New: 500th California Rice Blog Post

An early spring.

For the past three years, every rice grower in the Valley has remembered it, hoped for it, and eventually adapted to life without it.  It tempted us each time, temperate weather late in February and March, only for the rains to come, compress our season, and force us to hope for an unlikely dry autumn.

But fortunately, 2013 has proved to be one of the nicest springs I can remember, something I find fitting as I begin to prepare for my tenth rice crop.  All of a sudden, things that usually are included in the spring program, but have been left aside due to expediency are being done.  And perhaps most importantly, our most important tools are given the chance to do their job as they were designed. 

As the state of California grows, as does the demand for water.  It is very critical that rice fields get the best use of what water it does use.  The evolution of leveling fields has been a boon in achieving this.

I still remember my first few years in the summer, taking the "old" laser leveling technology into fields we had rotated out for winter crops for the express purpose of leveling them for the coming years.  I see the new GPS technology that is efficient to use in the spring before planting, and often one thought still creeps into my mind....I wish I had paid more attention in Geometry!

But, we have the opportunity to actually use them as much as we need to this year, instead of settling for "close enough." It’s a welcome change.

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More about Tom: Tom Butler farms rice with his father, Steve, in Sutter and Yolo Counties. Tom is the fourth generation of his family to farm.

When he’s not on the job, the University of Nebraska graduate enjoys swimming, water polo, hunting and spending time with his family.