Intercropping in rice farming under the system of rice intensification : an agroecological strategy for weed control, better yield, increased returns, and social-ecological sustainability

Rice is the staple food for more than half of the world’s population. In South Asia, rice farming systems provide food to the majority of the population, and agriculture is a primary source of livelihood. With the demand for nutritious food increasing, introducing innovative strategies in farming systems is imperative. In this regard, intensification of rice farming is intricately linked with the challenges of water scarcity, soil degradation, and the vagaries of climate change. Agroecological farming systems like the System of Rice Intensification (SRI) have been proposed as water-saving and sustainable ways of food production. This study examines the effect of intercropping beans with rice under SRI management on the growth of weeds and on the different plant growth parameters. Intercropping led to a 65% decrease in weed infestation on average, which is important given that weed infestation is stated as a criticism of SRI in some circles and is a major factor in limiting yield in rice-producing regions. In addition to the water savings of about 40% due to the SRI methodology, the innovation led to an increase in rice yield by 33% and an increase in the net income of farmers by 57% compared to the conventional rice farming method. The results indicate that intercropping can be a positive addition to the rice farming system, hence contributing to social–ecological sustainability.

Subjects

agroecology

rice

intercropping

sustainable agriculture

sustainable intensification

DDC Class

630: Landwirtschaft, Veterinärmedizin

Funding Organisations

Freie und Hansestadt Hamburg (FHH)

SRI International Network and Resources Centre

More Funding Information

We acknowledge support for Open Access publishing through APC funding by GFEU e.V. at TUHH. We acknowledge the financial support provided to the first author by the State of Hamburg (Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg) through the HmbNFG (Hamburg State Graduate Funding Program) doctoral scholarship. We acknowledge the support provided to the first author by CCAFS-CGIAR through the CLIFF (Climate Food and Farming) fellowship. We acknowledge the feedback provided by Norman Uphoff during this research and the pioneering role played by SRI-RICE (SRI International Network and Resources Centre) in promoting socially, economically, and ecologically sustainable farming systems worldwide.

Publication version

publishedVersion

Lizenz

https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

Name

agronomy-11-01010.pdf

Size

4.99 MB

Format

Adobe PDF

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Intercropping in rice farming under the system of rice intensification : an agroecological strategy for weed control, better yield, increased returns, and social-ecological sustainability