to evaluate the interactions of imazamox at 44 g ai ha−1 mixed with propanil, thiobencarb, or with a prepackaged mixture of propanil plus thiobencarb. A synergistic response was observed for red rice control for all treatments at 14 days after treatments (DAT); however, at 21 DAT a neutral response was observed for imazamox mixed with propanil or thiobencarb. A synergistic response occurred for red rice control when imazamox was mixed with propanil plus thiobencarb at 3360 g ai ha−1 for all evaluation dates; however, imazamox mixed with propanil plus thiobencarb at 1680 g ha−1 resulted in synergism at the same evaluations except at 35 DAT with neutral response. Synergism was observed for barnyardgrass control with imazamox mixed with propanil plus thiobencarb at 3360 g ha−1 at 35 and 49 DAT. The only antagonism observed for barnyardgrass control was at 42 DAT with imazamox plus propanil at 840 and 1680 g ha−1 or mixed with the prepackage mixture at 1680 g ha−1. Rice treated with imazamox mixed with propanil plus thiobencarb at 3360 g ha−1 yielded 5770 kg ha−1.

The commercialization of imazethapyr-resistant (Clearfield™, CL) rice in the southern United States has raised serious concerns about gene flow to red rice, producing imazethapyr-resistant red rice populations. Our objectives were to determine the impact of planting date, CL cultivars, and red rice biotypes on outcrossing rate; and to investigate the relative contribution of flowering time of CL rice and red rice biotypes, together with air temperature and relative humidity (RH), on outcrossing rate. Field experiments were conducted at Stuttgart, Rohwer, and Kibler, AR, from 2005 to 2007, at three or four planting times from mid-April to late May. ‘CL161’ (inbred cultivar) and ‘CLXL8’ (hybrid) rice were planted in nine-row plots, with red rice planted in the middle row. Twelve red rice biotypes were used. The flowering of red rice and CL rice, air temperature, and RH were recorded. Red rice seeds were collected at maturity. To estimate outcrossing rate, resistance to imazethapyr was evaluated in subsequent years and confirmed using rice microsatellite markers. CLXL8 rice flowered 2 to 4 d earlier than CL161 rice, and flowering was completed within 1 wk in all plantings. The flowering duration of most red rice biotypes ranged from 4 to 17 d. Flowering synchrony of red rice biotypes and CL rice ranged from 0 to 100% at different plantings. In general, CLXL8 had greater flowering overlap and higher outcrossing rate with red rice than did CL161 rice. The outcrossing rate of red rice biotypes ranged from 0 to 0.21% and 0 to 1.26% with CL161 and CLXL8 rice, respectively. The outcrossing rate differed within each planting date (P < 0.05). Outcrossing was generally lower in mid-May and late May than in mid-April and late April planting times. Flowering synchrony and outcrossing rate were not correlated (r2 < 0.01). Outcrossing with CL161 was primarily influenced by red rice biotype. A minimum air temperature of > 24 C in the evening also favors outcrossing with CL161. With CLXL8 rice, outcrossing was most affected by RH. When RH was < 54%, outcrossing was less (0.12%) than when RH was ≥ 54% (0.38%). With CLXL8 rice, a minimum RH of ≥ 54%, from mid-morning to noon, increased outcrossing with red rice. To fully understand the interaction effects of these factors on outcrossing with red rice, controlled experiments are needed.

Weedy red rice is a major weed pest of rice in the southern United States. Outcrossing between red rice and commercial tropical japonica rice cultivars has resulted in new weed biotypes that further hinder the effectiveness of weed management. In recent years, indica rice has been used increasingly as a germplasm source for breeding and for reduced-input systems in the United States, but little is known about its outcrossing potential with U.S. weedy red rice biotypes. In a 2-yr study, simple sequence repeat marker analysis was used to show that blackhull (BH) red rice (PI 653424) outcrossing to four, late-maturing indica cultivars averaged 0.0086% and ranged from 0.002% for ‘TeQing’ to 0.0173% for ‘4484’ (PI 615022). Rates of outcrossing to a tropical japonica cultivar standard, ‘Kaybonnet’ (0.032%), were substantially greater than for the indica cultivars. These differences in outcrossing were due largely to synchronization of flowering times between rice and red rice, with Kaybonnet and TeQing exhibiting the greatest and least synchronization, respectively. Outcrossing rates also may have been affected by rice–red rice flower density differences within the rice plots. Outcrossing from cultivated rice to the red rice (as pollen recipient), which was taller than all rice cultivars, was undetectable in these studies, and environmental conditions (e.g., temperature, humidity, solar radiation, and rainfall) were not strongly correlated with the outcrossing rates observed. Grain yields of the original BH red rice line were greatest in the Kaybonnet plots, demonstrating that the indica cultivars were superior competitors against this weed. Collectively, these results suggest that red rice biotypes that flower synchronously with rice cultivars are a potential source of pollen for outcrossing and gene flow in rice fields in the southern United States.

Field studies were conducted in Crowley, LA, and Stoneville, MS, in drill-seeded rice to evaluate economical returns of weed control with imazethapyr. Red rice and barnyardgrass control was evaluated with imazethapyr alone at various rates and application timings. Imazethapyr, averaged across rate, controlled red rice 89% and barnyardgrass 90% when the initial application of imazethapyr was applied at emergence followed by a second application of imazethapyr 2 wk later. No difference in red rice and barnyardgrass control was observed with imazethapyr, averaged across timing. Yield and economical returns were maximized when the initial application of imazethapyr was applied at rice emergence followed by a second application of imazethapyr 2 wk later.

A study was conducted to evaluate interactions of imazethapyr co-application with propanil, thiobencarb, or a prepackaged mixture of propanil plus thiobencarb. At 7, 14, 21, and 49 d after treatment (DAT), synergism occurred for red rice treated with imazethapyr at 70 g ai ha−1 mixed with propanil plus thiobencarb at 1,680 and 3,360 g ai ha−1. A synergistic response was also observed with imazethapyr at 70 g ha−1 mixed with propanil at 1,680 g ha−1; however, all other co-applications evaluated resulted in a neutral response with no antagonism observed. At 7 DAT, antagonism was observed for barnyardgrass when treated with imazethapyr at 70 g ha−1 mixed with propanil plus thiobencarb at 1,680 g ha−1, propanil at 840 g ha−1, or thiobencarb at 840 and 1,680 g ha−1; however, a synergistic response occurred for barnyardgrass control at 14, 21, and 49 DAT with imazethapyr at 70 g ha−1 mixed with propanil plus thiobencarb at 3,360 g ha−1. The synergistic response observed for red rice and barnyardgrass control with a mixture of imazethapyr plus propanil plus thiobencarb can benefit producers by increasing control of red rice and barnyardgrass, and this mixture contains three herbicides with three different modes of action, which can be part of an overall resistance-management strategy in imidazolinone-resistant (IR) rice.

Two red rice accessions from Arkansas have been found to be resistant to the labeled rate of imazethapyr, which is used to control red rice in ClearfieldTM rice. Full-length amplification of the acetolactate synthase (ALS) gene in imazethapyr-resistant red rice revealed a coding sequence of 1,935 base pairs, which is the same as that of the cultivated rice. Coding sequences were generated from four red rice accessions collected from different geographical regions in Arkansas, consisting of accessions that were either resistant or susceptible to imazethapyr. Nucleotide sequence alignments identified six base polymorphisms, three of which resulted in amino acid substitutions in the ALS gene. One amino acid substitution, Gly654Glu, involves a residue required for imazethapyr binding to the ALS. The other substitution, Val669Met, implies conformational changes in the ALS structure that enhances binding of thiamine diphosphate, an ALS cofactor. These novel amino acid substitutions first reported for ALS-resistant red rice accessions support the hypothesis that ALS-resistant red rice can evolve with sustained herbicide selection pressure. Thus, it behooves growers to integrate the Cleafield rice technology with other tools to achieve a successful, long-term weed management program.

A study was established to evaluate interactions between imazamox at 0 and 44 g ai ha−1 mixed with propanil at 0, 1,120, 2,240, 3,360, and 4,480 g ai ha−1 for the control of red rice and barnyardgrass. Blouin's Modified Colby's procedure was used to test for interactions. At 7 d after treatment (DAT), a synergistic response occurred for red rice treated with imazamox at 44 g ha−1 mixed with propanil at 3,360 and 4,480 g ha−1 by increasing expected control of 62% to an observed control of 67 and 75%, respectively, and the synergistic response continued across all evaluations through 49 DAT. No antagonism occurred for any imazamox plus propanil mixture for red rice control. An antagonistic response was shown for barnyardgrass control with imazamox at 44 g ha−1 mixed with any rate of propanil, at 7 DAT. However, imazamox plus propanil at 4,480 g ha−1 resulted in a neutral response at 14 through 49 DAT. Rice treated with imazamox plus propanil at 4,480 g ha−1 plus imazamox resulted in a yield of 6,640 kg ha−1. The synergistic response observed for red rice control with a mixture of imazamox plus propanil can benefit producers by increasing control of red rice, and this mixture contains two different modes of action that can be part of an overall resistance management strategy.

Field studies were conducted in 2008 and 2009 near Crowley, Louisiana, to evaluate the addition of different propanil formulations in mixture with a standard imazethapyr program of 70 g ai ha−1 early postemergence followed by (fb) 70 g ha−1 late postemergence. Weeds evaluated included red rice, barnyardgrass, Texasweed, and alligatorweed. Control of all species with treatments, including a propanil formulation applied at 3,400 g ai ha−1, was equivalent to, or greater than, the standard imazethapyr program. Rough rice yield and economic returns were maximized when the propanil formulations of Propanil 1 or Propanil 3 were mixed with imazethapyr in the early postemergence applications. The addition of propanil to imazethapyr increased rough rice yield and economic returns because of improved weed control.

Field studies were conducted in 2008 and 2009 near Crowley, LA to evaluate the addition of a herbicide with soil-residual activity in mixture with imazethapyr applied very early POST followed by an application of imazethapyr or imazamox 2 wk after the initial application. Weeds evaluated included red rice, barnyardgrass, and alligatorweed. Weed control with treatments including a herbicide with soil-residual activity was equivalent to or higher than imazethapyr applied alone followed by imazethapyr or imazamox. Yield and economical returns were maximized with quinclorac or penoxsulam mixed with imazethapyr followed by imazethapyr or imazamox. The addition of quinclorac or penoxsulam proved to be beneficial in a total weed management program.