Rice is a grain belonging to the grass family. It is related to other grass plants such as wheat, oats and barley which produce grain for food and are known as cereals. Rice refers to two species (Oryza sativa and Oryza glaberrima) of grass, native to tropical and subtropical southeastern Asia and to Africa, which together provide more than one-fifth of the calories consumed by humans. The plant, which needs both warmth and moisture to grow, measures 2-6 feet tall and has long, flat, pointy leaves and stalk-bearing flowers which produce the grain known as rice. Rice is rich in genetic diversity, with thousands of varieties grown throughout the world.

Rice

Throughout history rice has been one of man's most important foods. Today, this unique grain helps sustain two-thirds of the world's population. It is life for thousands of millions of people. It is deeply embedded in the cultural heritage of their societies. About four-fifths of the world's rice is produced by small-scale farmers and is consumed locally. Rice cultivation is the principal activity and source of income for about 100 million households in Asia and Africa.

Rice - plant profile

Names Rice, paddy rice,

chowdhury rice (English)Dhanya, vrihi, nivara, syali (Sanskrit)Dhan, chaval (Hindu)Chal (Bengal)Dangar, choka (Gujarat)Nellu, arisi (Tamil),

Botanical name: Oryza sativaFamily: Poaceae, the grass family, also known as the Gramineae.

NamesRice, paddy rice, chowdhury rice (English)Dhanya, vrihi, nivara, syali (Sanskrit)Dhan, chaval (Hindu)Chal (Bengal)Dangar, choka (Gujarat)Nellu, arisi (Tamil),

Botanical name: Oryza sativaFamily: Poaceae, the grass family, also known as the Gramineae.

Plant profile The rice plant is a grass which can grow to over 1 m tall

or to 5 m long in deep water.

Stem - upright and composed of a series of joint-like nodes. A leaf grows from each node.

Seed (or grain) - grow on branch-like spikes which arch over. The grain is the most economically important part of the rice plant, and its endosperm is the final product

consumed.

Rice should not be confused with 'wild rice' which is the North American Zizania aquatica, also in the grass

family but not closely related.

WILD RICE

Basmati RiceBasmati Rice, a variety of long grain rice with a

fine texture, is the world's best rice that one can use for cooking and the leading aromatic fine quality rice in the world trade. Basmati rice means the "queen of fragrance" or the perfumed one. This type of rice has been grown in the foothills of the Himalayas for thousands of years. In India, Basmati rice is characterized by extra long, superfine slender grains having a length to breadth ratio of more than 3.5, sweet taste, soft texture, delicate curvature and an extra elongation with least breadth-wise swelling on cooking. This highly aromatic rice is India's gift to the whole world.

Distribution of Rice Soils in India

India has been broadly classified into the following eight agro-climatic zones. The distribution of various kinds of rice soils in the country are as follows :

The Arid Western PlainsThe Humid Bengal-Assam BasinThe Humid Eastern Himalayan RegionThe Humid to Semi-Arid Western Ghats and Karnataka PlateauThe Humid Western Himalayan RegionThe Semi-Arid Lava Plateau and Central HighlandsThe Sub-Humid Sutlej-Ganga Alluvial PlainsThe Sub-Humid to Humid Eastern and South-Eastern Uplands

Climatic Conditions for Rice in India

India is a large country. The wide variety of terrain leads to a wide variety of climatic conditions. These range from permanent snowfields to tropical coast lands; from areas of virtual desert in the north-west to fertile, intensively cultivated rice fields in the north-east. Generally, we consider India to lie between 8° and 35° N latitude, with a tropical and sub-tropical climate. The subcontinent has eight climatic zones all of which only have the monsoon rains in common. But even the monsoon comes to different parts of the country at different times.

Rainfall Rainfall is the most important weather element for

successful cultivation of rice. The distribution of rainfall in different regions of the country is greatly influenced by the physical features of the terrain, the situation of the mountains and plateau. The regions experiencing very heavy rainfall in the country are :

Western Ghats (the western slopes and the coastal region)

In the Assam region. The sub-mountain Himalayan region, Deccan

plateau, Eastern Ghats with coastal plains and the vast Gangetic plains.

Temperature

Temperature is another climatic factor which has a favorable and in some cases unfavorable influence on the development, growth and yield of rice. Rice being a tropical and sub-tropical plant, requires a fairly high temperature, ranging from 20° to 40°C. The optimum temperature of 30°C during day time and 20°C during night time seems to be more favorable for the development and growth of rice crop.

Day length or Sunshine Day length or Sunlight is very essential for

the development and growth of the plants. In fact, sunlight is the source of energy for plant life. The yield of rice is influenced by the solar radiation particularly during the last 35 to 45 days of its ripening period. The effect of solar radiation is more profound where water, temperature and nitrogenous nutrients are not limiting factors. Bright sunshine with low temperature during ripening period of the crop helps in the development of carbohydrates in the grains.

Different methods of Seeding

Seeding is done in three different ways. They are as follows:

DrillingSowing in the furrow behind a plough.

DibblingSowing seed by making holes in soil with a pointed implement.

BroadcastingTo sow seed over a wide area, especially by hand.

Methods of Nursery raising

There are three major methods of raising nursery in India. They are :

The Wet Nursery The Dry Nursery The Dapog Method

The Wet Nursery

The general practice in India is to go in for wet nurseries. Wet nursery is that where sprouted seed is sown on the moist puddled soil. Wet nurseries are preferred under irrigated condition. Young, healthy and vigorous seedlings establish themselves faster and grow better and the major objective of nursery management should be aimed at obtaining such seedlings.

The Dry Nursery

In regions of non-assured water-supply, where wet-bed nurseries cannot be raised, dry nursery-raising is practiced. The dry nursery where the dry seed is sown in dry soil. The seedlings obtained from the dry nurseries are generally hardy and establish themselves very fast when transplanted.

The Dapog Method

Dapog method is commonly prevalent in Philippines, which is also practiced in India. The essential feature of this method is to have a very thick stand of the nursery seedlings without any contact with the soil. Generally, this method is used especially in places where there is assured water-supply and when early transplanting is needed. Seedlings become ready for transplanting in 12 to 14 days. This method of nursery is useful for raising a post-flood rice crop in Assam and West Bengal.

Rice Seeds

Seed is an important and basic input for achieving higher crop yield and increasing a country's agricultural economy. Thus it is very important to maintain seed quality by understanding the right mechanism. Seed markets are generally built around hybrid varieties, which do not reproduce and so force farmers to purchase new seeds every season. Rice, however, is a self-pollinating crop, making hybrid rice seed production costly and difficult, and nearly all rice in Asia is still grown with farmer-saved seeds.

Wet or Lowland Cultivation

The wet system is practiced in areas with assured and adequate supply of water, either by way of rainfall or by irrigation.

In Wet or Lowland Cultivation, the distinguishing factors are :

Transplanting in puddled fields Broadcasting sprouted seeds in puddled

fields

Under Wet or Lowland Cultivation, the land is ploughed thoroughly and puddled with 3-5 cm of standing water in the field. The optimum depth of puddling is found to be around 10 cm in the clay and clay-loam types of soils. The primary objective is to obtain a soft seedbed for the seedlings to establish themselves faster, to minimize the leaching losses of nutrients and thereby increase the availability of plant nutrients by achieving a reduced soil conditions which facilitates a better availability of nutrient elements, to incorporate the weeds and stubble into the soil and to minimize the weed problem. Puddling can be done with ploughs, tillers or tractors, depending upon their availability and soil conditions. The land is leveled after puddling to facilitate a uniform distribution of water and fertilizers.

Varieties of Rice in India

India is one of the richest countries in the world India in terms of possessing tremendous diversity in rice varieties. There are different varieties of rice-depending on the weather, soil, structure, characteristics and purposes.

According to Dr. Richaria, one of the most eminent rice scientists of the world, 4,00,000 varieties of rice existed in India during the vedic period. He estimated that, even today 2,00,000 varieties of rice exist in India which is indeed an exceptionally high number. This means that even if a person eats a new rice variety every day of the year he has to live for over hundred years without reusing a variety. Every variety has a specific purpose and utility. The harvesting area of rice in India is the world's largest. Rice cultivation is found in all the states of India, but West Bengal, Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Punjab, Orissa and Bihar are the major rice producing states. About 600 improved varieties of indica rice have been released for cultivation since 1965.

Rice forms an integral part of the life of all Indians. The main states covering rice cultivation in North India are PunjabHaryana Uttar Pradesh Jammu and Kashmir Himachal Pradesh

Aditya rice barkat, Rice Cauveri, Rice Chakia-59, Rice China, Rice cross-116,Rice Dhan, Narendra-1, RiceGiza-14, Rice Govind, Rice Himalaya, Rice Indian Basmati,Rice IR-579, Rice Jalmagan, RiceJhona-349, Rice Krishna, Rice Malviya, Rice Dhan-36, Rice N -8, Rice Narandra, Rice PR-106, , PR-103, PR-4141, , Rice Prasad, Rice Pusa-169, Rice Saket-4, RiceTaichung Native-1,Rice Tawi, Rice Type -21, Rice Type-3 , Rice USAR-1,Rice VL ,Dhan, Rice VLK Dhan-39.

NURSERY Seeds may be sown after sprouting them or the

seedlings be transplanted. Transplanting should be done with proper age of seedlings. Transplanting in a puddled field has the following advantages :

A good leveling of the land is ensured. The weeds are buried at the time of puddling and

the weed problem is reduced. The population of plants becomes more uniform. The availability of most of the plant nutrients, such

as phosphorus, iron and potassium, is increased and nitrogen is conserved better.

The seedlings transplanted in a soft puddle are able to establish themselves faster and start early tillering and growth.

Nurseries occupy only 10% of the main field area and the cost of maintaining them (irrigation and plant protection) is reduced considerably as compared with a crop sown broadcast.

Plant-protection measures can be effectively used in the nursery.

Community nurseries facilitate timely transplanting.

The treatment of seedlings for nutrient deficiencies and for protection against pests and diseases of facilitated before transplanting.

The seedlings are ready for transplanting in kharif within 20 to 25 days (4-5-leaf stage), where as in rabi it may take 30 to 40 days. Two to three seedlings are planted at 20 X 10 cm or 20 X 15 cm spacing in leveled fields. In regions of low fertility, and for late planting, closer planting is advocated.