1040 opportunities to achieve resource-conserving increases in agricultural production -- derived...
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Presented by: Norman Uphoff, CIIFAD, Cornell University, USAPresented at: BioVision Alexandria 2010 New Life Sciences: Future ProspectsDate Presented: 04/15/2010TRANSCRIPT
BioVision Alexandria 2010New Life Sciences: Future
Prospects
Opportunities to Achieve Resource-Conserving
Increases in Agricultural Production -- derived from Learning from the System
of Rice Intensification Norman Uphoff, Cornell University,
USAApril 15, 2010
Intensification of some sort will be needed for 21st century
agricultureTwo main strategies for intensification:1. Intensification of INPUTS, made more
productive by improvement in genotypes achieved through breeding programs
2. Intensification of MANAGEMENT, to provide more favorable environment for the expression of genetic potentials, resulting in improved PHENOTYPES
Both are needed acc.to equation: G x E = P
SRI methods do not require eitherthe introduction of improved varieties
or the application of external inputs• SRI changes the way that plants, soil, water and nutrients are managed
• To get more productive PHENOTYPES from practically all rice GENOTYPES
• Changes in plant morphology – numbers of tillers, root system growth, leaf area, angle of tillers, etc.
• Changes in plant physiology – water-use efficiency, root exudation, rates of photosynthesis, delayed senescence, etc.
• Epigenetic changes remain to be explored – possible contributions from plant-microbial interaction?
CAMBODIA: Rice plant
grown from single seed in
Takeo province
IRAN: SRI roots and normal
(flooded) roots: note difference in color as well as size
Improvement Is Attainable inWide Range of Agroclimatic Zones
• Indonesia• Bhutan• Afghanistan• Mali (Timbuktu region
on edge of the Sahara Desert)
INDONESIA: ‘Rice Aplenty
in Aceh’
as reported inCARITAS NEWS
Australia,Spring 2009
SRI methods were introduced in Aceh in 2005 by CARITAS after tsunami had
devastated the area. New methods raised local rice yields from 2 t/ha to 8.5 t/ha: “Using less rice seed, less water and
organic compost, farmers in Aceh have quadrupled their crop production.”
BHUTAN: Report on SRI in Deorali Geog, 2009
Sangay Dorji, Jr. Extension Agent, Deorali Geog, Dagana
Standard practice 3.6 t/ha SRI @ 25x25cm 9.5 t/ha
SRI random spacing 6.0 t/ha SRI @ 30x30cm 10.0 t/ha
AFGHANISTAN: 2009 Report from
Aga Khan Foundation:
Baghlan Province
2008: 6 farmers got SRI yields of 10.1 t/ha vs. 5.4 t/ha regular2009: 42 farmers got SRI yields of 9.3 t/ha vs. 5.6 t/ha regular
2nd-year SRI farmers got 13.3 t/ha vs. 5.6 t/ha1st-year SRI farmers got 8.7 t/ha vs. 5.5 t/ha
AFGHANISTAN: SRI field in Baghlan Province, supported by Aga Khan Foundation Natural Resource Management
program
SRI field at 30 days
SRI plant with 133 tillers @
72 days after transplanting
11.56 t/ha
66% average increase across 3 districts (N=42) in 2009
In Baghlan District, only #15 had a reduction in yield; second-year farmers #26 and #28 had yields of 19 and
20 t/ha
MALI: SRI nursery in Timbuktu region – 8-day seedlings ready for transplanting
SRI transplanting in Timbuktu, Mali
Farmer in Timbuktu region showing the difference between regular and SRI rice
plants --
2007: SRI yield was 8.98 t/ha
SRI ControlFarmer Practice
Yield t/ha* 9.1 5.49 4.86Standard Error (SE) 0.24 0.27 0.18% Change compared to Control + 66 100 - 11% Change compared to Farmer Practice
+ 87 + 13 100
Number of Farmers
53 53 60
• * adjusted to 14% grain moisture content
MALI: Rice grain yields for SRI plots, control plots, and farmer-practice
plots,Goundam circle, Timbuktu region, 2008
SRI Results in Major Rice Countries
CHINA: Sichuan ZhejiangExtension started 2004 (1,120 ha) 2004Area through 2009 637,000 ha 688,000 haAverage yield increase 1.63 t/ha 1.25 t/haIncrement due to SRI 1,040,000 tons 862,000
tons
INDIA:Tamil Nadu: 750,000 ha in 2008-09 season; Minister
of Agriculture credited SRI methods with enabling the state to raise its paddy production on a smaller area, reduced by failure of monsoon (The Hindu 12/1/09)
Tripura: started with 44 farmers (8.8 ha) in 2002-03; 880 farmers (352 ha, 0.14% of area) in 2005-06; 250,000 farmers (50,000 ha, 21.2%) in 2008-09 (in 2007-08, average yield increase was 1.78 t/ha)
“Everyone cites India’s Green Revolution. But I’m even more intrigued by what is known as SRI, or system of rice intensification, and I know this is also an area of interest for [Prime Minister] Manmohan Singh. Using smart water management and planting practices, farmers in Tamil Nadu have increased rice yields between 30 and 80 per cent, reduced water use by 30 per cent, and now require significantly less fertilizer. This emerging technology not only addresses food security, but also the water scarcity challenge that climate change is making all the more dangerous. These are all lessons for our world.”
Robert Zoellick, President, World BankHindustan Times, December 2, 2009
… our development of farming should shift from the Green Revolution where although harvest production is increased there is also the introduction of damage in many sectors of the environment. We should instead apply methods of increasing the productivity [that are] friendly to the environment.
… this SRI method is a proven example where the agriculture is sustained … together with other efforts for preserving the ecosystem, among others, this SRI method of rice farming will really contribute towards saving our planet, our world, and our country.
Dr. S. B. Yudhoyono, President, Republic of Indonesia, SRI Harvest Festival, Cianjur, West Java, 7/30/07
SRI Involves Only Changes in Practices1. Transplant young seedlings to preserve their growth
potential - but DIRECT SEEDING is now an option2. Avoid trauma to the roots - transplant quickly and
shallow, not inverting root tips which halts growth3. Give plants wider spacing - one plant per hill and in
square pattern to achieve “edge effect” everywhere4. Keep paddy soil moist but unflooded - soil should be
mostly aerobic, not continuously saturated – but SRI methods also extrapolated for rainfed cropping
5. Actively aerate the soil as much as possible6. Enhance soil organic matter as much as possible –
fertilizer can be used with other SRI methods, but best results have come from compost applications
These methods work with practically all rice cultivars – also give buffering against drought, storm damage, etc.
SRI
0
50
100
150
200
250
300
IH H FH MR WR YRStage
Org
an d
ry w
eigh
t(g/
hill)
CK
I H H FH MR WR YR
Yellowleaf andsheathPanicle
Leaf
Sheath
Stem
47.9% 34.7%
Non-Flooding Rice Farming Technology in Irrigated Paddy FieldDr. Tao Longxing, China National Rice Research Institute, 2004
Benefits being seen also with other crops
Initially, SRI concepts and methods were developed for irrigated rice – then used for rainfed rice in Myanmar, India, Philippines – with yields averaging even 7 t/ha
Then extended/adapted to other gramineae species: wheat, finger millet, sugar cane, teff
Now Indian NGOs and farmers are extending the concepts and methods to some legumes and vegetables – kidney beans, soyabean, black gram, aubergine – not just monocots
So, this is promising subject and hopeful time – more favorable opportunities than imagined?
ICRISAT-WWF Sugarcane
Initiative: at least 20% more cane
yield, with: • 30% reduction in water, and • 25% reduction in chemical inputs
“The inspiration for putting this package together is from the successful approach of SRI – System of Rice Intensification.”
THANK YOU
• Can check out SRI website: http://ciifad.cornell.edu/sri/
• Email: [email protected] or [email protected]