Abstract
AbstractRice (Oryza sativa L.) is the primary staple crop in Taiwan, and it can be grown twice a year. The prevalent subspecies grown in Taiwan is Japonica, and a transplanting system is used for rice production. Although the transplanting system is known for efficient weed control at the seedling stage, weedy red rice (WRR, O. sativa f. spontanea) infestation is progressively being reported. Fieldwork and previous studies have suggested that WRR infestation in Taiwan is probably related to growers’ operating practices and their perception of WRR. However, no data are available for a detailed investigation. The present study aimed to collect data on rice growers’ backgrounds, farming practices, and perceptions of WRR to quantify and characterize the patterns of farming operations for rice growers in Taiwan and to investigate factors contributing to WRR infestation. We collected 408 questionnaires completed by rice growers from 17 counties covering all rice production regions in Taiwan. The growers’ median age was 51 to 60 yr, and 75% of respondents had paddies from 0.25 to 2.75 ha in size, which corresponded with nationwide data for farmers’ backgrounds. In general, growers applied similar farming practices for both cropping seasons. Most respondents did not notice WRR infestation or consider it to be a problem: only 9.8% noticed a moderate to severe infestation of WRR in their fields. The major perceived causes of WRR infestation was seed impurity (55.1%) or cultivar degeneration (18.6%). Correlation analysis and farming patterns estimated with a nonnegative matrix factorization algorithm showed that WRR contamination rate was due to the use of dry or wet tillage. The present study provides the first quantitative and qualitative evidence of rice production practices and growers’ perceptions of WRR infestation in Taiwan.
Highlights
Rice (Oryza sativa L.) is the primary staple crop in Taiwan
Its annual cultivated area is 271,506 ha (i.e., 33.9% of the total cultivated surface of the island): 93.6% is dedicated to the production of japonica rice and 6.4% to indica rice (Council of Agriculture 2019)
Some rice growers leave the paddy fallow or grow other crops during the second crop season, which leads to a decrease in rice paddy surface to about 102,000 ha, with a total brown rice production of about 497 million kg and an average yield of about 5,700 kg ha−1 (Council of Agriculture 2019)
Summary
Rice (Oryza sativa L.) is the primary staple crop in Taiwan. The first crop season is from February to June, when the temperature and daylength increase progressively during the season. The rice-cropping area during the first crop season is about 170,000 ha, with a total brown rice production of about 1 billion kg and an average yield of about 6,300 kg ha−1 (Council of Agriculture 2019). The second season is from August to November, when the temperature and daylength decrease gradually during the season. Some rice growers leave the paddy fallow or grow other crops during the second crop season, which leads to a decrease in rice paddy surface to about 102,000 ha, with a total brown rice production of about 497 million kg and an average yield of about 5,700 kg ha−1 (Council of Agriculture 2019)
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