Rice–wheat cropping systems in South Asia: issues, options and opportunities

2019 ◽  
Vol 70 (5) ◽  
pp. 395 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ahmad Nawaz ◽  
Muhammad Farooq ◽  
Faisal Nadeem ◽  
Kadambot H. M. Siddique ◽  
Rattan Lal
Keyword(s):  
Organic Matter ◽  
Soil Organic Matter ◽  
South Asia ◽  
Water Scarcity ◽  
Cropping Systems ◽  
Cropping System ◽  
Seed Priming ◽  
Resource Conservation ◽  
Aerobic Rice ◽  
Direct Seeded

The rice (Oryza sativa L.)–wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) cropping system is the largest agricultural production system worldwide, and is practised on 24 Mha in Asia. Many factors have threatened the long-term sustainability of conventional rice–wheat cropping systems, including degradation of soil health, water scarcity, labour/energy crises, nutrient imbalances, low soil organic matter contents, complex weed and insect flora, the emergence of herbicide-resistant weeds, and greenhouse-gas emissions. Options for improving the yield and sustainability of the rice–wheat cropping system include the use of resource-conservation technologies such as no-till wheat, laser-assisted land levelling, and direct-seeded aerobic rice. However, these technologies are site- and situation-specific; for example, direct-seeded aerobic rice is successful on heavy-textured soils but not sandy soils. Other useful strategies include seed priming, carbon trading and payment, the inclusion of legumes, and eco-friendly and biological methods of weed control. Irrigation based on soil matric potential using tensiometers can be useful for saving surplus water in direct-seeded, aerobic rice. These options and strategies will contribute to resolving water scarcity, saving labour and energy resources, reducing greenhouse-gas emissions, increasing soil organic matter contents, and improving the soil-quality index. Seed priming with various substances that supplement osmotic pressure (osmotica) is a viable option for addressing poor stand establishment in conservation rice–wheat cropping systems and for increasing crop yields. To strengthen the campaign for using resource-conservation technologies in rice–wheat cropping systems, carbon-payment schemes could be introduced and machinery should be offered at affordable prices. The persistent issue of burning crop residues could be resolved by incorporating these residues into biogas/ethanol and biochar production. Because rice and wheat are staple foods in South Asia, agronomic biofortification is a useful option for enhancing micronutrient contents in grains to help to reduce malnutrition.

Using active fractions of soil organic matter as indicators of the sustainability of Ferrosol farming systems

Soil Research ◽  
1999 ◽  
Vol 37 (2) ◽  
pp. 279 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. J. Bell ◽  
P. W. Moody ◽  
S. A. Yo ◽  
R. D. Connolly
Keyword(s):  
Organic Matter ◽  
Soil Organic Matter ◽  
Management Practices ◽  
Cropping Systems ◽  
Cropping System ◽  
Farming Systems ◽  
Total Carbon ◽  
Critical Concentrations ◽  
Aggregate Breakdown ◽  
Eastern Australia

Chemical and physical degradation of Red Ferrosols in eastern Australia is a major issue necessitating the development of more sustainable cropping systems. This paper derives critical concentrations of the active (permanganate-oxidisable) fraction of soil organic matter (C1) which maximise soil water recharge and minimise the likelihood of surface runoff in these soils. Ferrosol soils were collected from commercial properties in both north and south Queensland, while additional data were made available from a similar collection of Tasmanian Ferrosols. Sites represented a range of management histories, from grazed and ungrazed grass pastures to continuously cropped soil under various tillage systems. The concentration of both total carbon (C) and C1 varied among regions and farming systems. C1 was the primary factor controlling aggregate breakdown, measured by the percentage of aggregates <0·125 mm (P125) in the surface crust after simulated rainfall. The rates of change in P125 per unit change in C1 were not significantly different (P < 0·05) for soils from the different localities. However, soils from the coastal Burnett (south-east Queensland) always produced lower P125 (i.e. less aggregate breakdown) than did soils from the inland Burnett and north Queensland locations given the same concentration of C1. This difference was not associated with a particular land use. The ‘critical’ concentrations of C1 for each region were taken as the C1 concentrations that would allow an infiltration rate greater than or equal to the intensity of a 1 in 1 or 1 in 10 year frequency rainfall event of 30 min duration. This analysis also provided an indication of the risk associated with the concentrations of C1 currently characterising each farming system in each rainfall environment. None of the conventionally tilled Queensland Ferrosols contained sufficient C1 to cope with rainfall events expected to occur with a 1 in 10 frequency, while in many situations the C1 concentration was sufficiently low that runoff events would be expected on an annual basis. Our data suggest that management practices designed both to maximise C inputs and to maintain a high proportion of active C should be seen as essential steps towards developing a more sustainable cropping system.

scholarly journals Agricultural Innovation and Sustainable Development: A Case Study of Rice–Wheat Cropping Systems in South Asia

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (4) ◽  
pp. 1965
Author(s):  
Aman Ullah ◽  
Ahmad Nawaz ◽  
Muhammad Farooq ◽  
Kadambot H. M. Siddique
Keyword(s):  
South Asia ◽  
Precision Agriculture ◽  
Weed Management ◽  
Crop Yields ◽  
Cropping Systems ◽  
Cropping System ◽  
Climatic Conditions ◽  
Transplanted Rice ◽  
Direct Seeded ◽  
Rice Residues

The rice–wheat cropping system is the main food bowl in Asia, feeding billions across the globe. However, the productivity and long-term sustainability of this system are threatened by stagnant crop yields and greenhouse gas emissions from flooded rice production. The negative environmental consequences of excessive nitrogen fertilizer use are further exacerbating the situation, along with the high labor and water requirements of transplanted rice. Residue burning in rice has also severe environmental concerns. Under these circumstances, many farmers in South Asia have shifted from transplanted rice to direct-seeded rice and reported water and labor savings and reduced methane emissions. There is a need for opting the precision agriculture techniques for the sustainable management of nutrients. Allelopathic crops could be useful in the rotation for weed management, the major yield-reducing factor in direct-seeded rice. Legume incorporation might be a viable option for improving soil health. As governments in South Asia have imposed a strict ban on the burning of rice residues, the use of rice-specific harvesters might be a pragmatic option to manage rice residues with yield and premium advantage. However, the soil/climatic conditions and farmer socio-economic conditions must be considered while promoting these technologies in rice-wheat system in South Asia.

Changes in soil carbon under long-term maize in monoculture and legume-based rotation

2001 ◽  
Vol 81 (1) ◽  
pp. 21-31 ◽  
Author(s):  
E G Gregorich ◽  
C F Drury ◽  
J A Baldock
Keyword(s):  
Nuclear Magnetic Resonance ◽  
Organic Matter ◽  
Soil Organic Matter ◽  
Magnetic Resonance ◽  
Soil Carbon ◽  
Crop Residues ◽  
Cropping Systems ◽  
Natural Abundance ◽  
Organic C ◽  
Soil C

Legume-based cropping systems could help to increase crop productivity and soil organic matter levels, thereby enhancing soil quality, as well as having the additional benefit of sequestering atmospheric C. To evaluate the effects of 35 yr of maize monoculture and legume-based cropping on soil C levels and residue retention, we measured organic C and 13C natural abundance in soils under: fertilized and unfertilized maize (Zea mays L.), both in monoculture and legume-based [maize-oat (Avena sativa L.)-alfalfa (Medicago sativa L.)-alfalfa] rotations; fertilized and unfertilized systems of continuous grass (Poa pratensis L.); and under forest. Solid state 13C nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) was used to chemically characterize the organic matter in plant residues and soils. Soils (70-cm depth) under maize cropping had about 30-40% less C, and those under continuous grass had about 16% less C, than those under adjacent forest. Qualitative differences in crop residues were important in these systems, because quantitative differences in net primary productivity and C inputs in the different agroecosystems did not account for observed differences in total soil C. Cropping sequence (i.e., rotation or monoculture) had a greater effect on soil C levels than application of fertilizer. The difference in soil C levels between rotation and monoculture maize systems was about 20 Mg C ha-1. The effects of fertilization on soil C were small (~6 Mg C ha-1), and differences were observed only in the monoculture system. The NMR results suggest that the chemical composition of organic matter was little affected by the nature of crop residues returned to the soil. The total quantity of maize-derived soil C was different in each system, because the quantity of maize residue returned to the soil was different; hence the maize-derived soil C ranged from 23 Mg ha-1 in the fertilized and 14 Mg ha-1 in the unfertilized monoculture soils (i.e., after 35 maize crops) to 6-7 Mg ha-1 in both the fertilized and unfertilized legume-based rotation soils (i.e., after eight maize crops). The proportion of maize residue C returned to the soil and retained as soil organic C (i.e., Mg maize-derived soil C/Mg maize residue) was about 14% for all maize cropping systems. The quantity of C3-C below the plow layer in legume-based rotation was 40% greater than that in monoculture and about the same as that under either continuous grass or forest. The soil organic matter below the plow layer in soil under the legume-based rotation appeared to be in a more biologically resistant form (i.e., higher aromatic C content) compared with that under monoculture. The retention of maize residue C as soil organic matter was four to five times greater below the plow layer than that within the plow layer. We conclude that residue quality plays a key role in increasing the retention of soil C in agroecosystems and that soils under legume-based rotation tend to be more “preservative” of residue C inputs, particularly from root inputs, than soils under monoculture. Key words: Soil carbon, 13C natural abundance, 13C nuclear magnetic resonance, maize cropping, legumes, root carbon

Quantifying in situ and modeling net nitrogen mineralization from soil organic matter in arable cropping systems

2017 ◽  
Vol 111 ◽  
pp. 44-59 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hugues Clivot ◽  
Bruno Mary ◽  
Matthieu Valé ◽  
Jean-Pierre Cohan ◽  
Luc Champolivier ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Organic Matter ◽  
Soil Organic Matter ◽  
Nitrogen Mineralization ◽  
Cropping Systems ◽  
Net Nitrogen Mineralization ◽  
Quantifying In

Onion-forage cropping systems on a Vertic Argiudoll in Uruguay: Onion yield and soil organic matter, aggregation, porosity and permeability

2022 ◽  
Vol 216 ◽  
pp. 105229
Author(s):  
José Miguel Reichert ◽  
Adão Leonel Corcini ◽  
Gabriel Oladele Awe ◽  
Dalvan José Reinert ◽  
Jackson Adriano Albuquerque ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Organic Matter ◽  
Soil Organic Matter ◽  
Cropping Systems ◽  
Porosity And Permeability

Conversion of Wheat-Maize to Vegetable Cropping Systems Changes Soil Organic Matter Characteristics

2010 ◽  
Vol 74 (4) ◽  
pp. 1320-1326 ◽  
Author(s):  
Baokun Lei ◽  
Mingsheng Fan ◽  
Qing Chen ◽  
Johan Six ◽  
Fusuo Zhang
Keyword(s):  
Organic Matter ◽  
Soil Organic Matter ◽  
Cropping Systems
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