The System of Rice Intensification (SRI) involves cultivating rice with as much organic manure as possible, starting with young seedlings planted singly at wider spacing in a square pattern; and with intermittent irrigation that keeps the soil moist but not inundated, and frequent inter cultivation with weeder that actively aerates the soil.
The Advantages/Benefits of SRI:
- Higher yields – Both grain and straw
- Reduced duration (by 10 days)
- Lesser chemical inputs
- Less water requirement
- Less chaffy grain %
- Grain weight increased without change in grain size
- Higher head rice recovery
- Withstand cyclonic gales
- Cold tolerance
- Soil health improves through biological activity
The Disadvantages of SRI:
- Higher labour costs in the initial years
- Difficulties in acquiring the necessary skills
- Not suitable when no irrigation source available