Arkansas Rice Farming

6 Pages 1596 Words

Rice and Arkansas are two things that go together like clouds and the sky. They are synonymous with each other. Rice farming has been a pivotal economical factor in the history of Arkansas, since its induction into the state in the early 20th century. Since then, Arkansas has become the rice capital of the world.
Although minute rice farming has been dated back to 1819 (for family consumption), it was 1902 when a farmer in Lonoke raised an acre of rice in the southwest Arkansas Grand Prairie region.2 That farmer’s name was Samuel McCormick. His first crop proved to people that there was a profit to be earned. Then in 1903, he experimented with an irrigation system on the John Morris farm, which is still in business today. That irrigation system was the first ever used in the state, and was extremely important.3 Morris’ farm had run into bad luck a year earlier, but in 1903’s farming season, he brought in 100 bushels an acre for 20 acres, a very successful harvest. In 1904, the Alluvial Aquifer was created, which still is used today by many.4 By 1906, in the Grand Prairie region, 5000 acres were under cultivation, and by 1909, Arkansas had 29,000 acres in rice. Rice farming continued growing, and by World War I, the acreage was up to 129,000.5 Rice farming was growing exponentially. Since then, rice farming has defined Arkansas’ very nature.
Rice’s history hasn’t been a very long one, at least compared to other crops like wheat, corn and cotton. Rice that is now planted by airplanes was once planted by hand transplanting, which is still done in Asia. The sickle was used for many years but has been replaced by the comfortable air-conditioned combine. Water was once kept in reservoirs filled by the rains in winter is now pumped from deep underground or pumped from rivers or other water sources. Varieties that took months to grow have now been replaced by rice that matures in half the time or less.6 Rice ha...