And why is the ricefield above dry, which means you don't need to have your field drowning in water all the time? The image shows a farm in the Kilombero District in Tanzania with rice transplanted using the System of Rice Intensification, SRI. It accompanies the article written by Devotha Mosha Kilave & Gilead Mlay, "'SRI' In Kilombero Valley: Potential, Misconception And Reality" (25 January 2019, Future Agricultures, future-agricultures.org).
And what has SRI wrought in Tanzania? Farmers have seen their yields go up from 4 tons/ha to 7 t/ha, almost double. Isn't that great!
So, what more do you want from your rice farming?
Our rice farmers in the Philippines need SRI today. Now. Ora mismo!
That's considering that the most dangerous law ever enacted in the Philippines in terms of the welfare of Filipino farmers is now in effect, RA 11203, or the Rice Tariffication Law, which was signed by President Rodrigo Roa Duterte on February 2019. It was meant to bring down the price of rice; unfortunately, the income of our rice farmer automatically goes down. That's loving your country at the expense of your countrymen!
Our farmers can fight back by cutting their costs of production very much – and marketing their produce at more competitive and sustainable arrangements. And we have the best technology package to help them do that: SRI.
SRI, is the best thing that ever happened to the planting of rice. Because the farmer spends little, works less, harvests more, and earns much.
Under SRI, there are 5 changes in farming you have to do:
1. Change seeding rate.
SRI calls for much fewer number of seedlings to grow on the seedbed. Why? It's explained more in #3.
2. Change age of transplanted seedlings.
You transplant the rice seedlings when they are about 2 weeks old, with 2 leaflets, not later. That will give them time to adjust to the field where they will grow anyway, and the seedlings can better stand transplanting injury & recover.
3. Change number of seedlings/hill.
You make sure that you plant only 1 seedling in every designated spot. This ensures that the single seedling will give rise to many tillers, which are the ones that bear fruits, that give rise to rice grains. If you plant 2 or more seedlings/hill, those seedlings will compete against each other for food, so there are not many tillers.
4. Change distance of planting.
SRI calls for square planting, like 20 X 20 cm, not at random as practiced. The square planting gives more than enough room for each seedling to grow to its maximum and give rise to the maximum number of tillers – and therefore maximum yield.
5. Change irrigation practice.
No need for continuous flooding of the field, as you can see above. SRI calls for alternate wetting and drying, which requires less water and yet produces more grains, because it encourages tillering, which is the secret of a good harvest.
Truly, under SRI the farmer experiences lower costs and higher returns!
What more does he want?517
What more does he want?517
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