Advice from A Certified Crop Adviser

Story, photos and recipes by Cynthia Nobles

To get the most from their crops, many farmers rely on the agricultural wisdom of a certified crop adviser (CCA). Rustin Gilder is Louisiana’s state representative for the national CCA program, and he can give pest, fertilizer, and weed advice with the best of them. 

For 32 years Gilder has been an agricultural product salesman for Crowley Grain, the drier that processes and handles 35-40 percent of Louisiana’s seed rice.  
            
“We grow seed for large companies like Horizon and Nutrien,” Gilder said. “Every decision the farmer and I make in the fall affects what will happen next year.” 
            
For that reason, Gilder sees tremendous value in the CCA program, which requires that an adviser pass rigorous testing for technical knowledge and sign a code of ethics that places the customer’s needs first.
            
“To provide any service or sell agriculture products,” Gilder said, “fieldmen in the industry, whether crop consultants or salespersons, are required to have a certification in their respective areas with the Louisiana Department of Agriculture and Forestry. In Louisiana, adding a CCA certification on top of those requirements is entirely voluntary, but it does educate on important details about agricultural products. It also designates professionalism. It distinguishes a CCA from others in the adviser field, and it earns respect from customers and employers.”
            
CCAs develop strong working relationships with farmers, and their expertise is in demand year-round. “Throughout the process, a farmer has a good idea what he wants to do,” Gilder said, “and we provide technical information. For rice, we start next year’s crop in the fall, when the farmer does laser leveling and we help determine fall weed control. In the winter, we do soil samples and give advice on nutrients that need to be added.”
            
As the growing season progresses, a CCA follows his customers’ plant health. “We spend a lot of time in the field,” he said. “For example, on day 10 after a farmer plants rice, we typically go to the fields to check plant stands and herbicide and fertilizer needs. Preventive weed emergence is one of our main goals.”
            
He also mentioned crawfish farming’s impact on local crop advising. “Some newer rice varieties do better in crawfish ponds and we will give advice on that. We used to pull soil samples only on rice first crop. Now with the growth of the crawfish industry, we might pull samples for first crop, second crop, and the crawfish crop.”
            
To remember all those details, Gilder keeps a ledger of information that includes field planting dates, rice varieties, and technologies used.
            
Gilder reminds us that crop advising is a relatively new occupational designation. “There was not much demand for field people 60 years ago,” he said. “County agents used to do most of the advising. Back then there were not many rice varieties and there were only a few pesticides. The necessity of crop advising has grown due to the large amounts of new pesticides and technologies.”
            
A Crowley native, Gilder graduated from LSU in Ag Business and Agronomy. The first three years after college, he simultaneously worked at Crowley Grain and farmed rice, soybeans, and wheat on his in-laws’ farm. “I have always loved farming,” he said. “When I was young I also spent a lot of time with my paw-paw, who was a rice, soybean, and cattle farmer.”
            
Louisiana has 81 certified crop advisers, and the CCA program is administered through the National CCA and The American Society of Agronomy. Gilder says that certification could be of interest to anyone who offers crop advice, including consultants, farm managers, self-employed farmers, and educators and personnel in the agricultural industry.
            
To be a CCA member, you need a B.S. degree in an agronomy-related field plus two years of intern crop advising, or you can qualify with four years of post-high school intern crop advising experience. You must also pass both an international and a Louisiana exam and go through a review by the Louisiana CCA Board.

​To keep your certification, you must earn 40 hours of continuing education every two years. Conventions and seminars are available to keep members current on crop hybrids/varieties, technologies, and application rates.

Rustin Gilder says he would be happy to mentor anyone through the certification process. You can reach him at: [email protected].
 
 
Do you have a Louisiana agriculture story or a recipe you’d like to share? Contact me at [email protected].
 
Cynthia Nobles is the cookbook editor for LSU Press and the author/co-author of several historical cookbooks, including A Confederacy of Dunces Cookbook, The Delta Queen Cookbook, and The Fonville Winans Cookbook.
 
 
Lemony Chicken and Rice Soup
Makes 8 cups
 
This comforting, Greek-inspired recipe is a good way to use up leftover baked chicken or turkey.
 
1 tablespoon olive oil
½ cup finely chopped onion
½ cup finely chopped celery
½ cup finely diced carrot
1 tablespoon minced garlic
2 quarts chicken broth
½ cup raw long grain rice
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 teaspoon finely minced lemon zest
2 large eggs
¼ cup freshly squeezed lemon juice
1 teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon black pepper
1½ cups diced or shredded cooked chicken
¼ cup chopped green onion
 
1. Add oil to a Dutch oven set over medium heat. Sauté onion, celery, and carrot until onion is soft, 7 minutes. Add garlic and cook 30 seconds.
2. Stir in broth, rice, oregano, and lemon zest and bring to a boil. Cover the pot tightly and reduce heat to medium-low. Cook, stirring occasionally, until rice is tender, about 15 minutes. 
3. Meanwhile, in a small bowl beat together the eggs, lemon juice, salt, and black pepper. When rice is completely tender, slowly dribble a cup of the hot soup into the egg mixture, the whole while whisking. Whisk the tempered egg mixture into the pot and bring to a bare simmer. (Don’t boil or the eggs will curdle.) Remove the pot from the heat, stir in the chicken and green onion, and taste for seasoning. Serve hot.
 
 
Mushroom Rice
Makes 4 side servings
 
2 tablespoons butter, divided
8 ounces fresh mushrooms, sliced
1 large onion, chopped
1 cup raw long grain rice
3 cloves garlic, chopped
1½ cups chicken or vegetable stock
2 teaspoons Creole seasoning
½ cup chopped green onion
 
1. Add 1 tablespoon butter to a large skillet that has a tight-fitting lid. Set the uncovered skillet over medium-high heat and sauté the mushrooms and onion until the mushrooms have released their liquid and the bottom of the skillet is dry. 
2. Add remaining tablespoon butter, the rice, and garlic and sauté 2 minutes. Add stock and Creole seasoning and stir to release any bits from the bottom of the pan. Bring to a boil, then lower to a simmer. Cover and cook until all liquid is absorbed and rice is tender, 15-20 minutes. (Stir once, after 10 minutes.)
3. Remove pan from the heat and let sit 10 minutes without removing cover. Stir in green onion and taste for seasoning. Serve warm. 
 
 
Crawfish Cakes
Makes 8 cakes
 
1 tablespoon butter
¼ cup minced onion
¼ cup minced bell pepper
1 jalapeno pepper, seeded and minced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1-pound package crawfish tails, with fat
2 large eggs, beaten
2 tablespoons mayonnaise
 
1 teaspoon Creole seasoning
½ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon black pepper
2 cups breadcrumbs, divided
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
½ cup vegetable oil
For serving: high-quality bottled dipping sauce
 
1. Melt butter in a large skillet set over medium-high heat and sauté onion, bell pepper, and jalapeno until onion is translucent. Add garlic and cook 30 seconds. Remove mixture from heat, transfer to a large bowl, and let cool 5 minutes.
2. Stir in crawfish and fat, eggs, mayonnaise, Creole seasoning, salt, and black pepper. Stir in 1 cup breadcrumbs, and flour. (If mixture seems too loose, add more breadcrumbs). Form into 8 balls, then smash them down to form round patties that are about ½ inch high.
3. Heat vegetable oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Coat patties in remaining 1 cup breadcrumbs and fry until golden brown on both sides, about 5-7 minutes total. Serve with your favorite dipping sauce.