The cultivation of rice is a very water-intensive and laborious job. Rice crops can be grown with different water levels and labour requirements. If you want to grow rice, here is the complete guide on the scientific cultivation of rice.
Information about growing rice:
Rice is the seed of a variety of grass called Oryza sativa and Oryza glaberrima. The rice plant has a fibrous root, growing up to 6 feet tall. It has a round jointed stem with long, pointed leaves. The edible seeds sold commercially as "rice" grows at the top in separate stalks. This is called rice since the roots are covered in a brownish-coloured husk. The rice is harvested and husked, resulting in commercially important rice. Often people confuse paddy rice. Rice fields are also called paddy fields.
Ideal conditions for growing rice.
Climate for growing rice:
Rice is a tropical element crop that can upgrade from sea level to an altitude of 3,000 meters. Rice cultivation can also be done in temperate and subtropical climates under humid conditions. High inversion, humidity and sufficient rainfall with irrigation opportunities are the main requirements of rice cultivation. It also needs the bright sun with a temperature between 20 and 40⁰C. It can tolerate temperatures up to 42⁰C.
The season for rice harvest:
Since rice can grow in various climates and altitudes, it is raised in distinct seasons in different parts of the nation. In a region of high rainfall and low winter element (northern and western areas), the rice crop is grown annually, from May to November. Two or three grains are adult in the southern and eastern states. India has three rice-growing seasons: summer, autumn and winter. However, the primary growing season for rice is the 'Kharif' season, also called 'winter rice'. The sowing season is from June to July and harvested from November to December. 84% of the country's rice supply is adult in the Kharif crop.
Rice grown during the rabi season is also called "summer rice". It is sown from November to February and harvested from March to June. 9% of the total rice crop is produced in this season. Early maturing varieties are commonly grown during this time.
Pre-Kharif or 'autumn rice' is sown from May to August. Planting time also depends on rainfall and weather conditions. Therefore, the time may differ slightly from one place to another. Generally, it is collected from September to October. 7% of India's total rice crop grows this season, and short-duration varieties that mature in 90-110 days are grown.
Soil for Rice Cultivation:
Almost all types of soil can be used for growing rice as long as the region has a high altitude of humidity, sufficient rainfall with irrigation facilities, and a high temperature. The main soil types for growing rice are black soil, red soil (clay and yellow), laterite soil, red sandy soil, terai, hill, and medium to shallow regur soil. It can be grown even on silt and gravel. It is considered ideal if the growing earth has rich organic matter and pulverizes quickly when dry or pools when wet.
pH level for rice cultivation:
Rice can be grown in both acidic and alkaline soils.
Water:
Rice cultivation in the flooded field using the Bund system
Rice cultivation in the flooded area by bund system
In the case of rice cultivation, the bund cultivation system is followed, in which the fields are continuously flooded until 7-10 days before harvest. The crop needs an average of 1,500 litres of water to manufacture a kilogram of rice. In other words, rice needs a large amount of water to grow. Continuous flooding is followed to ensure weed control and a sufficient water supply. Flooded soil also provides:
>Better nutrient availability.
>Elimination of moisture stress.
>Microclimate for favourable crop production.
Due to the water scarcity that threatens the world, efficient practices are followed to optimize performance. Some of the courses are as follows:
Field channels:
Separate field channels are built to allow water to reach individual seedbeds. Therefore, the main field is irrigated when it is time to plant in the central area. It is important to control moisture that flows onto the field or drains off it. This is necessary so that the applied nutrients are recovered.
Filling of cracks in the ground:
When deep cracks are present in the soil, Who can lose a large amount of water due to water drainage through cracks that run below the root zone? In such cases, attempts must be filled before soaking. One way is to do shallow tillage before drenching the soil. In the case of clayey soils, the ground becomes flooded since it results in a hard layer. However, for very clayey soils, it is not necessary to attack.
Levelling the field:
A field that has a varying level consumes almost 10% more water than is needed for growth. The field is usually ploughed twice before being levelled. The second ploughing is done with water in the field to delimit the high and low areas.
Bund Construction:
Embankments form a boundary and therefore limit water loss. They must be compact and extreme enough to prevent water overflow in case of rain. Rat holes and cracks should be plastered over.
Crop rotation with rice cultivation:
Legumes are the most widely used crops for crop rotation with rice. This is mainly in the case of places with less water supply. Rice in those places is grown only annually; the rest of the land is fallow yearly. Therefore, planting legumes in this period would optimize land use and help increase soil fertility.
Planting material:
Rice is propagated from rice roots. Therefore, root selection plays a critical role in yield. Some points that must take into account to select sources of the best quality are:
>The seeds must be fully developed and mature.
>Clean rice seeds.
>no signs of ageing
>High germination capacity.
Seed Treatment:
Who must soak the seeds in a salt solution for 10 minutes? Those that float should be discarded, while those that sink are mature seeds that should be used for planting. Immediately wash the seeds after removing them from the solution. Farmers must soak the seeds in a good fungicide solution such as carbendazim for 24 hours. This ensures the protection of the root against fungal diseases. If the growing area is prevalent in bacterial infections such as leaf blight, soak the seeds in a streptomycin solution for 12 hours. After this, they must be thoroughly dried in the shade and used for planting. Seeds typically sprout before planting or are then grown in nurseries before transplanting.
Land preparation for rice cultivation:
Rice is cultivated with different methods depending on water availability and the climate. A wet farming system is followed in areas where rainfall is plentiful and pummeled with abundant water supplies. On the other hand, the dry farming system is followed in areas where irrigation provisions are unavailable, and water is scarce.
Wet culture system:
The grown is thoroughly ploughed and flooded with water up to 5 cm deep. In the case of clayey or silty soils, the depth should be 10 cm. After ponding, the land is levelled to ensure even distribution of water. Seedlings are sown or transplanted after dropping.
Dry Farming System:
In growing rice, the soil must have good tillage, so you need to plough it thoroughly. Also, barnyard manure should be spread evenly in the field at least four weeks before planting. The seeds are then sown with a 30 cm gap between the plants.
Rice cultivation method:
Most farmers practice the nursery bed method. Nursery beds are made, occupying about 1/20 of the total area of the field. Rice seeds are sown on the bed. They are ready within 25 days of planting in lowland areas, while at higher altitudes, they take around 55 days to be prepared for transplanting. There are four different rice cultivation practices: transplant, drilling, transmission, and Japanese.
Transplanting is the most commonly used method in which seeds are first sown in the nursery and seedlings transplanted to the principal field once they show 3-4 leaves. Although this is the best-performing method, it requires much work.
The drilling method is unique to India. In this method, one person digs a hole in the ground, and the other sows the seed. The ox is the 'person' most often used to plough the land.
The broadcast method generally involves spreading the seeds by hand over a large area or the entire field. The work involved is significantly less, and so is the precision. This method produces much lower performance compared to others.
The Japanese method has been adopted for the high-yielding variety of rice and for those that need a large amount of fertilizer. Seeds are sown in nurseries and then transplanted into the main field. It has shown tremendous success for high-yielding varieties.
Another newly discovered technique is the SRI method of growing rice. This is a high-yield procedure with less water, but this method is more labour-intensive.
Plant Diseases and Protection in Rice Cultivation:
Blast
Caused by
mushrooms
Symptoms:
>Spindle-shaped spots on leaves with grey centres.
>The knots rot and turn black and therefore break off.
>Tassel neck rot
>The beans are chaffy
This disease can influence the crop at all stages of growth: nursery, tillering and flowering.
Management:
>Soak seeds in carbendazim for 12 hours before sowing.
>Avoid a high dose of nitrogen fertilizer.
>During transplanting, the roots should be immersed in carbendazim solution immediately after pulling.
>Use resistant varieties.
Brown spot.
Causal agent
mushrooms
Symptoms:
>Dark brown oval spots on branches, leaves and tufts.
>Occurs on poor and deficient soils.
>It can occur in the nursery or the field.
Management:
>Since it occurs in deficient soils, Who must correct it by adding nutrients and fertilizers?
>Resistant varieties must be grown in poor soil.
>Seed treatment with Agrosan is also effective in controlling the disease.
Bacterial blight.
Causal agent
bacteria
Symptoms:
>Yellow to white injury along the margin gradually spread across the entire leaf.
>It spreads rapidly in case of winds, incessant rain and warm temperatures.
>The infection occurs during transplantation.
Management:
>Avoid excessive nitrogen fertilizers.
>Soak seeds in streptomycin for 12 hours before planting.
>Affected crops are sprayed with Agrimycin 100.
Udbatta's disease.
Causal agent
mushrooms
Symptoms:
>The fungus attacks the panicles, and the spikelets stick together. Therefore, no grains are formed.
>Infected plants are shorter and therefore go unnoticed.
Management:
>Use disease-free seeds for growing rice.
>Avoid high doses of nitrogen.
>Treat seeds with carbendazim before planting. Who can also spray affected roots with it during panicle initiation?
Sheath blight.
Causal agent
mushrooms
Symptoms:
>It affects the leaf sheath.
>The affected parts are ruined.
Management:
>Being a soil-borne disease, what should avoid close planting?
>Avoid applying heavy nitrogen fertilizers.
>Spray the affected crop with carbendazim.
Rice harvest:
One of the essential factors in growing rice is harvesting the rice on time. Otherwise, the grains would fall off. Field irrigation stops entirely about a week before harvest. This dehydration process helps in the ripening of the grain. It also hastens maturity. In the case of early and medium maturation varieties, they must carry out the crop 25-30 days after flowering. Late-maturing variations are harvested 40 days after flowering. They are generally harvested when the moisture content is around 25%. After harvest, drying is done gradually under shade.
Conclusion:
If done scientifically, rice farming is a profitable agricultural business. To minimize farm labour, what should adopt mechanized methods from planting to harvesting rice? Organic paddy rice farming is also becoming popular, and organic rice has the potential to fetch a higher market price.
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