The Nutrient Manager: innovative interactive,
decision support system
Many rice farmers are in the dark when it comes to
applying the right amount of fertilizer in their fields. Often, their lack of
knowledge leads to inefficient use of fertilizers, leading to low rice yields,
increased risk of diseases to the rice plant, and low profits from farming.
The Productivity and Sustainability Work Group (PSWG)
of the Irrigated Rice Research Consortium (IRRC) strives to empower farmers with
knowledge that will contribute to higher rice production, which is profitable
for farmers, especially with the rising fertilizer prices. Site-specific
nutrient management (SSNM) provides principles of improved nutrient management
for rice, but these principles need to be
transformed into simple messages that can be readily disseminated to many rice
farmers to rapidly change their fertilization practices.
The PSWG, through partnerships with public and
private sectors, recognized that field-specific nutrient management guidelines
can be developed based on information that can be easily given by a rice farmer.
This information can then be refined into clear guidelines through a simple
process, handled in a participatory fashion between farmers and local
extension personnel of the public and private sectors.
Interactive tools
For farmers to quickly adopt knowledge-intensive technologies such as best
management practices for fertilizers, simple tools are needed to help
agricultural
technicians quickly formulate guidelines for improved management tailored to
specific fields or rice-growing areas. This led to the development of an
interactive computer-based decision support tool known as the Nutrient
Manager.
The Nutrient Manager consists of about 10
questions with multiple-choice answers that can easily be answered by an
extension worker or farmer. Based on responses to the questions, a printout with
amounts of fertilizer by crop growth stage is provided for the rice field. This
tool accommodates both transplanted and direct-seeded rice with a range of
growth durations from seed to harvest, and it is compatible with crop management
approaches based on critical crop growth stages.
Indonesia’s own
In Indonesia, government organizations are striving to increase rice production
through the use of improved rice production practices; thus the urgent need and
opportunity for the Nutrient Manager. Known as PuPS 1.0 (Pemupukan Padi Sawah
Spesifik Lokasi—“Rice Fertlization for Specific Location”), Indonesia’s
version of the Nutrient Manager has now been evaluated in five provinces through
a partnership of organizations within the Indonesian Agency for Agricultural
Research and Development (IAARD). An Indonesian Technical Team, with members
from four partner organizations in IAARD, facilitates the development, testing,
and dissemination in Indonesia.
IRRC’s
Mirasol Pampolino (center) shows Indonesia’s SSNM technical team how to use the
Nutrient Manager. (Photo by P. Sinohin)
Prototypes and
field tests
PuPS was conceptualized in February 2008 after a consultation meeting in Bogor
between Dr. Roland Buresh, PSWG leader and IRRI soil scientist, and members of
Indonesia’s National Fertilizer Work Group. In early March, the initial version
of the PuPS 1.0 was field-tested in West Java by partners from extension.
Immediately after, two staff members from the PSWG, Dr. Mira Pampolino and Mr.
Philip Joshua Sinohin, traveled to Bogor to consult with Indonesian scientists
on the development of a revised version of the PuPS 1.0. The revised version was
presented through a seminar on 13 March to members of the National Fertilizer
Work Group, partners from research and extension, and scientists from
universities.
Based on suggestions from the seminar and feedback
from field testing, the PuPS 1.0 was further revised and presented at a
“training of trainers” on integrated crop management at the Indonesian Center
for Rice Research (ICRR) in late March. Dr. Sunendar, chair of the Indonesian
Technical Team, presented the revised version to the directors of partner
organizations on 2 April.
In early April, staff members from the Assessment
Institute for Agricultural Technology (AIAT) in North Sumatera demonstrated the
PuPS 1.0 during a training course for field extension organized by the
Agriculture Office of Simalungun District and facilitated by the “Farmer
Empowerment through the Agricultural Technology and Information Project”. The
PuPS 1.0 was subsequently introduced to extension workers and researchers of the
AIAT offices in West, Central, and East Java and South Sulawesi to gain their
feedback and evaluate the applicability of the module at the farmers’ level. The
final PuPS version in CDs is slated for launching in July hosted by IAARD.
Going global,
proudly local
Experiences in Indonesia can be replicated in other countries, but the Nutrient
Manager will be tailored to specific conditions and needs in each country. A
Philippine version of the Nutrient Manager has been developed with partners from
the University of the Philippines Los Baños (UPLB), PhilRice, and the Bureau of
Soil and Water Management (BSWM). A beta version was released in the Philippines
in June 2008 for evaluation with extension workers and farmers. A finalized
version for wide-scale distribution and use in the Philippines should be
available in September 2008. Nutrient Manager decision-support tools are also
being developed for Bangladesh, China, and West Bengal, India.
With the advent of the Nutrient Manager, farmers
all over Asia will have easier access to improved nutrient management principles
and be better able to see and adopt the best fertilizer best management
practices for rice.
Roland Buresh (r.buresh@cgiar.org)
and Mira Pampolino |
