On-farm comparison in grain quality between main and ratoon crops of ratoon rice in Hubei Province, Central China.

Abstract

While ratoon rice has been increasingly practiced by farmers recently in China, on-farm performance in grain quality of main and ratoon crops in the mechanized rice ratooning system is less studied and remains poorly understood. Therefore, a multi-location on-farm survey was conducted to collect rice grain samples from farmers' fields to determine grain quality of main and ratoon crops of ratoon rice at 12 locations across Hubei Province, central China, in 2016. On average, milled and head rice percentage in the ratoon crop was 70.2% and 65.7%, which was significantly higher than in the main crop, whereas chalky grain percentage and grain chalkiness in ratoon crop (10.1% and 2.8%, respectively) were significantly lower than those in the main crop (36.6% and 14.2%, respectively). The differences in these quality traits between the two crops were consistent at all locations. Averaged across 12 locations, scores of translucency and gel consistency were significantly lower but amylose content and alkali spreading value were significantly higher in the ratoon crop than in the main crop, with the difference between the two crops varying in gel consistency by location. Overall, grain quality, especially milling and appearance of the ratoon crop, was superior to the main crop in the mechanized rice ratooning system. As a result, this study emphasizes the potential role of the rice ratooning system in other regions with a similar biophysical background producing high-quality rice. © 2022 Society of Chemical Industry.