Ruth Agbisit

Do abiotic factors cause a gradual yield decline under continuous aerobic rice cultivation? A pot experiment with affected field soils

Abstract Aerobic rice is a water-saving technology in which rice grows in non-puddled and non-saturated (aerobic) soil without ponded water. A gradual decline in rice yield was found in field plots at the farm of the International Rice Research Institute, Los Baños, Philippines, where rice has been cultivated continuously for 10 cropping seasons under aerobic rice conditions. We investigated whether abiotic soil factors lead to the observed yield decline. An aerobic rice pot experiment was conducted using field soils from flooded rice plots and from the 10-season-long aerobic rice cultivated plots (referred to as 1st-season and 11th-season aerobic rice, respectively). Subtreatments consisted of soil sterilization by oven heating (at 95°C or higher for 24 h) and a control treatment. The above-ground biomass of 1st-season aerobic rice was significantly greater than that of 11th-season aerobic rice in both the oven-heating and control treatments. Oven heating increased soil N availability and above-ground biomass accumulation over the control in both 1st-season and 11th-season aerobic rice, but the above-ground biomass in the oven-heated 11th-season aerobic rice was still significantly lower than that of the oven-heated and even the untreated (control) 1st-season aerobic rice. These results suggest that abiotic factors contribute to the gradual yield decline observed in the field plots.

Evaluation of fertilizer and water management effect on rice performance and greenhouse gas intensity in different seasonal weather of tropical climate

Intensively double cropping rice increases greenhouse gas (GHG) emission in tropical countries, and hence, finding better management practices is imperative for reducing global warming potential (GWP), while sustaining rice yield. This study demonstrated an efficient fertilizer and water management practice targeting seasonal weather conditions effects on rice productivity, nitrogen use efficiency (NUE), GWP, and GHG intensity (GHGI). Two-season experiments were conducted with two pot-scale experiments using urea and urea+cattle manure (CM) under continuous flooding (CF) during the wet season (2013WS), and urea with/without CaSiO3 application under alternate wetting and drying (AWD) during the dry season (2014DS). In 2013WS, 120kgNha-1 of urea fertilizer resulted in lower CH4 emission and similar rice production compared to urea+CM. In 2014DS, CaSiO3 application showed no difference in yields and led to significant reduction of N2O emission, but increased CH4 emission and GWP. Due to significant increases in GHG emissions in urea+CM and CaSiO3 application, we compared a seasonal difference in a local rice cultivation to test two water management practices. CF was adopted during 2013WS while AWD was adopted during 2014DS. Greater grain yields and yield components and NUE were obtained in 2014DS than in 2013WS. Furthermore, higher grain yields contributed to similar values of GHGI although GWP of cumulative GHG emissions was increased in 2014DS. Thus, utilizing urea only application under AWD is a preferred practice to minimize GWP without yield decline for double cropping rice in tropical countries.

Effect of rates and sources of nitrogen on rice yield, nitrogen efficiency, and methane emission from irrigated rice cultivation

ABSTRACT The agronomic benefits of manure application to increase rice production have been recognized, but the impact on global change has always been a controversial topic. This study was designed to determine the separate and combined effects of cattle manure (CM) and nitrogen (N) fertilizer on rice yield, N efficiency, and methane (CH4) emissions from rice cultivation. A pot-scale experiment was conducted with four levels (0, 60, 120, and 180 kg ha−1) of N from urea and two levels (120 and 180 kg ha−1) of N from combination of urea and CM (Urea:CM = 60:60 and 60:120). Rice yield and physiological N efficiency were obtained using agronomic measurements. To determine the global warming potential (GWP) of each treatment, CH4 emissions were measured throughout the rice-growing period. Grain yield (GY) was not significantly different between the treatments of 120 and 180 kg ha−1 regardless of N source. However, both rates of CM treatments enhanced CH4 emission and differences in GWP were significant. In conclusion, urea applied at 120 kg N ha−1 was optimal for rice productivity and environmental impact (EI) despite CM played a crucial role in improving the N efficiency and total N in the soil after harvest.

Effects of Calcium Silicate on Nutrient Use of Lowland Rice and Greenhouse Gas Emission from Paddy Soil in the Philippines Under Alternating Wetting and Drying

Abstract In intensively irrigated rice cultivation, plant-available silicon (Si) is a crucial nutrient for improving rice productivity. As a source of Si, calcium silicate (CaSiO3) was amended to evaluate the effect of silicate fertilizer on rice production, nitrogen (N) use efficiency, and greenhouse gas (GHG) emission under alternating wetting and drying in a pot experiment using a tropical soil from a paddy field of the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) in the Philippines. Four levels of CaSiO3 amendment, 0, 112.7, 224.5, and 445.8 kg ha–1, with the recommended N rate were tested. The results showed that although CaSiO3 amendment of 112.7 kg ha–1 resulted in higher rice straw, improved N use efficiency, and reduced N2O emission, there was no difference in grain yield among the four levels of CaSiO3 amendment owing to relatively lower harvest index. Moreover, CaSiO3 amendment showed a reverse trend between CH4 and N2O emissions as it reduced N2O emission while led to significantly increased CH4 emission and global warming potential. Thus, CaSiO3 amendment was a possible alternative to improve N use efficiency and increase rice straw biomass, but it needs to be reviewed in line with grain yield production and GHG emission. It is also imperative to test an optimal method of silicate fertilizer amendment in future research in order to compromise a negative impact in tropical soils.