“Enhancing Water Productivity in Rice through Enhancing Water Productivity in Rice through Different Methods of Rice CultivationDifferent Methods of Rice Cultivation”

Shantappa Duttarganvi

Doctoral Research Fellow

WALAMTARI

Shantappa Duttarganvi

Doctoral Research Fellow

WALAMTARI

Introduction

Traditional/ low land rice

SRI method

Aerobic Rice

Alternate wetting and Drying

Direct seeded rice

Conclusion

Cultivate more land with less water

Introduction

• >3 billion people in Asia & 1.5 billion people in Africa and Latin America•37% area (154 Mha) is rainfed--scope to increase productivity

To meet future food requirements, India need to increase rice productivity by 3 % per annum

(Thiyagarajan and Selvaraju, 2001)

To produce 1 kg of grain, farmers have to supply 2-3 times more water in rice fields than other cereals

(Baker et al., 1998)

80% of the freshwater resources are used for irrigation purpose half of which is used for rice production

(Dawe et al., 1998)

“Despite the constraints of water scarcity, rice production must rise dramatically over the next generation to meet the food needs “

(Serageldin, 2011)

To meet future food requirements, India need to increase rice productivity by 3 % per annum

(Thiyagarajan and Selvaraju, 2001)

To produce 1 kg of grain, farmers have to supply 2-3 times more water in rice fields than other cereals

(Baker et al., 1998)

80% of the freshwater resources are used for irrigation purpose half of which is used for rice production

(Dawe et al., 1998)

“Despite the constraints of water scarcity, rice production must rise dramatically over the next generation to meet the food needs “

(Serageldin, 2011)

DES, 2009DES, 2009

Bouman, 2001

Components of water balance in rice fields

Components of water balance in rice fields

Selection of a good genotype

Method of planting

Weed management

Selection of a good genotype

Method of planting

Weed management

Irrigation method and land levelling

Seed priming

Silicon nutrition

Irrigation method and land levelling

Seed priming

Silicon nutrition

Low land rice High water requirement

3000–5000 liters of water to produce 1 kg of rice

Environmental degradation Reduces fertilizer use efficiency Destruction of soil aggregates Anaerobic fermentation of soil

organic matter: Methane emission

Ways to improve WUE in conventional Ways to improve WUE in conventional systemsystem

Crack/rat hole ploughing Bund lining or reparing breached bunds Conoweeding Line sowing Saturated condition Proper land leveling and puddling Transplanting young seedlings

• System of rice Intensification (SRI): 30-40%

• Alternate wetting and drying (AWD): 15-30%

• Aerobic rice: 40-50%

• Direct seeded rice: 75%

• Ground cover rice production system: 50-60%

• System of rice Intensification (SRI): 30-40%

• Alternate wetting and drying (AWD): 15-30%

• Aerobic rice: 40-50%

• Direct seeded rice: 75%

• Ground cover rice production system: 50-60%

SYSTEM OF RICE INTENSIFICATION (SRI) METHOD

• SRI was developed in Madagascar in the early-1980s by Father Henri de Laulanie

• Formal experimentation started in India 2002-2003

Core principles of SRI< seed- one seed revolution< water- Rice is not an aquatic plant8-12 day old seedlings Mechanical weedingSquare plantingOrganic source of nutrients

“SRI cuts the water required for irrigated rice by 25-50%. The

combination of water reduction together with other SRI practices can increase paddy yields by 50-100%”

Norman Uphoff

• 8-12 days old seedlings

• The fields are alternately kept wet and dry; they are not flooded until the panicle initiation stage

• 1-3 cm of water in the field during the reproductive phase

• Mechanical weeding 10 DAT

• 8-12 days old seedlings

• The fields are alternately kept wet and dry; they are not flooded until the panicle initiation stage

• 1-3 cm of water in the field during the reproductive phase

• Mechanical weeding 10 DAT

8-10 Days (2 leaf stage) nursery Careful uprooting & transplanting Wider spacing(25X25cm)

Weeding with weeder Saturation of the field Use of Organics

Mahendrakumar et al. (2008)

Mechanical weeding

Transplanted SRI field

• Rice seedlings lose much of their growth potential if they are transplanted more than about 15 days after they emerge in their nursery

• Wide spacing of plants will lead to greater root growth and accompanying tillering

In SRI method, young seedlings are placed at shallow depth and therefore these seedlings establish quickly. Whereas in the conventional method 25-30 day old seedlings are pulled from nursery and pushed deep into the puddled soil and during the process the tips of roots face upward and hence these require more time and energy to establish in the soil

Norman Uphoff, 2005

Mahendrakumar et al. (2008)DRR Technical Bulletin

Country Yield Increase over conventional

Philippines 100%

India 83%Nepal 82% Indonesia 78% Cambodia 41% china 29%

Vietnam 21%

FAO, 2007

MORE TILLERS AND > 400 GRAINS PER PANICLE

conventional practice v/s SRI methodsConventional Practices

• 25-30 days seedlings

• Multiple seedlings

• Large plant population

• Paddies kept flooded throughout the growing cycle

• Weeds are controlled by flooding, hand weeding and herbicides

SRI Methods

• 8-12 days old seedlings

• Single seedling

• Sparse plant population

• Soil aeration with AWD

• Weeds are controlled with a rotary weeder

Comparison of dry matter in SRI v/s Conventionally grown rice at different stages crop cycle

Tao (2004)

Mahendrakumar et al. (2008)Mahendrakumar et al. (2008)

Water productivity as influenced by SRI v/s normal (flooded rice)

Water use decreased by 29% (SRI 79 Cum)Water productivity increased by 20%

Viraktamath, 2007 Viraktamath, 2007

Grain yield increase by 10% in SRI

Gujja and Thiyagarajan, 2010Gujja and Thiyagarajan, 2010

37.5 % 34.2 %

Impact of crop establishment techniques on grain yield and water productivity of rice

Evaluation of methods of cultivation and spacing on seed yield and seed quality parameters in BPT-5204

Krishna et al. (2008)Dharwad

Marimuthu et al. (2011)Marimuthu et al. (2011)

COST OF CULTIVATION (RS/ACRE): CONVENTIONAL V/S SRI METHOD

Note : Price of paddy - Rs.5,600/tPrice of straw - Rs. 800/t Mahendrakumar et al. (2008)

Saving of 30 – 40% irrigation water

Saving of 85 % seed (2 kg / acre as against 25-30

kg/ acre in normal method)

Saving of chemical inputs

More healthy and tasty rice due to organic farming

practices

Better and higher yields with lower inputs

Crop duration reduced by 7-10 days due to

absence of transplanting shock

BenefitsBenefits

Increased mycorrhizal association Increased rhizobial association Prolonged root activity Higher water productivity Long root development Labour cost Reduced nitrogen lossBiofertilizers saves 20-30kg/ha of nitrogen fertilizers

Particulars Seasonal water requirement (mm)

Lowland rice Aerobic rice

Land preparation 150-300 100

Evaporation 200 100

Transpiration 400 400

Seepage and percolation

500 335

Application loss 400 335

Total seasonal water requirement (mm)

1650 935

Lampayan and Bouman, 2005

Water input and yield of aerobic rice varieties Water input and yield of aerobic rice varieties under flooded and aerobic conditionsunder flooded and aerobic conditions

year Water management

Water input

Yield (t ha-1)

I IR HD502 HD297

2001 Flooded 1057 1351 6.8 5.4

Aerobic 350 644 5.3 4.7

2002 Flooded 900 1255 5.7 5.3

Aerobic 522 917 4.6 5.3

Bouman et al. (2007)

Direct-seeded rice save about 75 per cent of water along with about 10 percent loss of yield

Johl, 2009

• AWD is also called ‘intermittent irrigation’ or ‘controlled irrigation’

• Alternate flooding

• Compared with the traditional continuous flooding system, AWD using lowland rice cultivars can reduce water input by 15-30% without yield loss

Field water tube from PVC Note the holes on all sides

A Field tube underFlooded conditions

Water at 15 cm depth:Time to irrigate and flood the field again

KEY POINTS OF AWD

Transplant young seedlings into puddled soil Install a PVC pipe with holes Start AWD at 10 DAT and allow the field to

dry out Re-flood the field to a standing water layer of

5 cm when the groundwater is 15-20 cm below the soil surface

Keep a standing water layer of 5 cm for 1 week at flowering

Continue AWD cycles after flowering until harvest

Scope for 10, 20, 25 and 30 cm with different genotypes and different location

Water use efficiency under different irrigation treatments

Treatments

Total water use (cm)

Average total water used (cm)

Water use efficiency (kg/ha/cm)BRRIdha

n 28BRRIdhan 29

T1 112.20 122.20 117.2 58.53

T2 (10 cm)

92.20 97.20 94.7 69.48

T3 (20cm) 87.20 92.20 89.7 69.89

T4 (30cm) 82.20 87.20 84.7 69.19

Treatment details:

T1: continuous submergence (1 to 7 cm standing water)

T2, T3, T4: application of 5 cm irrigation water when water level in the pipe fell 10, 2020 and 30 cm below the G.L., respectively.

Oliver et al., 2008

Geethalakshmi et al. (2008)

Ground cover rice production systemSoil is constantly kept very

moist, but not flooded

Mulch- drying out and

developing deep cracks

Plastic sheet or pre-composted

straw

Checks the ET

Adds OM to soil

Burkhard et al., 2005

Drip irrigation

• 25,000/acre• 15 years life span• 4.78• 80% water reduction and 10% increase

in yield

Benefits:• Increase in WUE• Reduce the agrochemical application

by fertigation or chemigation• Eliminates anaerobic decomposition• Quality water can be delivered

Texas, Netafim

..\Res\Alternate wetting and drying (AWD)--using less water to grow rice - YouTube.mp4

Future line of work

• Awareness about rice is not aquatic plant

• Standardization of AWD

• Weed management in aerobic and AWD

• Scope for sprinkler and drip irrigation

Average yields, Water balance and water use efficiency

Lin et al. (2003)