Annual paddy rice has been cultivated for more than 9000 years. The advancement means farmers can plant just once and reap up to eight harvests without sacrificing yield, an important step change compared to "ratooning" or cutting back annual rice to get a second, weaker harvest.
The agronomic, economic, and environmental outcomes of perennial rice cultivation are chronicled in a report. More than 55,752 small farmers in China and Uganda are benefiting from the retooled crop.
The new perennial rice is being adopted by farmers because of its economic benefits. China's farmers are getting older. People are moving to the cities. Rice planting costs a lot of money and takes a lot of time. They save a lot of time and labor by not having to plant twice a year.
The International Rice Research Institute and the Yunnan Academy of Agricultural Sciences collaborated on the development of perennial rice in 1999. The University of Illinois, Yunnan University, and the University ofQueensland were added to the project. Perennial grain breeding expertise and seed funding were provided by The Land Institute.
The researchers crossed an asian domesticated annual rice with a wild perennial rice from Africa. Taking advantage of modern genetic tools, the team identified a promising hybrid in 2007, planted large-scale field experiments in 2016 and released the first commercial perennial rice variety, PR23.
Perennial rice and annual rice were studied over the course of five years by the international research team. Perennial rice yield was comparable to annual rice over the first four years. The researchers recommend re-sowing perennial rice after four years after the yield dropped off due to a number of factors.
Farmers who grow perennial rice put in less labor and spent more on inputs because they didn't have to plant.
Sacks says that the reduction in labor can be accomplished without substitution by fossil fuel–based equipment as society aims to improve livelihoods while reducing greenhouse gas emissions associated with agricultural production.
The economic benefits of perennial rice varied from location to location. Farmers achieved a greater economic return when perennial rice suffered temporary yield dips due to pests than when it was grown annually.
Everything was the same when they planted the annual and perennial rice side by side. Sacks says that yield is the same and costs are the same. "But the second crop and every subsequent crop comes at a huge discount, because you don't have to buy seeds, you don't have to use a lot of water, and you don't need to transplant that rice." The advantage is large.
Perennial rice farming provides environmental benefits. Perennial rice has higher soil organic carbon and nitrogen. The additional soil quality parameters improved.
High-yielding annual crops typically require complete removal of existing vegetation to establish and often demand major inputs of energy, pesticides, andfertilizers. Hu is a professor and dean in the School of Agriculture at Yunnan University. Perennial rice helps replenish ecological systems required to maintain productivity over the long term by improving labor efficiency and soil quality.
The goal of the study is to predict the optimal growing zone for perennial rice. The research team believes the crop could work in a wide range of frost-free locations.
Researchers aren't done refining the crop despite releasing three perennial rice varieties as commercial products in China and Uganda. Modern genetic tools will be used to quickly introduce desirable traits into the new crop, potentially expanding its reach across the globe.
While early findings on the environmental benefits of perennial rice are impressive and promising, more research is needed to understand the full scope of perennial rice's potential.
Perennial paddy rice systems still have questions about carbon dioxide and persistence. Perennializing upland rice could help curb soil erosion on farmlands in Southeast Asia. The Land Institute and an ever-growing network of collaborators will continue to support these research and scaling efforts for perennial rice globally.
We have turned a corner with perennial rice in farmers' fields. Since the dawn of agriculture, we've grown these grains as annuals, but it wasn't always the best way to feed us. We can choose to make a better crop. The errors of history can be fixed by us.
The article is titled "Sustained productivity and agronomic potential of perennial rice"
Jun Lyu is the author of Sustained Productivity and agronomic potential of perennial rice.
Journal information: Nature Sustainability
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