SRI culture is the appropriate and economical technology of rice cultivation which has proved as a boon to boost the rice production in India and elsewhere. Dr Alapati Satyanaraya, Plant Breeder and retired as the Director of Extension, Acharya N G Ranga Agricultural University, Hyderabad introduced the concept of SRI cultivation in Andhra Pradesh for the first time which has been very well received and accepted by the farmers who reaped immense benefits by practicing this unique rice cultivatiion technology.

Now a days the scientists are emphasizing on direct seeding because of its less impact on climate but farmers are still preferring transplanting.

Thank you very much Ms.Sanchita. In fact, I already answered this question. I donot know how it has missed in 'Linkedin'. SRI technology is ideally suitable for the rice cultivation since it has potential to increase the yield besides being cheaper and efficient. This technology provides maximum opportunity for each plant to express its maximum yield potential in terms of space reducing the population density. Dr. Alapati Satyanarayana former Director of Extension, Acharya NG Ranga Agricultural University, Hyderabad, Andhra Pradesh introduced for the first time in Andhra Pradesh. He is basically a Plant Breeder. SRI technology is a roaring success in Andhra Pradesh.

HI

Sanchita

Thank you very much for starting a topic on effect of changed rainfall pattern on cultivation practice of rice as this is main cereal in India and plays vital role for maintaining the food security. I have some experience on working on comparative economics between SRI and Traditional method of rice cultivation. What I have observed from experiments and experience that SRI is more preferable than tradition cultivation as

1. Crop takes less time to get matured, so effect of climate change on ainfall distribution can be tackled to some extent.

2. Water is saved upto 50 per cent in SRI than traditional besides less cost of cultivation

3. Yield is higher in SRI than conventional; 1.2 to 1.5 times as observed in the field

4. Overall comparative economics in case of SRI is higher than conventional

Thre are other many advantages of SRI than conventional. What I think Govt. should intervene in this matter to extent the area under SRI.

With thanks

Thank you all for your answers on this topic. I also agree that SRI has proved to increase yield as well as comparative economics is also higher than that of normal transplanting. We all know that "the technology boosted the rice yields by virture of providing maximum opportunity and environment to every single plant to express its full genetic potential in terms of tillering capacity and inturn the yield".But, those varieties which have low tillering capacity, whether they will perform the same with SRI technology.

Sanchita, Rice intensification seems something different from the tillering capacity of rice. These days scientists are working on different cropping systems to find out which cropping pattern gets the highest benefit from the crops in terms of profitability and sustainability. Moreover, the interaction among the governing factors in a specific cropping system may affect the final yield, therefore I think that you have to consider whit which cropping system the low tillering capacity rice cultivars produce the highest amount of yield. Imagine that a low tillering aerobic rice produce more yield than a low tillering rice under SRI method.

Sri is best because it requires less water

I have heard the lack of scientific publications before. However, there are actually quite a few scientific articles on SRI in the Indian context: http://sri.ciifad.cornell.edu/countries/india/research/ . This page also notes the RefWorks database. (For the global context, try http://sri.ciifad.cornell.edu/research/JournalArticles.html ).

The concept of SRI technology is quite simple. Every paddy seedling is provided maximum opportunity to express its genetic potential as reflected in terms of tillering. Whereas, if two or three seedlings are clubbed and transplanted as is the case with conventional paddy cultivation, tillering is reduced per seedling due to the space limitation. Also, there is a saving of time in the preparation of paddy nursery. It also facilitates efficient interculture operation to remove weeds in the field due to systematic spacing between the crop rows.

The logic of SRI can as well be applied to global spread of human population. The human productivity (not for procreation of race) is poor wherever its density is higher. The developed countries such as USA, UK, Australia, New Zealand etc with lower human density perform better in terms of material and intellectual growth whereas countries like China, India with relatively higher density of population continue to snail behind the western world. China suffers from slavish culture whereas India suffers from disunity among people even after 65 years of independence of the country.

Hi to all.Regardless of method by applying Agrostemin www.agrostemin.com we got

15%+increase in yield.Latest results from Hailin-China 15.6%.

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Hai, Here at Northern Karnataka our University is popularizing direct seed method for rice cultivation.In farmers field yields of DSR rice are more than other methods. Only thing is that mind set of farmers has to be changed.

Aerobic rice cultivation is better than other methods developed in UAS Bangalore which has more productivity and can be raised as normal crop without puddling and flooding.

Hi Sanchita,

The environment characterization is "Late onset of monsoon, mid season drought, late withdrawal of monsoon" These are the main driving facts which is causing real problem in case of cultivation of kharif cultivation.rice in rainfe conditions in your area. Rice phenology and water availability for the correct time are the most critical factors for any rice based cropping systems for rainfed cultivation. These methods will never success if you are not selection correct cultivars which has drought avoidence and and escape for water limited periods. Some cultivars have good delay in floering, they avoid extream droguht and flower when water is available. This is plasticity of phenology. If you read some litereture of Fukai et al you will understand the best and sustainable way of cultivating rice in your area. You need to look at Genetics, environments, and manangemnt practices to inplement a good practice for your area. Jaya Basnayake_Queensland

System of Rice Intensification (SRI) with Alternate wetting and Drying (AWD) is the ultimate method to boost the rice yield with higher water productivity...

SRI can be successful if the soil is rich in organic matter. Thats important. Further humidity leads to survival of young seedlings while in punjab pakistan the mortality of young seedling is too high leading to poor crop stand.

India enjoys diverse agro climatic conditions and rice is such a wonderful crop can be grown in profitable manner in any circumstance. Though it is crop of wormer climate and equally well suited to temperate conditions in the foothills of Himalayas in south Asia and Japan too. In India this crop again grown as wet season crop winter season and summer season as well. Again this crop is grown as mono crop to monoculture (rice-rice-rice).Base on physiographic of land it is again classified as upland, mid land, low land and deep water rice. Based upon irrigation facility and topography rice is again classified as rainfed and irrigated. What I understand about rice, most of technologies are concentrating for assured water supply, timely sowing/planting and upland to mid land conditions. One should always to remembers this crop is famously know as queen of cereals due to its responsiveness to added inputs and survival mechanism to adverse agro-climatic conditions be it flood or drought , though it love water but aerobic rice is coming in big way. Keeping in mind two tailed problem , direct seeding to 10-12days old seedling is good for drought prone area and late over-mature seedling for flood prone area to provide cushions for early and better adaptation and establishment to the rice crop. Other than these two extreme conditions one can opt any technologies for planting to other management technologies as per convenient, all will response proper understanding , application about technology and timing of application is crucial factor.

I don't understand why people cannot think of anything beyond a technological-fix - in this case, SRI. Firstly, there is no evidence that SRI will be appropriate for kharif (during monsoon) rice cultivation. SRI requires (a) controlled water regime and (b) aerated soil management, both of which are not practicable during the monsoon rains, because (a) rainfall cannot be controlled; (b) rainwater in the farm soil will fill up all air pockets. SRI can be appropriate for boro/ Rabi rice, when there is no monsoon rains, and the farmer can control irrigation (in that case, the farm must have irrigation facility).

Secondly, there is evidence that many rice varieties are unresponsive to SRI treatment. (see my work here: http://journals.cambridge.org/action/displayAbstract?fromPage=online&aid=8601101.)

Unless one knows that a particular rice variety does improve yield in response to SRI, it would be unwise to make a blanket prescription to go for SRI for any and all rice cultivar.

I would suggest that there are a plenty of locally adapted farmer varieties that can perfectly survive the climatic vagaries, and some of them can out-yield any modern cultivar in marginal environmental conditions. I am conserving 920 folk rice varieties on-farm, and more than 500 farmers in Odisha, Bengal and Karnataka have been cultivating a large number of drought-tolerant and flood-tolerant rice varieties. Growing these varieties is not only agronomically appropriate, but also economical, because they require zero external inputs. They don't need even weed management, unlike SRI treatment.

In India rainfed rice itself having different rice ecosystems based on conditions like rainfed upland rice, rainfed low land rice etc., Therefore, one method of estalishment can not be suitable to all kind of situations, in upland areas where farmers having sufficient labour availability with other resources can go for either SRI or aerable rice with some herbicidal weed management. Transplanting method is still a highest productive system in lowland rice culture, introduction of post emergence herbicides with high degree of selectivity to rice opens new doors for direct seeded rice like Drum seeding in areas receiving sufficient rain with 100 or more rainy days. Site specific approach in selection of establishment methods may be more appropriate than a general reccomendation to achive good productivity with profitability.

As I know, upland rice cultivation system is appropriate in that condition.

This interesting question is triggering already a lot of important diverse answers and inputs, which are very appreciable. From my mainly African rice-experience I would like to give these orientations:

1. Ratoon-growing of rice (i.e.re-growth after harvest-cut from same root) is offering --- if done properly --- several advantages (despite of not having the highest yields) in terms of time-gain, labour-reduction, no seed- and transplanting-costs, etc.; I suggest to have a knowledge-status-conference on the present available experience in practical raooning of rice. Variety-differences are probably important to consider. Ratooning is giving more flexibilities in conditions of vagaries of monsoon.

2. Irrigation of rice --- since 5 thousand years, e.g. in Asian rice-terraces ---- has probably the only / main reason to suppress weeds, and not to provide supposedly required high water-requirements. Most rice worldwide --- at least in Africa --- is grown as rainfed rice, thus water (from a good or a poor monsoon ? ) is never the only yield-determining factor. Rice can grow as dryland crop as any other important cereal, provided enough normal water is available. We must disconnect us from the old conviction, that rice has to “swim” all the time. DryWet soil-periods: I guess only a critical review of fine, accurate research data can give some absolute and strategic finding / advise. In many cases the provision of irrigation-water is a big cost-factor. In case of “dry monsoons” remain aware that rice does not always need to swim. In case of excessively “wet monsoons” appreciate the phantastic water-tolerance of the rice-plant.

3. Pre-germinated seeds. Soaking seeds for a day or 2 and seeding at the start of germination into a perfectly puddled soil will make obsolete the expensive nursery- and transplanting operations. I regard this approach as an important alternative to be tested on larger scale in many different ecosystems.

4. Each locality has its specific rice-features, esp. eco-factors. Creative smart agronomists can identify quickly the most probable optimum in husbandry-strategy, but close team-communication among experts and practical farmers will result into the “perfect optimum”, incl. for times of a “jumping monsoon”.

5. “Playing with rice”: Due to its wide plant-physiological pattern, clever, smart agronomists and economists can play around with the rice-plant and try&error for perfect, optimal production on a specific place or eco-zone. That will remain a joyful challenge for the decades to come. Using carp-fish for weeding, supplementing irrigation-water with silt, ash or other materials, spraying specific trace-elements on to the leaves, puddling the soil in energy-saving approaches, using algae for nitrogen-supply…..there are hundreds, if not thousands of possibilities and potentials. There is hardly any other plant worldwide which offers so many possible adjustments for conditions of monsoon-vagaries.

6. Climate-change / greenhouse-gas in relation to rice-growing: We have to accept, that a) irrigated and permanently inundated lands for rice produce a lot of climate-relevant gases. There will be more and more facts to be taken into rice-agronomical considerations. b) nitrogen-fertilizer on large-scale entail under tropical conditions an enormous production of NO-greenhousegase which are much more deleterious than any other known GHGs. Thus: let us consider rice-husbandry planning under these principle facts.

7. Organic / “biological” rice-cultivation: Like in most other crop-agronomies worldwide, a largely “man-made chemical-free” rice-husbandry is evolving gradually as the more sustainable, durable, eco-safe, socio-safe approach. Compromise-lines will remain for some good decades to come, but we should improve our holistic views and not see only the short-term profitability.

SRI cultivation method is very good for Paddy cultivation very less water is required

SRI cultivation is good for paddy.

SRI cultivation is very labor intensed hence can only do in small plots not on commercial basis.

Please refer one of my publication uploaded in RG titled "Management Policy of Water Table in Dry Zone of Sri Lanka to Subsidise the Pain of Non Rice Crop Cultivators for the Food Productivity Improvement"

with regards

Siva

I have uploaded an article "1. Management Policy of Water Table in Dry Zone of Sri Lanka to Subsidise the Pain of Non Rice Crop Cultivators for the Food Productivity Improvement, RJSITM, The International Journal Research Publications, Volume 02, Number 09, pp, July-2013, ISSN:2251-1563" it will give you lots of informations