Thoughts on the History, Principles and Practices of SRI

-- and Its Importance forthe Present Scenario

National SRI Symposium,Hyderabad, November 17, 2006

Norman Uphoff, CIIFADCornell University, USA

The System of Rice Intensification (SRI) is a ‘work in progress’ – not yet finished

SRI methods usually enable rice farmers to: 1. Raise their production by 50% or more2. While reducing their requirements for:

– Seed -- by 80 to 90%– Irrigation water -- by 25 to 50%– Dependence on agrochemicals, and– Costs of production -- by 10 to 25%

This contributes to higher net income/ha, with favorable environmental impacts

Results depend on skill and SOIL BIOLOGY!

What Intensification is involved?

Usual meaning is to intensify EXTERNAL INPUTS – but these are reduced with SRI

SRI involves the intensification of MANAGEMENT, SKILL, KNOWLEDGE

Initially, SRI requires some intensification of LABOR – but within a season or two, SRI even becomes labor-saving – along with saving of water, seed and capital

The System of Rice Intensification is more about PRODUCTIVITY than YIELDIt raises simultaneously the productivity of:• Land – more output per unit of land• Labor – more output per day of work• Water – ‘more crop per drop’ -- and• Capital – higher returns from investmentThis is quite unprecedentedWhile YIELD is important, not most relevant

concern for farmers or for societyPRODUCTIVITY is key to reducing poverty

and to achieving rural development

SRI = Just Five Fundamental Ideas1. If you transplant, use young seedlings -- but

direct seeding is now being developed as alternative

2. Use wider spacing – single seeding per hill

3. Keep paddy soil moist but unflooded

4. Add organic matter to soil as much as possible

5. Actively aerate the soil -- as much as possible

These ideas transform our current rice practices

Recommend also other beneficial practices, e.g.

a. Seedbed solarization – for healthier seedlings

b. Seed selection/priming -- better germination

c. Determine best variety for local conditions

Review of SRI Results, 2003-05:

1. Bangladesh – IRRI-funded evaluation (N=1,073)

2. Cambodia – GTZ evaluation (N=500); CEDAC evaluation of long-term SRI users (N=120)

3. China – China Agricultural University (N=82)

4. India – ANGRAU (N=1,525), TNAU (N=100), IWMI-India (N=110)

5. Indonesia – Nippon Koei evaluation (N=1,849)

6. Nepal – DADO Morang record-keeping (N=412)

7. Sri Lanka – IWMI evaluation (N=120)

8. Vietnam – farmer field school reporting (N=60)

AVER-AGE

YieldIncrease

Water-Saving

Cost Reduction

Increase in Net Income

11 studies, 8 countries 52% 44% 25% 128%The largest study was in

INDO-NESIA

84% 40% 24% 412%

N = 1,849

Total Area = 1,363 ha

EasternIndonesia ---Nippon Koei

IrrigationProject

2004

Two Different Paradigms of Production • GREEN REVOLUTION strategy:

(a) Change the genetic potential of plants, and

(b) Increase the use of external inputs -- more water, fertilizer, insecticides, etc.

• SRI (AGROECOLOGY) changes the way that plants, soil, water and nutrients are managed to

(a) Promote the growth of root systems and

(b) Increase the abundance and diversity of soil organisms to better enlist their benefits

These produce bigger/better PHENOTYPES

Ms. Im Sarim, Cambodia,with rice plant grownfrom a single seed,using SRI methods

and traditional variety-- yield of 6.72 t/ha

Morang District,

Nepal - 2005

Mahto Oraon, Malai village, Gumla district, Jharkhand state, India --

Khandagiri (110-day variety) with 65 tillers, grown as ‘rainfed’ SRI rice

FFS farmer in Dông Trù village, Hanoi Province, Vietnam, 2005

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 Field”Dr. Tao Longxing, China National Rice Research Institute, 2004

0

2000

4000

6000

8000

10000

12000

14000

0 100 200

N uptake (kg/ha)

Gra

in y

ield

(kg

/ha

)

Grain yield SRI

(kg/ha)

Grainyield Conv

(kg/ha)

Poly.:Grain yield

SRI (kg/ha)

Poly.: Grain yield

Conv. (kg/ha)

Rice grain yield response to N uptake

Linear regression relationship between N uptake and grain yield for SRI and conventional methods using QUESTS model (Barison, 2002)

COST OF CULTIVATION PER HA. (TNAU STUDY, N=100)

PracticesTractor hours @ Rs. 150 / hr

Bullock pair @

Rs. 200 / hr

Men’s Labour

@ Rs. 40 / man-day

Women’s Labour

@ Rs. 40 / man-day

Cost (Rs.)

Conv. SRI Con SRI Conv SRI Conv. SRI Conv. SRI

Nursery Preparation

1 - - - 6 3 0.5 5.5 2,110 681

Main Field Preparation

7.5 7.5 2 2 12 12 - - 2,005 2,005

Manures & Fertilizers

- - - - 7 7 10 10 7,254 7,254

Transplanting - - - - 5 5 55 75 2,400 3,200

Weeding - - - - - 38 80 - 3,200 1,520

Irrigation - - - - 7.5 6 - - 300 240

Plant Protection - - - - 2 2 2 2 660 660

Harvesting 1 1 - - 12.5 12.5 75 75 3,500 3,500

Total 9.5 8.5 2 2 52 85.5 222.5 167.5 21,429 19,060

COST SAVING in SRI system vs. conventional system = Rs. 2,369 ( 11 % )

Economic Evaluation (US$/ha) [Tamil Nadu Agric. Univ. study, N=100]

Conventional practices

SRI practices

Income from grain

(Rs. 5.00 / kg)$ 659 $ 870

Income from straw

(Rs. 0.25 / kg)$ 49 $ 63

Gross return $ 708 $ 933- Cost of cultivation $ 466 $ 414Net return $ 242 $ 519

SRI gets MORE from LESS by mobilizing biological processesSRI requirements include:• More labor while learning the method,

but SRI can become labor-saving• Water control needed for best results• Access to biomass for compost to

get best results -- can use fertilizer• Skill and motivation from farmers!• Crop protection in some cases

Additional Benefits of SRI

• Resistance to biotic/abiotic stresses– Drought tolerance, resistance to lodging– Resistance to pests and diseases

• Higher milling outturn from SRI paddy– Less unfilled grains, less shattering– About 15% more milled rice per bushel

• HYVs and hybrids give highest yield, but local varieties respond very well– With yields in Sri Lanka of 6-12 t/ha

Madagascar SRI field, traditional variety, 2003 – no lodging

Rice fields in Sri Lanka: same variety, same irrigation system, and same drought : conventional methods (left), SRI (right)

Rice plots in Tamil Nadu, India: normal rice in foreground; SRI plot in center, no lodging

Effect of Weeding = Soil Aeration

412 farmers in Morang district, Nepal, using SRI in monsoon season, 2005

Ave. SRI yield = 6.3 t/ha, vs. control = 3.1 t/ha• Data showed how WEEDINGS can raise yield

No. of No. of Average Rangeweedings farmers yield of yields 1 32 5.16 (3.6-7.6) 2 366 5.87 (3.5-11.0) 3 14 7.87 (5.85-10.4)

Effect of Young Seedling

51 SRI farmers in Morang district, Nepal, who planted popular Bansdhan variety (usual maturity @ 145 days), monsoon season, 2005 – with doubled yield

Age of N of Days to Reductionseedling farmers harvest (in days)> 14 d 9 138.5 6.510 - 14 d 37 130.6 14.4 8 - 9 d 5 123.6 21.4

Farmer Innovation Is Important

• New and better implements – are reducing SRI labor requirements

• New and better methods of crop establishment -- also saving labor

• Extension of SRI concepts and practices to other crops

• Farmer-to-farmer dissemination – significant for the spread of SRI

Roller-marker devised by Lakshmana Reddy, East Godavari,AP, India, to save time in transplanting operations

Cono-weeder re-designed byH. M. Premaratna, Sri Lanka,

locally manufactured for < $10

Four-row weeder developedby Gopal Swaminathan,

Cauvery Delta, Tamil Nadu,India; Gopal also devised the

Kadiramangalam version for high-temperature conditions

Weeder designed by Nong Sovann, Kampong Spreu province,Cambodia; built for $3, getting a $20 increase in value of rice

S. Ariyaratna alsodeveloped a system

for sowing germinatedseed and then thinning

with weeder to savetransplanting time

Super-simple weeder made byGovinda Dhakal, Indrapura-6,

in Morang District, Nepal this cost him 10 Rs. to make,

and 4 person can weed 1 acre.vs. 10-12 persons weeding the field by hand = 60% reduction

SRI direct-seeder designed and built by Luis Romero in Cuba;his transplanted rice gave him 14 t/ha; 40x40 cm spacing was

too wide; his neighbor built 12-row seeder to be ox-drawn

Liu Zhibin, Meishan, Sichuan province, China, standing in his raised-bed, zero-till SRI field; measured yield was 13.4 t/ha;in 2001, his SRI yield of 16 t/ha set yield record for Sichuan

SRI RAGI (FINGER MILLET), Rabi 2004-0560 days after sowing – Varieties 762 and 708

VR 762

VR 708

10 15 21*

*Age at which seedlings weretransplanted from nursery

Results of trials beingbeing done by ANGRAU

System of Finger Millet Intensification on left; regular management of improvedvariety and of traditional variety on right,picture courtesy of PRADAN, Jharkand

SRI ISSUES• LABOR REQUIREMENTS – how to save labor?

• WATER REQUIREMENTS – reduce still more?

• WEED CONTROL – can be made more manageable

• MOST APPROPRIATE VARIETIES -- evaluate

• SOIL FERTILITY ENHANCEMENT – this is key

• INTENSIFICATION → DIVERSIFICATION??

• BIOLOGICALLY-BASED APPROACHES → POST-MODERN AGRICULTURE?

SRI IS NOT FINISHED -- STILL DEVELOPING

THANK YOU

• Web page: http://ciifad.cornell.edu/sri/

• Email: ciifad@cornell.edu or ntu1@cornell.edu or

• tefysaina.tnr@simicro.mg