Direct seeded rice
Direct seeded rice (DSR) is an establishment technique for rice crop
in which seeds are sown in the field directly in the main field rather than by
transplanting seedlings from the nursery to the main field. Direct seeding is
done by either sowing of pre-germinated seeds into a puddled soil (wet direct seeding)
or well prepared non-puddled seedbed (dry direct seeding). Both the dry seeding
and wet seeding are commonly practiced in Odisha. The main problem associated
with DSR (more specifically in dry DSR) is the weed infestation. If proper weed
management is not adopted the yield losses may go up to 85%. Seed priming using
water and KCl is one of the promising approaches to overcome poor crop
establishment. Short and medium duration rice
varieties are preferred for DSR in upland and medium land. Water stress must be avoided during critical stages
of seedling emergence, active tillering, panicle initiation, and flowering. The
overall duration of the crop is reduced by approximately 10 days. The other
benefits include reduced labour requirement that is required for nursery bed
raising and transplanting and less methane emission.