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 Irrigated Rice Research Consortium
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Successful aerobic rice in China
The team members successfully concluded two field experiments on yield potential, water use, and water productivity of aerobic rice varieties. Whereas the cultivation of flooded lowland rice required about 1,300 mm of water, that of aerobic rice used only 470 to 644 mm. The highest yield of aerobic rice was 4.7-5.3 t ha-1, compared with 8.8 t ha-1 of flooded lowland rice. However, the water productivity (g grains per kg of total water used) of aerobic rice was 64-88% higher than that of flooded lowland rice. It was concluded that aerobic rice is a viable option where the shortage of water does not allow the growing of lowland rice. New initiatives were undertaken to address the integrated management of aerobic rice systems, such as a joint project with Wageningen University on micro-nutrients and grain quality. Two pilot site villages were established in 2001 for farmer-participatory testing, site-specific adaptation and extension of aerobic rice, one near Beijing and one at Fengtai (Anhui province). The testing was accompanied with a detailed book keeping of inputs and outputs for socio-economic analysis. Though, on average, the yield of aerobic rice was 27-35% lower than that of flooded lowland rice, the water use was 55-66% lower, and water productivity 1.6-1.9 times higher. The use of family labor was 47-77% less in aerobic rice than in lowland rice, mainly because lowland rice required a lot of labor for wetland preparation, transplanting and irrigation. In 2002, the farmer-participatory work was extended with a pilot site near Kaifeng (Henan Province). At this site, the Water Saving workgroup teamed up with the project “Growing more rice with less water” to create synergism and increase the research efficiency. A Chinese extension brochure was printed on growing aerobic rice. The team members actively participate in two technology dissemination networks: the China National Aerobic Rice Regional Trial and Demonstration Network (CNARRTDN) and the National Aerobic Rice Extension Association Network (NAREAN). For further details on Aerobic Rice
Download
Aerobic Rice (Han Dao): a new way of growing rice in
water-short areas in pdf format (319 KB).
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About Water |
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