Green manuring–system of rice intensification (SRI)–blackgram (rice fallow pulses) cropping system is novel, and appears to be a sustainable approach, combining innovative farming techniques to optimize yields, improve soil health, and minimize environmental impacts. Field demonstrations were conducted on a farmer's field through the National Pulses Research Centre, Vamban, Pudukkottai, Tamil Nadu, within the kharif rabi and summer seasons of 2019–20. The demonstration was conducted in 50 hectares with 92 locations of Ponnaniyar sub-basin.
The improved practice of SRI recorded higher plant height and other yield attributes, including yields from 7580 to 9400 kg ha−1. Concurrently, within the IPT framework for the GM–SRI–Rice fallow pulses cropping system, the yields for Rice fallow Blackgram were 590 to 730 kg ha−1. A remarkable 39.9 percent enhancement in system productivity through the adoption of IPT practicesas well as significantly higher water productivity, The green manure–system of rice intensification–rice fallow pulses crop sequences emerged as the more productive and sustainable option, displaying the potential to enhance soil productivity and fertility status compared to conventional rice–blackgram/groundnut cropping sequences. These systems present promising alternatives for farmers Tamil Nadu's Ponnaniyar sub-basin.
As the System of Rice Intensification (SRI) has evolved in many ways and in several directions over the past two decades, this review follows the evolution of SRI over time. This overview explains how rainfed SRI, direct-seeded SRI, mechanized SRI, and other modifications have emerged since 2000, and how versions of SRI have been adapted to improve the production of other crops such as wheat, finger millet, maize, and sugar cane.
SRI thinking and practices are also being incorporated into diversified farming systems, broadening the impact of SRI beyond monoculture to achieve broader objectives like the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions and the conservation of biodiversity. SRI observations and research have been contributing to the crop and soil sciences by focusing attention on plant roots and soil ecology and by showing how crop management can elicit more desirable phenotypes from a given genotype.
SRI-Rice's insight:
Norman Uphoff. 2023. SRI 2.0 and beyond: Sequencing the protean evolution of the System of Rice Intensification. Agronomy 13(5): 1253. doi:10.3390/agronomy13051253
At this conference (note new dates!), the System of Rice Intensification (SRI) and System of Crop Intensification (SCI) [which includes a wider range of crops] will be considered in terms of policy, farming systems research, climate change, resource conservation technologies, resource use efficiency, etc. Date: Dec. 12-14, 2022 Venue: [hybid] ICAR - Indian Institute of Rice Research, Rajendranagar, Hyderabad, India Organized by: Society for Advancement of Rice Research Registration: https://forms.gle/gesvRdQbupjaJie26 More information: See website or e-mail: icsci82022@gmail.com or kumaricsci2022@gmail.com
Find dozens of videos about the System of Rice Intensification (SRI) in the SRI-Rice video library! These Include various types of SRI equipment, instructional material, country-based programs, and more! And we have collections in over 15 languages! Or, go directly to our SRI playlists on YouTube (though this will not include other formats).
RGMVP teaches System of Rice Intensification (SRI) and System of Wheat Intensification (SWI), which leads to yield improvement due to better root development... The farmers trained in SRI/SWI methods have experienced yields increase by 30 per cent.
Articles are being accepted UNTIL NOV. 1 for an upcoming special edition of Agronomy that will focus on the System of Rice Intensification (SRI)! As SRI methods have been found repeatedly to evoke more productive and robust rice phenotypes from given genotypes, its use has spread, and the methodology has now been validated in >60 countries. During this process, the practices that apply SRI’s basic principles have been diversified and modified. For example, SRI is now applied for rainfed and direct-seeded rice, not only to transplanted, irrigated cultivation. SRI principles have also been extrapolated to other crops, such as wheat, sugarcane, millet, mustard, teff, etc.
SRI-Rice's insight:
Time is running out to contribute an article as the deadline for submission is November 1, 2020! [Please send abstract first] This issue, to be edited by Norman Uphoff, will present findings on ways in which SRI concepts are being utilized in diverse environments with modified practices, such as reducing labor requirements through mechanization and improving the productivity of crops other than rice. It will thus update understanding and application of the original ideas that constitute SRI, welcoming critical and empirical evaluations of SRI.
SMI is an acronym for System of Millet Intensification. This method has been developed on the lines of the SRI (System of Rice Intensification) for paddy with emphasis on root intensification. It leads to lower seed requirement, easier intercultural operations, more tillers and panicles.
Farmers have been experiencing higher yield under SMI method, upto 20-25 quintals per hectare. Some farmers have experienced yield of over 30 quintals per hectare as well. The Odisha Millets Mission is promoting SMI for Ragi.
Le SRI et le SCI sont des techniques d’“agriculture intelligente face au climat” car les cultures qui suivent ces principes sont moins affectées par les sécheresses, tempêtes, inondations et températures extrêmes. Elles sont aussi moins vulnérables aux nuisibles et aux maladies, ce qui limite le besoin de protection agrochimique, au bénéfice de la santé du sol et de la qualité de l’eau. Ces effets sont dus à des racines plus solides et profondes, à une meilleure nutrition des plantes et aux services des micro-organismes dans le sol. En évitant d’inonder continuellement les rizières, le SRI entraîne aussi d’importantes réductions des émissions de gaz à effet de serre. En outre, comme il permet aussi une application plus limitée d’engrais azotés, le SRI contribue à atténuer le changement climatique, tout en aidant les agriculteurs à s’adapter à ses risques.
Le SRI et le SCI sont tous deux en plein développement, mais il existe désormais une importante base de littérature scientifique sur le SRI, avec plus de 1 000 articles déjà publiés. Plus de 20 millions d’agriculteurs profitent probablement déjà des principes et méthodes SRI, même si leur diffusion doit se faire au fur et à mesure, pays par pays, avec peu de soutien institutionnel. Cependant, l’approche SRI est désormais reconnue par de nombreuses ONG et organismes donateurs, comme la FAO, le FIDA, Oxfam et la Banque mondiale.
SRI-Rice's insight:
This article by Norman Uphoff, which is published on May 31 in SPORE magazine, is also available in English with the title "Realising the System of Rice Intensification's potential."
Oxfam has launched an ambitious System for Crop Intensification (SCI) programme in Tajikistan with a view to transforming crop productivity and the food security landscape in the country. Oxfam has launched an ambitious System for Crop Intensification (SCI) programme in Tajikistan with a view to transforming crop productivity and the food security landscape in the country. Within the broader framework of SCI, a field trial of System for Rice Intensification (SRI) was carried out in Khatlon region in the summer cropping season of 2018. Preliminary results from the limited trial show an increase in rice productivity of up to 60% using standard SRI methodology (compared with traditional methods). Furthermore, there was a dramatic reduction in the use of seeds, fertilizers and water, which led to a significant cutback in the cost of rice cultivation for farmers.
Many of us are aware of the impact of Anil Verma’s work on SRI/SCI through the NGO he founded in Bihar-- Preservation and Proliferation of Rural Resources and Nature (PRAN). At a recent Rural India conference organized by Vikas Anvesh Foundation, he was recognized for his work, along with 16 others. You can read more about his amazing story here....
This paper seeks to capitalize on the lessons learned from SRI, also with respect to other crops, and explores additional opportunities for intensification based on ecological processes as supported by insights from (soil) microbiological, biochemical and molecular research. Recent studies suggest that soil organic matter, plant roots, soil biota and biodiversity of plants and (micro-) organisms - rather than agrochemicals - will be the critical elements of environment-friendly and sustainable forms of agriculture. To capitalize on these factors, large reductions in plant densities (>50%) would be required to allow expanded root systems as the basis for increased plant physiological efficiency. The paper elaborates also on the socioeconomic/cultural issues involved in possible transitions as farmer's technical/managerial skills and insights were crucial in the successful introduction and dissemination of SRI practices so far.
SRI-Rice's insight:
Stoop, W. A., et al. 2017. Opportunities for ecological intensification: lessons and insights from the System of Rice/crop Intensification - their implications for agricultural research and development approaches. CAB Reviews 12(036): 1-19. [The article is based on an extensive review of literature complemented by field observations and farmer interviews in different parts of India and West Africa.]
Welcome to SRI-Rice Online! SRI-Rice ONLINE and its associated social networking sites are maintained by the SRI International Network and Resources Center (SRI-Rice) at Cornell University. SRI-Rice ONLINE contains the most comprehensive collection of information on the System of Rice Intensification globally. Many of the documents we publish come directly from our partners: Farmers, researchers, NGOs, government agencies and other stakeholders from around the world.
SRI-Rice's insight:
Haven't been to the SRI-Rice website recently? The SRI-Rice website (http://sririce.org) has video collections and field manuals in several languages, pages for individual countries, access to the SRI Research Network and database, and links to various social media platforms. Write to us if you can't find what you need! sririce@cornell.edu
"At a time when the centre is mulling whether to allow transgenic technology to improve yields of mustard, farmers from several states have claimed superior yields by growing traditional mustard varieties using a new method of cultivation. Known as system of mustard intensification (SMI), the technology which essentially advocates a radically different package of practices, has earlier been successfully tried in crops like rice and wheat. The technology, which is also known as system of root intensification (SRI), involves planting saplings at a wide distance from each other, using less water and seeds and creating soil conditions which are aerated and microbe-friendly.
In Umariya district of Madhya Pradesh, the SMI process has yielded between 4 to 5.7 tonnes per hectare of mustard and nearly 10,000 farmers in the district have shifted to this new method of cultivation..."
Intense cultivation with narrow row spacing in wheat, a common practice in the Indo-Gangetic plains of South Asia, renders the crop more susceptible to lodging during physiological maturity. This susceptibility, compounded by the use of traditional crop cultivars, has led to a substantial decline in overall crop productivity. The results of a two-year field study on the system of wheat intensification (SWI) was conducted suggested that adoption of SWI at 20 cm × 20 cm resulted in significantly higher intercellular CO2 concentration (5.9–6.3%), transpiration rate (13.2–15.8%), stomatal conductance (55–59%), net photosynthetic rate (126–160%), and photosynthetically active radiation (PAR) interception (1.6–25.2%) over the existing conventional method (plant geometry 22.5 cm × continuous plant to plant spacing) of wheat cultivation.
The lodging resistance capacity of both the lower and upper 3rd nodes was significantly higher in the SWI compared to other cultivation methods. In addition, adoption of the SWI at 20 cm × 20 cm enhanced crop grain yield by 36.9–41.6%, and biological yield by 27.5–29.8%.. Further, increased root volumes, surface root density and higher NPK uptake were recorded under SWI at 20×20 cm in comparison to rest of the treatments. Therefore, adoption of SWI at 20 cm ×20 cm and square planting (with cultivars HD 2967) might be the best strategy for enhancing crop productivity and resource-use efficiency.
...SRI 2.0 is a set of adaptations of the original practices to be effective under different constraints or opportunities. The principles remain the same – rainfed SRI, direct-seeded SRI, mechanized SRI, etc. SRI 3.0 is the extension and adaptation of SRI ideas and principles to other crops – wheat, millet, sugarcane, mustard, etc. – in other words, the System of Crop Intensification. SRI 4.0 is the integration of SRI ideas into farming systems, going beyond monocropping. SRI 5.0 is the use of SRI beyond agricultural production like reducing GHG emissions, climate-proofing crops, improving women’s working conditions, increasing the nutritional quality, and other ‘externalities’. SRI 6.0 is the research to advance scientific understanding of how and why SRI works. (These versions are not sequential).
SRI has shown the prime importance of two factors: plant roots and the life in the soil. SRI seeks to elicit the genetic potentials to evoke better, more robust phenotypes from a given variety (genotype). In a changing climate, it will become important to grow crops with bigger root systems in soils that have greater abundance of beneficial soil organisms.
SRI-Rice's insight:
This paper accompanied Norman Uphoff's keynote address at the International Conference on the System of Crop Intensification for Climate-Smart Livelihoods and Nutritional Security (ICSCI22) that took place December 12-14, 2022, at ICAR, Hyderabad, India. [This paper, along with other lead speakers' presentations, is included in a special edition (vol. 15) of SARR's Journal of Rice Research:https://sarr.co.in/2023/02/05/volume-15-special-issue/]
"SMI stands for System of Millet Intensification. It is similar to SRI (System of Rice Intensification) in rice. This method of agronomic practice is to enhance productivity and to increase the production in Millets. Now SMI in Finger Millet is practiced by most of the farmers in Odisha under Odisha Millet Mission. This practice is getting popular in the farmer field because it is giving promising yield as compared to the traditional method. Generally, this method is followed only for Finger Millet. But this year I made a trial with Barnyard Millet and the performance is good. Let us see the package of practices followed in SMI..."
The COVID-19 pandemic has forced many people to re-examine everything: their priorities, their jobs, even their roles in society. Here are success stories of several indigenous farmers from India who have studied and applied the System of Crop Intensification during the COVID pandemic.
With the ever increasing demand for food accompanied by the constraints of climate change and the availability and quality of soil and water, the farmers are challenged to produce more food per hectare with less water and with fewer agrochemical inputs if possible. The ideas and methods of the system of rice intensification which is improving irrigated rice production are now being extended and adapted to many other crops viz., wheat, maize, finger millet, sugarcane, legumes, vegetables, and even spices. Promoting better root growth and enhancing the soil’s fertility with organic materials are being found effective means for raising the yields of many crop plants with less water, less fertilizer, reduced seeds, fewer agrochemicals, and greater climate resilience. The principles and practices that improve the productivity and resilience of these varied crops are broadly referred to as the system of crop intensification (SCI).
ICPS-2019 International Conference on Innovative Climate-Smart Sustainable Crop Production Systems For Livelihood Security.
Experiences and empirical evidence on refining the understanding of SRI
Experiences with extending SRI concepts to other crops (sugarcane, wheat, pulses, oilseeds, nutri crops, vegetables etc.) and other systems (conservation agriculture, ZBNM, etc.)
Socio-economic analyses of ICPS regarding food, nutrition and livelihood security, gender equity, and labour issues
Role and contribution of ICPS towards improving agroecosystems, climate-resilience, and soil and human health.
Experiences and challenges on scaling-up of ICPS
SRI-Rice's insight:
Conference will be held Dec. 19-22, 2019 at the SRM Institute of Science & Technology, Kattankulathur, Tamil Nadu. Abstract submission closes Sept 30, Register here: https://www.srmist.edu.in/forms/icps-2019-registration
#SRI is the System of Rice Intensification. It’s a new approach to cultivating crops – not just paddy or rice – and it tries to understand the principles of nature and maximise the various energies that are present in the microbes, in the soil, in the water and in the air. My name is Ravi Chopra and I work as a research scientist at People’s Science Institute.. The story goes back about 10 or 12 years...
Technique of SRI emerged from grass root (farmers centric), unlike the top down technique. It is easy to adopt once farmers realize its merit and rap the benefits. Let the institutions gear up, create awareness and prepare action plan to achieve sustainable food security of the people.
Presentation by Robert Bimba (Community of Hope Agriculture) to the Ministry of Agriculture in Liberia (January 11, 2019). CHAP, an SRI pioneer in Liberia, has been helping to improve farmers' productivity since 2008. Among other activities, CHAP provides leadership in SRI/SCI extension and helps farmers adapt and access new equipment, acquire certified seed, develop local markets for rice, and trial organic inputs.
SRI-Rice's insight:
CHAP just finished working on a two year project associated with the Japanese Rice Grant (entitled ‘Economic recovery of Liberian rice farmers in Ebola affected counties’). The project, which worked with 9,000 farmers in five counties and promoted SRI, was funded by the Japanese Govt. through IFAD. See impact report on the SRI-Rice website for more information.
"Future strategies for sustainable food security will need to get greater productivity from available land, labour, water and other resources, producing more food, as much as possible, with reduced inputs. The System of Crop Intensification (SCI) which emerged from an agroecological production strategy developed for rice in Madagascar in the 1980s has shown promise in various countries for raising the yields of diverse crops with less reliance on purchased external inputs, using less seed and needing less water because of enhanced root growth and soil improvement. Here we review the adaptation and application of SCI principles to increasing the production and availability of Ethiopia's most important indigenous grain crop, tef."
Happy New Year! Here's a recap of what SRI-Rice at Cornell found and either linked to or uploaded during 2017! We linked to (among others) 275 press/blogs/website articles; 130+ research articles/theses; 68 videos; and 39 PowerPoints. We have also uploaded project documents and other material from numerous countries to help our SRI colleagues share their successes. You can find the 2017 compilation along with info from the past several decades in the SRI online library.
SRI-Rice's insight:
We hope you'll enjoy the 2017 System of Rice Intensification (SRI) collection. As our listings go back several decades, we are happy to help you to use our online library or research databases if you get lost! Just write to: sririce@cornell.edu
[This article has been made open-access by SRI-Rice] "The ideas and methods of the system of rice intensification which is improving irrigated rice production are now being extended/adapted to many other crops: wheat, maize, finger millet, sugarcane, tef, mustard, legumes, vegetables, and even spices. Promoting better root growth and enhancing the soil’s fertility with organic materials are being found effective means for raising the yields of many crop plants with less water, less fertilizer, reduced seeds, fewer agrochemicals, and greater climate resilience. In this article, we review what is becoming known about various farmer-centred innovations for agroecological crop management that can contribute to agricultural sustainability. These changes represent the emerging system of crop intensification, which is being increasingly applied in Asian, African, and Latin American countries.
To get content containing either thought or leadership enter:
To get content containing both thought and leadership enter:
To get content containing the expression thought leadership enter:
You can enter several keywords and you can refine them whenever you want. Our suggestion engine uses more signals but entering a few keywords here will rapidly give you great content to curate.
Your new post is loading...
Marimuthu, S., M. Gunasekaran, M. Raju, et al. 2024. Green manuring–system of rice intensification–rice fallow pulses cropping system for enhancing the crop productivity and soil health: a sustainable farming solutions. Paddy and Water Environment. doi:10.1007/s10333-024-00989-3