Planting Season: A Snapshot

To most, spring marks a season of warm weather, colorful plants, outdoor activities, and regular weekend lake trips with family.  

But for our farmers, spring is planting season.  

While we all get to enjoy the luxuries of an 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. work schedule and normal routines, farmers are sweating it out in the field, taking very few breaks, returning home late, and giving everything they have each day to establish the 2023 crop.  

At the beginning of planting season, our farmers prepare the soil for seed by breaking, smoothing, and fertilizing the ground with tractors and implements unique to their operations and region. Once complete, they begin placing the seed in the ground.  

In the case of our rice farmers, levees are made, and gates are installed to ensure the rice will have plenty of water in the paddy when summer comes.  

Then, with building anticipation, they wait to see fields of brown turn green.  

Farmers’ daily schedules widely vary and rarely go as planned, but the following schedule exhibits what a dry spring day may hold for a farmer.  

Schedule:  

5 AM – Wake up, get ready, have breakfast, check the weather and markets  

6 AM – Pick up order from supplier  

6:45 AM – Team meeting to give tasks on what fields are to be worked, smoothed, or planted  

7 AM – Team heads to tractors and planting begins  

10 AM – Pick up more seed  

11 AM – Begin repairing a tractor  

2 PM – Tractor repairs finished, have lunch in the tractor while working ground  

3 PM – Mark where levees should be in a rice field  

5 PM – Finish levees, start installing levee gates  

6 PM – Finish levee gates, have dinner at the field with family  

7:30 PM – Tell employees to find a good spot to stop for the day  

8 PM – Pick everyone up and send them home  

9:30 PM – Eat, shower, quickly look up weather and market updates  

10 PM – Sleep  

Here at Riceland, we ask you to join us in remembering our farmers today and throughout this spring as they diligently work to establish the crops we will find on our plates during the winter season.    

To our outstanding farmers in the field, thank you for feeding the world. #UnitedWeGrow

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