Harrisburg, Ark. – Farmers, researchers, and agricultural leaders convened Thursday at the Northeast Rice Research and Extension Center in Poinsett County to explore cutting-edge farming technologies that promise to streamline operations and conserve resources.
One highlight of the event was a presentation on PumpTrackr, an irrigation monitoring app created by Arkansas farmer Nathan Holmes. The app allows farmers to track real-time water usage across their fields, addressing common challenges in irrigation management.
Holmes shared how manual recordkeeping had made it difficult for him to manage water consumption effectively. “At the end of the year, we had really no concept of how many times we irrigated our corn, or how much water had been applied on the rice, or how much fuel we had used on a particular field,” Holmes explained.
He added that beyond improving management, the app has allowed him to balance farm responsibilities with family life. “This gave me the ability to manage better than I’ve ever managed before, still be able to be present with my kids for a baseball game on a Saturday afternoon, and not worry that the farm’s burning down because I left,” he said.
The annual field day featured live demonstrations, with attendees viewing drone-powered land surveying technologies and innovations in weed control for rice crops. Inside the center, experts gave presentations on managing post-harvest practices and addressing parasitic nematodes, a major challenge for rice farmers.
Tim Burcham, director of the Northeast Rice Research and Extension Center, emphasized the broader mission of events like this. “The broad purpose of the field day is simply to have an outreach methodology and an opportunity for fellowship for our producers as well as the consultants and the folks that help our producers,” Burcham said.
The event drew international interest this year, including Chernor Musa Kabia, CEO of Kabia Farms in Sierra Leone. Kabia, who has attended the event three times, applauded Arkansas farmers’ use of technologies like precision land grading and drone applications, noting their potential to improve stability in agriculture globally.
“This is my third year visiting this world trip,” Kabia said. “It’s exciting to see different varieties [and] improved ways of doing things.”
Local producers, global visitors, and industry consultants left the event with insights into emerging agricultural practices. The Northeast Rice Research and Extension Center hosts the Soybean and Rice Field Day annually to foster connections and share advancements with the farming community.