The document discusses the System of Rice Intensification (SRI), a method for growing rice that modifies standard practices to improve yields. SRI involves changing the management of plants, soil, water, and nutrients to support larger, more extensive root systems and promote soil biota. This agroecological management improves the growing environment and yields better rice phenotypes from any genotype using less water, seeds, and other inputs. SRI has led to increased yields of 50-100% or more in many countries along with other benefits like water savings, increased resistance to stresses, and reduced costs, methane emissions, and environmental impacts.

1. Opportunities Created by the
System of Rice Intensification
(SRI) for Improvements in Soil,
Water & Environmental Quality
Norman Uphoff, Cornell University
Workshop - July 21 - on Carbon Markets:
Expanding Opportunities & Valuing Co-Benefits,
organized by the Soil & Water Conservation
Society and the National Wildlife Federation

2. The System of Rice Intensification (SRI)
- developed in Madagascar in the 1980s –
modifies standard rice-growing practices.
By changing the management of plants,
soil, water, and nutrients, SRI methods:
(a) Support larger, better-functioning
root systems, and
(b) Promote the abundance, diversity
and activity of beneficial soil biota.
Such agroecological management improves
the growing environment (E) to yield a
better phenotype (P) from any genotype (G)

3. Examples of
phenotypical
change:
Rice plant grown
from single seed
in Takeo province
CAMBODIA

4. CUBA: Farmer showing two
rice plants of same age (52 d)
and same variety (VN 2084);
both are same genotype

5. INDONESIA:
Single SRI rice plant
(variety: Cv. Ciherang)
with 223 fertile tillers
Sampoerna CSR Program,
Malang, E. Java, 2009

6. IRAQ: Comparison trials at Al-Mishkhab Rice Research Station, Najaf,
same varieties, SRI management on left, standard management on right

7. IRAN:
SRI roots
and normal
(flooded)
roots: note
difference
in color as
well as size
Comparison
picture sent
by Haraz
Technology
Research
Center,
Amol,
Mazandaran

8. BHUTAN: Report on SRI in Deorali Geog, 2009
Sangay Dorji, Jr. Extension Agent, Deorali Geog, Dagana
Standard practice 3.6 t/ha SRI @ 25x25cm 9.5 t/ha
SRI random spacing 6.0 t/ha SRI @ 30x30cm 10.0 t/ha

9. 2008: 6 farmers got
SRI yields of 10.1 t/ha
vs. 5.4 t/ha regular
2009: 42 farmers got
SRI yields of 9.3 t/ha
vs. 5.6 t/ha regular
2nd-year SRI farmers got
13.3 t/ha vs. 5.6 t/ha
1st-year SRI farmers got
8.7 t/ha vs. 5.5 t/ha
AFGHANISTAN:
2009 Report from
Aga Khan Foundation:
Baghlan Province

10. MALI: Farmer in
the Timbuktu
region showing the
difference between
regular and SRI
rice plants
--
2007: SRI yield
was 8.98 t/ha
--
Program managed by
Africare and supported
by the Better U
Foundation

11. SRI Control
Farmer
Practice
Yield t/ha* 9.1 5.49 4.86
Standard Error (SE) 0.24 0.27 0.18
% Change compared to
Control
+ 66 100 - 11
% Change compared to
Farmer Practice
+ 87 + 13 100
Number of
Farmers
53 53 60
• * adjusted to 14% grain moisture content
MALI: 2008 results, rice grain yields for
SRI plots, control plots, and farmer-
practice plots, Goundam, Timbuktu region

12. SRI shows the power of E in the equation:
P = ƒx [G x E] – How do we improve E ?
1. Transplant young seedlings to preserve their growth
potential (altho direct seeding is becoming an option)
2. Avoid trauma to the roots -- transplant quickly and
shallow, not inverting root tips, which halts growth
3. Give plants wide spacing -- one plant per hill and in
square pattern to achieve “edge effect” everywhere
4. Keep paddy soil moist but unflooded -- soil should
be mostly aerobic -- never continuously saturated
5. Actively aerate the soil -- as much as possible
6. Enhance soil organic matter as much as possible
These practices stimulate root growth and the
abundance and diversity of soil biota – raising
productivity of land, labor, capital and water

13. Various Benefits from SRI Practices:
1. Increased yield – 50-100%, and often even more
2. Saving of water – rice production is feasible with
less water; also rainfed versions are developing
3. Resistance to biotic and abiotic stresses – less
damage from pests and diseases and from extremes
(either way) in rainfall or temperature
4. Shorter crop cycle – crop matures in 1-3 weeks less
time; so less exposure to climate and pest hazards
5. Higher milling outturn – about 15% more rice per
bushel of paddy, due to less chaff, less breakage
6. Reductions in labor requirements – incentive for
adoption in China and India; mechanization starting
7. Lower costs of production – this increases farmer
incomes by more than the yield increase; this adds
to the incentive to adopt agroecological management

14. Environmental Benefits
1. Reduced water requirements – less pressure on
ecosystems that are in competition with food and
agriculture; higher crop water-use efficiency
2. Higher land productivity – reduce pressures for
expansion of arable area to feed our population
3. Less use of inorganic fertilizer – reactive N is ‘the
third major threat to our planet after biodiversity
loss and climate change’ (John Lawton, former chief
executive, UK National Envir. Research Council)
4. Less reliance on agrochemicals for crop protection
- this should enhance both soil and water quality
5. Buffering the effects of climate change – drought,
storms (no lodging), cold temperatures, etc.
6. Possible reduction in greenhouse gases (GHG) –
reduced CH4 apparently without offsetting N2O

15. More productive SRI phenotypes give higher
water-use efficiency as reflected in the ratio
of photosynthesis to transpiration:
For each 1 millimol of water lost by transpiration:
In SRI plants, 3.6 millimols of CO2 are fixed
In RMP plants, 1.6 millimols of CO2 are fixed
Climate change makes this increasingly important
‘An assessment of physiological effects of the System of Rice
Intensification (SRI) compared with recommended rice cultivation
practices in India,’ A.K. Thakur, N. Uphoff and E. Antony
Experimental Agriculture, 46(1), 77-98 (2010)

16. Parameters
Cultivation method
SRI RMP SRI % LSD.05
Total chlorophyll
(mg g-1FW)
3.37
(0.17)
2.58
(0.21)
+30 0.11
Ratio of chlorophyll a/b 2.32
(0.28)
1.90
(0.37)
+22 0.29
Transpiration
(m mol m-2 s-1)
6.41
(0.43)
7.59
(0.33)
-16 0.27
Net photosynthetic rate
(μ mol m-2 s-1)
23.15
(3.17)
12.23
(2.02)
+89 1.64
Stomatal conductance
(m mol m-2 s-1)
422.73
(34.35)
493.93
(35.93)
-15 30.12
Internal CO2 concentration
(ppm)
292.6
(16.64)
347.0
(19.74)
-16 11.1
Comparison of chlorophyll content, transpiration rate,
net photosynthetic rate, stomatal conductance, and
internal CO2 concentration in SRI and RMP
Standard deviations are given in parentheses [N = 15]

17. Other Benefits from Changes in Practices
1. Water saving – major concern in many places, also
now have ‘rainfed’ version with similar results
2. Greater resistance to biotic and abiotic stresses –
less damage from pests and diseases, drought,
typhoons, flooding, cold spells [discuss tomorrow]
3. Shorter crop cycle – same varieties are harvested
by 1-3 weeks sooner, save water, less crop risk
4. High milling output – by about 15%, due to fewer
unfilled grains (less chaff) and fewer broken grains
5. Reductions in labor requirements – widely reported
incentive for changing practices in India and China;
also, mechanization is being introduced many places
6. Reductions in costs of production – greater farmer
income and profitability, also health benefits
SRI LANKA: Rice fields 3 weeks after irrigation was stopped;
conventionally-grown field on left, and SRI field on right

18. VIETNAM:
Dông Trù village,
Hanoi province,
after typhoon
SRI field and
rice plant on left;
Conventional field
and plant on right

19. Period Mean max.
temp. 0C
Mean min.
temp. 0C
No. of
sunshine hrs
1 – 15 Nov 27.7 19.2 4.9
16–30 Nov 29.6 17.9 7.5
1 – 15 Dec 29.1 14.6 8.6
16–31 Dec 28.1 12.2* 8.6
INDIA: Meteorological and yield data from
ANGRAU IPM evaluation, Andhra Pradesh, 2006
Season Normal (t/ha) SRI (t/ha)
Rabi 2005-06 2.25 3.47
Kharif 2006 0.21* 4.16
* Low yield was due to cold injury for plants (see above)
*Sudden drop in min. temp. during 16–21 Dec. (9.2-9.8oC for 5 days)

20. METHANE
EMISSIONS
Initial results reported by IPB
Soil Biotechnology Laboratory
from GHG studies with SRI
management in Indonesia

21. N2O
EMISSIONS

22. Yan, X., H. Akiyama, K. Yagi and H. Akomoto. ‘Global
estimations of the inventory and mitigation potential
of methane emissions from rice cultivation conducted
using the 2006 Intergovernmental Panel on Climate
Change Guidelines.’ Global Biochemical Cycles, (2009)
“We estimated that if all of the continuously flooded rice fields were
drained at least once during the growing season, the CH4 emissions
would be reduced by 4.1 Tg a-1 . Furthermore, we estimated that
applying rice straw off-season wherever and whenever possible would
result in a further reduction in emissions of 4.1 Tg a-1 globally. …
if both of these mitigation options were adopted, the global CH4
emission from rice paddies could be reduced by 7.6 Tg a-1.
Although draining continuously flooded rice fields may lead to an
increase in nitrous oxide (N2O) emission, the global warming
potential resulting from this increase is negligible when compared
to the reduction in global warming potential that would result
from the CH4 reduction associated with draining the fields.”

23. Soil and Atmospheric Benefits?
1. Few evaluations of impact on soil organic carbon –
study at ICRISAT (Rupela et al. 2006) found
microbial biomass carbon (MBC) 1242 vs. 1187 (NS)
2. Should have some increase in carbon sequestration –
from ongoing amendments of compost, FYM, etc.
+ exudation from larger, more active root systems
3. Improvements in soil structure – improved soil
porosity from increased biological activity;
venting of H2S, CO2 and other gases
4. Increased water retention – related to soil porosity
and SOM, also from increased biological activity
5. Should have reduced carbon footprint – with
smaller-scale, less mechanized production; and
less chemical fertilizer produced and transported

24. Total bacteria Total diazotrophs
Microbial populations in rhizosphere soil in rice crop under different
management at active tillering, panicle initiation and flowering
(SRI = yellow; conventional = red) – IPB research
[units are √ transformed values of population/gram of dry soil]
Phosphobacteria Azotobacter

25. Dehydrogenase activity (μg TPF) Urease activity (μg NH4-N))
Microbial activities in rhizosphere soil in rice crop with
different management (SRI = yellow; conventional = red)
at active tillering, panicle initiation and flowering stages
[units are √ transformed values of population/gram of dry soil per 24 h]
Acid phosphate activity (μg p-Nitrophenol)
Nitrogenase activity (nano mol C2H4)

26. Microorganisms in Leaves and Seeds:
New Paradigm for Agriculture?
1. Beneficial interactions between plants and
microorganisms within the root zone
(rhizosphere) are well established
2. We are now finding that positive interactions
extend also to the rest of the plant:
– Leaves: soil bacteria (Rhizobia) migrate
into the leaf zone (phyllosphere),
promoting better phenotypes, and
– Seeds: when inoculated with fungus
(Fusarium culmorum), more root growth

27. Ascending Migration of Endophytic Rhizobia,
from Roots and Leaves, inside Rice Plants and
Assessment of Benefits to Rice Growth Physiology
Feng Chi et al.,J. Applied & Envir. Microbiology 71 (2005), 7271-7278
Rhizo-
bium test
strain
Total plant
root
volume/
pot (cm3)
Shoot dry
weight/
pot (g)
Net photo-
synthetic
rate
(μmol-2 s-1)
Water
utilization
efficiency
Area (cm2)
of flag leaf
Grain
yield/
pot (g)
Ac-ORS571 210 ± 36A 63 ± 2A 16.42 ± 1.39A 3.62 ± 0.17BC 17.64 ± 4.94ABC
86 ± 5A
SM-1021 180 ± 26A 67 ± 5A 14.99 ± 1.64B 4.02 ± 0.19AB 20.03 ± 3.92A
86 ± 4A
SM-1002 168 ± 8AB 52 ± 4BC 13.70 ± 0.73B 4.15 ± 0.32A 19.58 ± 4.47AB
61 ± 4B
R1-2370 175 ± 23A 61 ± 8AB 13.85 ± 0.38B 3.36 ± 0.41C 18.98 ± 4.49AB
64 ± 9B
Mh-93 193 ± 16A 67 ± 4A 13.86 ± 0.76B 3.18 ± 0.25CD 16.79 ± 3.43BC
77 ± 5A
Control 130 ± 10B 47 ± 6C 10.23 ± 1.03C 2.77 ± 0.69D
15.24 ± 4.0C
51 ± 4C

28. Growth of nonsymbiotic (on left) and symbiotic (on right) rice seedlings.
On growth of endophyte (F. culmorum) and plant inoculation procedures,
see Rodriguez et al., Communicative and Integrative Biology, 2:3 (2009).

29. SRI Concepts and Methods Are
Now Being Extended Beyond Rice
Agroecological management is generic --
SRI is not a technology
Applications now with other crops:
• Wheat (India, Ethiopia, Mali)
• Sugar cane (India)
• Finger millet (India, Ethiopia)
• Legumes and vegetables (India)
• Teff (Ethiopia)

30. New farming method boosts food
output in Bihar for India's rural poor
In Ghantadih village in Gaya district, more than half
of the 42 farming households have switched to
SWI from traditional practices.
Manna Devi, mother of three, was the first woman
to use the technique in Bihar state. She says she
decided to take a gamble despite jibes from
neighbouring farmers who mocked her cultivation
methods.
"We were living a hand-to-mouth existence before
and we just couldn't manage to eat, let alone put
our children through school," she says. "We were
only producing about 30 kg of wheat, which lasted
us four months, and we had to take loans, and
my husband had also taken a second job as a
rickshaw puller in order to make ends meet."
Devi says she now produces about 80 kg of wheat
- enough to feed her family for a year – and hopes
to start selling extra crop.
Alert Net: Thomson-Reuters Foundation,
March 30, 2010

31. ICRISAT-WWF
Sugarcane Initiative:
at least 20% more
cane yield, with:
• 30% reduction in
water, and
• 25% reduction in
chemical inputs
“The inspiration for putting
this package together is
from the successful
approach of SRI – System
of Rice Intensification.”

32. INDIA: Improved variety of finger millet
(ragi) with new methods (left); regular
management of improved variety
(middle) and a traditional variety (right)

33. HIGH-TILLERING TRAIT IN TEFF WHEN
TRANSPLANTED WITH WIDER SPACING
Dr. Tareke Berhe, SAA, ‘Recent Developments in Teff, Ethiopia’s Most
Important Cereal and Gift to the World,’ Cornell seminar, 7/23/09 –
Berhe was CIMMYT post-doctoral fellow with Norman Borlaug in 1970

34. Where Is All This Leading?
1. Still a lot of research to be done, but we should
begin moving beyond our genocentric paradigm
a. ‘Seeds and fertilizer’ is not only path to progress
2. Many powerful trends are making ‘modern
agriculture’ less profitable and less sustainable
3. Now beginning to work toward what might be
called ‘post-modern’ agriculture – focusing on:
a. Ecological dynamics at field level and above
b. Crop/animal interactions with microbes at micro level
c. Gene expression > DNA, e.g., epigenetics
4. Convergence of IPM, Conservation Agriculture,
organic agriculture, SRI, agroforestry, et al.
a. Low-input intensification (European Parliament study)
b. Sustainable intensification (UK Royal Society report)

35. Thank you
Website:
http://ciifad.cornell.edu/sri/
Soon to be:
http://sri.ciifad.cornell.edu
Email:
ntu1@cornell.edu