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April 2006, Vol. 1, No. 2
www.irri.org/irrc/
Irrigated Rice Research Consortium Rice Research for Intensifed Production and Prosperity in Lowland Ecosyste
Nutrient Manager for Rice team wins technology development award
The Nutrient Manager for Rice team
received the Achievement Award in
Technology Development from the
Crop Science Society of the Philippines
(CSSP) during the 40th Annual Scientic
Conference in Davao City, Philippines, on
18 March. The team was recognized for
developing the site-specic nutrient man-agement (SSNM) technology for rice and
the computer-based decision soware Nu-
trient Manager for Rice. (See related story on
page 6.)
The SSNM technology and the deci-
sion soware gave farmers and extension
workers a comprehensive fertil izer guide-
line that is tailored to specic conditions
in rice elds, an important step to further
popularize the scientic and knowledge-
intensive SSNM principles.
The team is composed of IRRI scien-
tistsIRRC Productivity and Sustainabil-ity Work Group (PSWG) leader Roland
Buresh and his research staand part-
ners from the Philippine Rice Research
Institute (PhilRice), University of the Phil-
ippines Los Baos (UPLB), West Visayas
State University (WSVU), and Atlas Fer-
tilizer Corporation (AFC).
PSWG soil scientist Rowena Castillo
explained that the soware was a prod-
uct of years of consolidated research be-
tween IRRI and scientists from PhilRice
and UPLB. Nutrient Manager for Rice could
Swiss Agency for Developmentand Cooperation
quickly provide fertilizer guidelines aer
responding to 15 questions about specic
rice elds or rice-growing conditions.
The user of the soware gets a personal-
ized guide as to the amounts and timingof fertilizer application based on a select-
ed rice variety, adds Ms. Castil lo.
In 2008, an initial version of the
Nutrient Manager for Rice soware was
evaluated and rened through farmer
participation with WVSU and AFC. The
eld-tested version was then released on
CD in English and ve Philippine dia-
lects. IRRI researchers also produced a
tutorial CD with a video and PowerPoint
presentation that has since been used for
training across the Philippines.
The soware also used informationgathered from Philippine provinces on
common rice varieties, rice production
practices, and yields to develop provincial
quick guides. These are tailored to a spe-
cic provinces common rice cultivation
practices to facilitate rapid dissemination
of nutrient management based on SSNM
principles. These quick guides were de-
veloped for 75 Philippine provinces and
are distributed and promoted through the
Department of Agricultures Ginintuang
Masaganang Ani Rice Program.
Another IRRI-produced video, en
titled Tales of Ryza, the rice plant: proper
nutrition makes healthy rice plants , talk
about improved SSNM-based practices
It features an animated talking rice plant
named Ryza, which pops out of the rice
eld and tells a farmer about the nutrient
needs of rice.The quick guides and video are avail
able on the Pinoy Rice Knowledge Bank
Web site, www.pinoyrkb.com/resources.
IN THIS ISSUE...
NEWS
IRRC staff reap awards..................................2Science features IRRI rodent research.......3IRRC holds rodent management training..4ICOP-Philippines meet for 2010..................4
IPM in rice-based systems book..................5International Rice Congress set in Nov.....5
Fresh facts on eld-specic nutrients.........6Developing applications for SSNM..............6
AWD goes to Africa.......................................7Postharvest training across the
Philippines...................................................8IRRI scientist writes for book on farmland
birds.............................................................9
Rodent conference held in South Africa....9AWD in Bangladesh.............................. .......12PROFILES
The wild life of Alex Stuart.........................10
Contributing on a global scale...................11PUBLICATIONS & EVENTS.......8
Roland BureshRona Nia Mae Rojas
Volume 5, Number 2 May-August 20
The Nutrient Manager for Rice team gets recognized for their hard work and persistence in bringing the principles of site-specic nutrient man -agement to the people who need it the mostthe farmers.
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IRRC sta reap awards Emma QuichoRona Nia Mae RojasCGIAR Press Release
Mendoza gets IRRIs OutstandingResearch Support Award
Trina Leah Mendoza, senior commu-nication specialist of the IRRC, won the
IRRI Award for Outstanding Research
Support for 2009. The annual nationally
recruited sta (NRS) awarding ceremony
was held on 15 April at IRRI. The NRS
Awards Program recognizes the impor-tant contribution of NRS to IRRIs work
and formally rewards outstanding per-
formance.
Ms. Mendoza developed and imple-
mented a diverse portfolio of communi-
cation strategies that successfully pro-
moted the work of the IRRC and IRRIinternally and internationally. She led
and guided some of the national partners
in developing more eective communica-
tion strategiesat both the Institute and
project levels.
Ms. Mendozas achievements in 2009
include the following: developing a video
titled Easing the plight of the hungry, trans-
lated in Bengali and Hindi; assisting in
the video development on alternate wet-
ting and drying, and soil water-holding
capacity for an e-learning module; site-specic nutrient management; and pro-
duction of a video on early harvesting
using PowerPoint presentations.
Her audit report of communication
activities of the Indonesian Center for
Agricultural Technology Assessment
and Development in December 2008 led
their director general to oversee a new
strategy for communication that was im-
plemented in 2009, including a national
newsleer fashioned aer RIPPLE news-leer. In Cambodia, Ms. Mendoza also
conducted an audit of available commu-nication materials and preferred sources
of agricultural information during a
marketing assessment and communica-
tion strategies workshop.
She spearheaded the production
of three high-quality issues of RIPPLE;
presented guidelines on producing post-
ers and brochures for a workshop of thehigh-prole 1 Must Do, 5 Reductions proj-
ect in Vietnam; produced two posters for
Indonesia, which were pretested during
focus group discussions with farmers,
and audited available communication
materials and preferred sources of agri-
cultural information; and edited content
and advised on layout of the new bro-chures of the IRRC and Nutrient Manager.
> continued on page 3
RonaRojas
Dr. Roland Buresh struckdown a long-held beliefregarding intensive ag-riculture.
Buresh wins CGIAR OutstandingScienc Arcle
Roland Buresh, IRRC Productivity
and Sustainability Work Group leader,
won the Outstanding Scientic Article
In addition, Ms. Mendoza facilitated
the development of a new look for the Rice
Knowledge Bank (RKB) Web site, assisted
IRRI scientists in writing their materials,
and ensured that these were uploadedonto the Web. She is also a contributing
writer for IRRIs Rice Today magazine and
wrote the press release on the launch of
the new Good Agricultural Practices Web
site for the RKB.
The winners were selected by a com-
miee composed of distinguished mem-
bers of the IRRI community from both
research and research support groups.
Elizabeth Jean Woods, IRRI Board of
Trustees chair, congratulated the win-
ners and highlighted the importance of
individual sta contributions to the over-all success of the Institute. IRRI Director
General Robert Zeigler, in his closing re-
marks, described how he continues to be
inspired by the outstanding work of theNRS in achieving IRRIs mission.
award given by the Consultative Group
on International Agricultural Research
(CGIAR) at the Global Conference on Ag
ricultural Research for Development inMontpellier, France, on 29 March.
Dr. Bureshs study, published in 2008
in the Soil Science Society of America Jour-
nal , challenges the old belief that inten
sive agriculture is necessarily incompat
ible with soil health.
Based on analysis of soil samples
collected over 15 years from four experi
ments begun during the 1960s, Dr. Buresh
and three colleagues (Mirasol Pampoli-
no and Eufrocino Laureles of IRRI and
Hermenegildo Gines of the Philippine
Rice Research Institute) determined thacontinuous planting every season or rice
monoculture on submerged soils consis-
tently maintained or actually increased
soil organic maer.
Their ndings demonstrate that, i
farmers remove crop residues from the
eld rather than incorporate them into
the soil, this need not reduce grain yields
as long as the nutrients removed are re
placed with appropriate use of chemica
fertilizers.
Trina Mendozaposes with herplaque forOutstandingResearch Sup-port.
The irrigated rice system that passed
Dr. Bureshs rigorous sustainability tes
occupies some 24 million hectares in
Asia, accounting for about 40% of globa
production and providing food for 1.5 bil-
lion people.
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WSWGs eWater wins best posterat CSSP conference
The IRRC Water-Saving Work Group
(WSWG) poster entitled eWater: an e-learn-
ing training tutorial in water management for
rice production won the Best Poster award inthe Socioeconomics/Extension & Education
category during the Crop Science Society of
the Philippines (CSSP) 40th Annual Scien-
tic Conference in Davao City, Philippines,on 15-20 March. The poster bested 108 other
entries for the award in three categories
upstream, downstream, and socioeconom-ics/extension and education research.
eWater is a training tutorial on sound
eld water management and other water-
saving technologies in irrigated rice pro-
duction. The tutorial contains four inter-
active modules for learners to gain skills
in ecient water management. (See related
story in RIPPLE Vol. 4, No. 3.)
WSWG leader Ruben Lampayan, to-
Rona Nia Mae Rojas
IRRI scientists Romy Cabangon (middle) and Emma Quicho (right) receive, on behalf ofthe Water-Saving Work Group, the Best Poster award for eWater from former Crop Sci-ence Society of the Philippines President Emma Sales (left).
continued from page 2
IRRC sta reap awards...
Science features IRRIrodent research
EnricoMercado
Science, the worlds leading outlet for
scientic news, commentary, and cuing-
edge research, published an article titled
Holding Back a Torrent of Rats by IRRC co-ordinator Grant Singleton. The article,
featured in the February issue, followed asuccessful international conference on im-pacts of rodent outbreaks on food security
in Asia in October 2009 at IRRI (for moreon the conference, see RIPPLE Vol. 5, No. 1).
Highlighted in the article was thedirect link of bamboo masting in Bangla-
desh, northeast India, and Myanmar to ratpopulation explosion and its subsequent
impact on food security. Bamboo masting,described as the simultaneous production
of fruit by an entire population of bamboo,provides rodents with an abundant sup-ply of food, thus allowing them to breed
longer. Also discussed was a scheme tomanage the damage, with inputs from Dr.
Singleton and fellow rodent ecology andmanagement experts Drs. Steve Belmain
and Ken Aplin.Science has the largest paid circula-
tion of any peer-reviewed general-science
journal, with articles ranked among theworlds most cited research.
Dr. Singleton also wrote Rodents
gnawing away at crops, stored grain and ourhealth , published in January in the rst
technical innovation brief of the CGIARSystemwide Program on Integrated Pest
Management (SP-IPM). The article dis-cusses the three major impacts of rodents
on crop growth, postharvest losses, andhuman health.
The article also covers the emergingsolutions that take into consideration the
ecology of rodent pests and human healthissues. There are integrated actions that
must be done at a community level to ef-
fectively manage the rice eld rat in lowland irrigated rice areas. A simple tech-nology known as the Community Trap
Barrier System for chronic crop lossesgreater than 10% is also highlighted.
The SP-IPM technical innovationbriefs present IPM research ndings and
innovations for the management of pests
diseases, and weeds in agricultural production.
Members of the community work together in hunng down rats in An Giang, Vietnam.
gether with IRRI scientists Romy Caban-gon, Emma Quicho, To Phuc Tuong, and
Bas Bouman, conceptualized and prepared
the poster to promote the wide use of eWa-
ter for eective delivery of information on
water-saving technologies. Partners from
the Philippine Rice Research Institute,
University of Southeastern Philippines-
Mindanao e-Learning Space, and Bulacan
Agricultural State College also coauthored
the winning poster.
The CSSP annual conference had thetheme Harnessing genetic and ecosystem di-
versity for sustainable agriculture and was at
tended by about 300 crop scientists, exten
sion specialists, and professors from both
public and private sectors from dierent
parts of the Philippines. The conference
was a venue for the participants to presen
their latest research results, outputs, and
products.
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ICOP-Philippines sets2010 acvies
Colleagues from the PhilippineRice Research Institute (Phil-Rice) and IRRI held the 4th an-
nual review and planning meeting ofthe Philippines IRRC Country Out-reach Program (ICOP) on 26 Februaryat the IRRI Training Center. The IRRCcurrently also has ICOPs in Indonesia,Myanmar, and Vietnam. The meetingwas aended by 32 participants fromPhilRice, the National Irrigation Ad-ministration (NIA), the Bohol Agricul-tural Promotion Center, and IRRI .
ICOP-Philippines fosters learningand knowledge-sharing of good ag-ricultural practices across four of themajor rice-growing regions in the Phil-ippines. The meeting served as a venuefor participants to present the progressof their collaborative research in 2009and to develop their 2010 activities in-tegrated with the Philippine Rice Self-Suciency Plan (PRSSP).
Eulito Bautista, deputy executivedirector for research of PhilRice, calledthe meeting timely because of the
Rona Nia Mae Rojas
R
onaRojas
Members of ICOP-Philippines connue to
work together to address yield gaps in riceproducon.
Rona Nia Mae Rojas
drought that the Philippines is current-ly experiencing and the urgent need tocontinue to close the yield gap for riceproduction. Grant Singleton, IRRC co-ordinator, said that the ICOP approachprovides an adaptive research modelfor integrating various natural resourcemanagement (NRM) rice technologiesand practices in a form understood byend-users (extension specialists, farm-ers, policymakers). He further stressed
that an eective ICOP will strengthenour shared goal of delivering good agri-cultural practices for irrigated rice pro-duction in the Philippines.
The participants reported on theimplementation of IRRC technologiesin their respective region vis--vis riceyield, constraints to technology adop-tion, and other emerging issues inrice production. The 2010 action plansstrengthened the integration of innovative NRM technologies, based on feed-back from farmers who have tested the
component technologies, and specieda signicant expansion in the area offarmer part icipation.
Before ending the workshop, DrSingleton emphasized that investmentis also made through partnerships inpeople who can share knowledge andexperiences in the adoption of variousrice technologies. Dr. Bautista urged everyone to continue working together toreach more farmers as a contribution toanswer the nations call for sucienrice.
T
wenty participants from the CropProtection Division of the Bureauof Plant Industry (BPI) Depart-
ment of Agriculture (DA) aended thetraining course on New Developmentsin the Management of Rodents on 16-17March at the SEARCA guesthouse, LosBaos, Laguna. The training coursewas organized by the Irrigated Rice Re-search Consortium (IRRC).
The participants, representativesfrom the 16 regional crop protectioncenters of BPI-DA all over the Philip-pines, presented their respective re-gions current rodent situation andhow it is addressed locally. The course
helped bridge the knowledge gap onrodent management in the country andtrained the participants on how to ap-ply beer management techniques withsocial, cultural, and ecological factors inmind.
During the course, they learned theprinciples of ecologically based rodentmanagement (EBRM); rodent breed-
ing ecology in the Philippines; assess-ment of damage and yield loss caused by rodents; decision analysis, systemsapproach, and participatory researchleading to community EBRM; and thesocial dimensions of a concentratedcommunication campaign against ratsin Zaragosa, Nueva Eca. A visit to arice eld in Calauan, Laguna, provideda demonstration on how rodent trapsare set in the eld, an inspection of ro-dent damage to rice, and discussion onhow to assess such damage, which is
oen overlooked, unless it is at a highlevel. The participants then visitedIRRI, where they conducted hands-ontraining on species identication, key body measurements, and determiningthe breeding history of female rats fromnecropsy.
Lectures were given by IRRC coordi-nator Grant Singleton, PhD student NyoMe Htwe, and IRRC agricultural anthro
pologists Flor Palis and Rica Flor.
IRRC holds rodentmanagement training
Harvey Garcia, IRRCs wildlife biologist, showstraining parcipants how to idenfy rodentspecies and conduct key body measurements.
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Book on IPM in rice-basedsystems launched
A
er 3 years of hard work, thebook IPM in vegetables: enhanc-ing its implementation in rice-
based cropping systems , by MadonnaCasimero and Peter Ooi, was launchedon 9 March at the 41st Pest Manage-ment Council of the Philippines con-ference in Davao City.
The book discusses how extensionworkers and government units canwork eectively with farmers usingparticipatory approaches in rice-basedfarming systems in the Philippines. Itcovers the three main aspects of inte-grated pest management (IPM)in-sects, diseases, and weeds. The book
contains practical case studies that en-able extension workers to work moreeectively with farmers to help themadapt and apply innovative techniques.The success of farmer eld schools inpromoting IPM was expanded into in-tegrated crop management and latertransformed into diversied farmingsystems. The platform to do this wascalled Palayamanan , which educatesfarmers to diversify their crops, raise
farm animals, and manage farm wastesfor protable yet sustainable farming.
IPM in Palayamanan was used as
Rona Nia Mae Rojas
an entry point to educate the farmersin safe vegetable production imple-mented in rice-based farming systems
This led to safer farming practices andincreased farmers productivity andincome. IPM helps prepare farmers toenter into a competitive local and glob-al market that imposes stricter foodsafety requirements.
Dr. Casimero is a project scientist inthe Crop and Environmental SciencesDivision at IRRI and is currently basedin Indonesia as leader of the IncreasingRice Productivity in South and South-east Sulawesi Project. Dr. Ooi is theformer regional director of the Asian
Regional Center of AVRDC (The WorldVegetable Center). He is now a consul-tant of the Pesticide Action Network
based in Penang, Malaysia.The book is published by and
available at the Department of Agricul-ture Bureau of Agricultural Research(DA-BAR), Philippines. For more infor-mation, visit www.bar.gov.ph.
Internaonal Rice Congress set in November
The 3rd International Rice Con-
gress (IRC) will be held on 8-12November at the Vietnam Na-
tional Convention Center in Hanoi. TheIRC, held every 4 years, is the worldslargest gathering of the rice industry.
With the theme Rice for future gen-erations , IRC2010 will provide a forumfor representatives from the public andprivate sectors, including researchers,scientists, professionals, traders, andpolicymakers. Delegates will discussthe latest rice research, future technolo-
gies, trade issues, and policies that willdene the future role of rice in support-ing poor rice-dependent communities.Delegates are also invited to share theirexpertise, show their products and ser-vices, and learn about the latest devel-opments in the industry.
IRC2010 will include the 28th Inter-national Rice Research Conference, the
3rd World Rice Commerce Conference,the 3rd International Rice Technologyand Cultural Expo, and the 50th anni-versary celebrations of IRRI. VietnamsMinistry of Agriculture and Rural De-velopment (MARD) will also host the3rd Ministerial Round Table Meetingcomprising all agriculture secretariesor ministers of major Asian countries.Incidentally, the IRRC will hold its an-nual Steering Commiee meeting con-currently in Hanoi.
Papers and posters to be presentedwill focus on the following themes/topics: policy, market, and supply chainsocial and cultural dimensions in ricefarming and communities; postharvestinformation, dissemination, and inno-vation; climate change and rice agriculture; environmental resilience and eco-system services; water availability and
access; pest, disease, and weed manage-ment; drought, ooding, and problemsoils; closing the yield gap; harnessingrice biodiversity; molecular biology and-omic technologies; raising yield po-tential; and quality grain, health, andnutrition.
This activity is jointly organized byIRRI and AsiaCongress Events Manage-ment Co. Ltd. and is hosted by MARDFor more details, log on to www.rice-congress.com.
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Fresh facts on eld-specicnutrient management
T
he importance of site-specific
nutrient management (SSNM)for rice and other crops was
highlighted in March as the IRRCProductivity and Sustainability
Work Group (PSWG) conducted twoconsecutive workshops at IRRI.
Dr. Roland Buresh, PSWG leader,
and Dr. Mirasol Pampolino, InternationalPlant Nutrition Institute agronomist,
served as resource speakers for theworkshop on Implementing SSNM forCereal Crops on 22-26 March.
Eighteen participants from India,
Bangladesh, China, Indonesia, Nepal, thePhilippines, and Tanzania learned about
new technical information on SSNM forhigh-yielding production systems withrice, maize, and wheat. They also triedusing new decision tools for eld-specic
nutrient management for rice, maize,
and the rice-wheat system. Participantsvisited long-term experiments and met
with IRRI sta during the week.
The following week, a workshop
on Implementing SSNM in the Philippineswas held on 29-30 March. Soil scientist
Rowena Castillo and agricultural
engineer Joseph Sandro, both sta of Dr.Buresh, facilitated the workshop.The workshop was targeted for
partners from the Philippines involved
in either implementing projects on thedevelopment and dissemination of eld-
specic nutrient management or serving as
resource persons in training or educationon nutrient management for rice.
Participants from the Departmentof Agriculture camestaff from the
Philippine Rice Research Institute,Agricultural Training Institute,
regional field units, and the Ginintuang
Masaganang Ani Rice Program. They
were joined by representatives fromthe Atlas Fertilizer Company and stateuniversities and colleges.
The 2-day workshop updated
the participants with the latesttechnical information on the scientific
principles for making field-specificnutr ient management recommendations
Participants were also introduced tonew videos on nutrient management
for rice, quick guides for fertilizing riceand new Web- and mobile phone-based
applications of the Nutrient Manager for
Rice decision tool.The workshop gave participants
the chance to share their experiencesand information on evaluating anddisseminating eld-specic nutrien
management for rice.
Roland BureshTrina Leah Mendoza
Developing applicaonsfor SSNM
T
he IRRC Productivity andSustainability Work Group (PSWG)has released two new Web-based
decision tools based on the scienticprinciples of site-specic nutrientmanagement (SSNM).
The Nutrient Manager for RiceTutorial provides an introduction onthe rice requirements for supplementalnutrients. It demonstrates how fertilizerguidelines are formulated for a rice crop
based on the answers to ve questionsabout rice-growing conditions. It showshow information on crop establishment,growth duration of rice, aainable yield,residue management, and soil fertility
aects the application rates of fertilizersnitrogen (N), phosphorus (P), andpotassium (K).
The tutorial also includes a suiteof decision tools that is tailored forrice production in major rice-growingcountries or regions. Each Nutrient
Manager tool provides a eld-specicfertilizer guideline based on theresponses to questions about rice-growing conditions in the eld.
The Nutrient Teacher for Rice is ateaching tool suited for students andinstructors of introductory courses in soilscience and crop science. Similar to theNutrient Manager tutorial, it demonstrates
how fertilizer guidelines are formulated based on answers about rice-growinconditions. It also shows how information
on season, crop establishment, varietygrowth duration of rice, yield, residuemanagement, soil fertility, and use oforganic materials as sources of nutrientsaects rates of NPK fertilization.
These tools and the complete suite oWeb-based tools can be accessed at wwwirri.org/nmrice. For more information onSSNM, visit www.irri.org/ssnm.
The PSWG also capitalized on the
Roland BureshKatherine Nelson
Rona Nia Mae Rojas
> continued on page 7
Philippine partners learn the latest informaon on eld-specic nutrient management and applica-
ons of the Nutrient Manager for Rice decision tool.
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Trina Leah Mendoza
popularity of mobile phones in thePhilippines to further bridge the gap
between agricultural research andend-users, particularly farmers. A newmobile phone application for Nutrient
Manager for Rice is being developed forfarmers who have limited, if any, accessto computers and the Internet. It is aimedat giving farmers more access to valuableagricultural information via mobilenetworks.
The mobile Nutrient Manager usesan interactive voice response (IVR)application. The caller need only dial atoll-free number, which will be answered
by a voice prompt. The caller will thenrespond to a series of recorded questions(about rice-growing conditions) by
pressing the appropriate number on thephone keypad. At the end of the callthe phone will receive a text messageindicating the type, amount, and timingof fertilizer application for a specic riceeld.
Marco van den Berg, IRRIInformation Technology Services head, is
currently assisting PSWG in integratingthe IVR application with the Nutrien
Manager for Rice decision tool. Launch othis application is set for July 2010 andwill be done in partnership with IRRIthe Department of Agriculture (DA) othe Philippines, and Globe, a large mobilenetwork provider. DA sta training andthe release of an orientation video forextension workers and farmers regardingthe use of the mobile Nutrient Managerare planned for June 2010.
continued from page 6Developing applicaons...
A Filipino farmer tries out the Nutrient Manag-ermobile phone applicaon to get an instant
ferlizer guidline for her rice eld.
AWD goes to Africa
E
ach day in Senegal, Africa, ricefarmers pump water from the Sen-
egal River to keep their rice elds
under 10 centimeters of water. This con-stant ooding of rice elds uses up a lotof water from the river, which is also thesource of drinking water of millions of
people living in Dakar City, Senegalscapital.
Michiel de Vries, a PhD student from
Wageningen University, The Netherlands,
brought the alternate weing and drying(AWD) method, an IRRC technology, toSenegal. His research led to saving 40%
of irrigation water, while yields were still95% of the usual method of ooding.
Mr. de Vries, a former student ofIRRI water scientist Bas Bouman, con-ducted his research at the Africa Rice
Center in Senegal. He explored whetherAWD, a water-saving technology stud-
ied extensively in Asia, can be applied inSahel areas.
In his study, the best results were
achieved when the rice eld was ood-ed during half the growing season, and
AWD was implemented during the oth-er half. A perforated pipe or tube was
placed in the ground, where farmers cansee and measure the underground waterlevel, and know when they have to irri-
gate.
Benets of AWDIn most irrigation systems in Africa,
1,700 liters of water are needed to pro-duce 1 kilogram of rice. Using AWD, itcan be lowered to 1,000 liters per kilo-
gram.Instead of applying AWD only half
of the season, farmers can use the AWDmethod throughout the season, says Mr.de Vries. They would then be able to
save half of the irrigation water but have
about 20% less rice output. Mr. de Vriessays that irrigation costs are sometimes
so high that farmers nd this option ap
pealing. Farmers can benet from it because irrigation takes up about a quarter
to a third of their production costs. Theygreatly value cost savings because theyhave to compete with inexpensive im
ported Asian rice in the market.
AWD in Sahel areasHis ndings show that AWD can
be applied in other Sahel countries with
rice cultivation, such as Burkino FasoMali, and Niger, where major irrigation
systems are present. However, Mr. de Vries says that it all depends on how these
networks are set up. If farmers do not
have to pay for water (e.g., the government does the pumping for them), they
would not benet from saving water andwould not do so, says Mr. de Vries.
His research on AWD has sparked alot of interest in Senegal. The agriculture
information service in Senegal has nanced a demonstration project and twoWageningen students have also done
eld tests on the farms.If AWD can be implemented in their
rice elds, Senegalese rice farmers can
save up to 40% of irrigation water, with-out lowering rice yield.
JosephSandro
IRRIphoto
With AWD, Senegalese rice farmers can save
up to 40% of irrigaon water, without loweringrice yields.
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Carlito BalingbingTrina Leah Mendoza
PUBLICATIONS AND
UPCOMING EVENTS
Internaonal journalsBorlagdan PC, Elauria JC, Elepao AR, de PaduaDB, Dizon EI, Gummert M. 2010. Study on thecause of postharvest rice grain yellowing. CIGR
Journal- Internaonal Commission of Agriculturaland Biosystems Engineering. (in press)
Borlagdan PC, Elauria JC, Elepao AR, de PaduaDB, Dizon EI, Gummert M. 2010. Eect of rice hulland the changes in biochemical properes onpostharvest rice grain yellowing. Journal of CropScience and Biotechnology. (in press)
Douthwaite B, Gummert M. 2010. Learning selec-on revisited: How can agricultural researchersmake a dierence? Agric. Syst. (in press)
Conference proceedingsBuresh RJ. 2009. The SSNM concept and its im-plementaon in rice. Proceedings of the Interna-onal Ferlizer Industry Associaon (IFA) Cross-roads Asia-Pacic Conference, 8-10 Dec 2009,Kota Kinabalu, Malaysia. Available at www.irri.org/ssnm.
Gabinete GG, Buresh, RJ. 2009. Site-specic nu-
trient management (SSNM): protability to farm-ers, current level of adopon, and constraints towider adopon in Iloilo Province, the Philippines.Proceedings of the Internaonal Ferlizer Indus-try Associaon (IFA) Crossroads Asia-Pacic Con-ference, 8-10 Dec 2009, Kota Kinabalu, Malaysia.Available at www.irri.org/ssnm.
Kartaatmadja S. 2009. Benets of promongSSNM: experience from Indonesia. Proceedingsof the Internaonal Ferlizer Industry Asso-ciaon (IFA) Crossroads Asia-Pacic Conference,8-10 Dec 2009, Kota Kinabalu, Malaysia. Availableat www.irri.org/ssnm.
EventsCoordinaon UnitSustainable Rice Producon through ImprovedNatural Resource Management GuangdongAcademy of Agricultural Sciences & IRRC Workshop, Guangzhou, China, 9-11 June
Water-Saving Work GroupPreparaon of the study concept (AWD impacstudy in Bangladesh) in Berlin, Germany, 21 June-3
July
Southern Laos ACIAR Project Workshop: WateComponent in Vienane, Laos, 2-6 August
Postproducon Work GroupAnnual Planning Meeng for IRRI-ADB Postharvest Project in the Philippines, Leyte, Philippines1-2 June
Business Model Workshops, Pursat and Baambang, Cambodia, 5-6 June
Stripper Harvester Training, Pursat, Cambodia, 7-8June
Postharvest training acrossthe Philippines
I
dentied as one of the key activities ofthe Philippine postharvest learning alli-
ance (LA), training activities on at-bed
dryer (FBD) operation and maintenanceand hermetic storage techniques were held
in April in Bohol, Agusan del Norte, andCamarines Sur provinces. These are pilot
project sites of the IRRI-Asian DevelopmentBank Project, supported by the IRRC Coun-try Outreach Program and the Philippine
Rice Research Institute (PhilRice).More than 100 seed growers, farmers,
and extension agents aended the trainingactivities. The archipelagic nature of the
Philippines plus the staggering posthar-vest losses in the eld of around 15% pose
a huge challenge to achieving sucient riceproduction, says Dr. Caesar Tado, co-proj-ect leader. But if these losses could be re-
duced, the equivalent amount of rice beingimported would then be addressed.
The principles, operation, and main-tenance of the FBD were presented anddemonstrated. The reversible FBD, a new
technology that was transferred to the Phil-ippines from Vietnam, was also introduced.
Participants were excited about their as-sociation obtaining the new technology of
xed-bed drying with air reversal, whichcan reduce labor requirement during dry-
ing and can result in beer rice quality.
Principles and techniques of hermetic
storage were discussed, and demonstrationswere conducted using the IRRI Super Bag
and Cocoon. The introduction of the storagetechnique sparked the interest of the partic-ipants, especially when they learned that it
can maintain seed quality even aer severalmonths in storage.
Practices on adaptive research rela-tive to hermetic storage were discussed.
Methods for eective monitoring, sharing,and channeling of information that will be
generated from farmers trials and adoptionwere also established. Key farmers and seedgrowers commied to facilitating and coor-
dinating exchange of information and les-
sons learned from the use and adaptationof postharvest technologies with members
of the alliance.
Bohol Experiment Station head Anto
nio Du highlighted the importance of postharvest technologies such as the mechani-
cal dryer and hermetic storage system inreducing postharvest losses of farmers toincrease their income.
Mr. Abner Montecalvo, PhilRice-Agusan acting branch manager, expressed his
appreciation of the eorts of IRRI and PhilRice in bringing these technologies to thefarmers.
The participants were grateful for thenew knowledge they have gained. All are
expectant of a good output from the adaptation of these technologies, particularly inmaintaining quality of seeds and grains in
their storage and beer operation and maintenance of their FBDs.
Bohol trainees gather around the at-bed dryer being loaded with grain as PhilRice engineer John
Eric Abon gives instrucons.
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The need for interdisciplinary col-
laboration was highlighted duringthe 4th International Conference on
Rodent Biology and Management (ICRBM)
held on 12-16 April in Bloemfontein, South
Africa. Around 140 scientists from 30
countries all over the world gathered in
the ICRBM, which is held every 4 years,
to discuss rodent-related research, issues,
and concerns.
The event, hosted by the University
of Free State in South Africa, was aend-
ed by IRRC coordinator Grant Singleton,
IRRC anthropologists Flor Palis and Rica
Flor, and PhD student Nyo Me Htwe. Par-ticipants talked about research on rodent
physiology, taxonomy, genetics, disease,
behavior, and population dynamics. Stud-
ies on ecology, sociology, management,
and conservation were also discussed.
Dr. Singleton, ICRBM Organizing
Commiee member, discussed insights on
rodent outbreaks in Asia from 2007 to 2009,
the gaps in rodent management, and how
these gaps could be addressed. Dr. Palis
gave a plenary talk entitled Can humans out-
smart rodents? Learning to work collectively and
strategically. She outlined how people have
dealt with rodents throughout history and
presented the case of successful commu-
nity management of rodents in Vietnam.
Ms. Htwe and Ms. Flor also presented theirresearch in Myanmar and the Philippines.
Ms. Flor was awarded the Best Oral Pre-
sentation from a Developing Country for
her presentation.
The event also featured South African
hospitality through social activities such
as a braai (barbecue) dinner, a game drive,
visit to a shebeen, lunch at the art museum,
and a postconference tour. The premiere
of Discovery Channels Swarm Chasers was
also held at the National Museum. This
documentary features Dr. Steve Belmain,
rodent ecology and management expert
and his team as they investigate how ro-
dent outbreaks happen in bamboo- and
rice-growing communities in Chiagong
Bangladesh.In his closing remarks, Professor
Charles Krebs of the University of British
Columbia, Canada, said that rodent re
search has achieved much in species classi
cation, disease research, and other aspects
He highlighted the knowledge gained on
rodent outbreaks and diseases, and the
methods or controls that can be used to ad-
dress them. Prof. Krebs also emphasized
the importance of the interaction between
humans and rodents.
F
armlands, collectively, form the largest
habitat on the globe, supporting a huge
variety of birds. But a global review of
this birdlife has never before been published.The new coee-table book Farmland birds across
the world aims to ll this gap. A special chapter
of the book wrien by IRRI water scientist Bas
Bouman is dedicated to birds occurring in rice
elds around the world.
Today, rice elds represent 15% of the
worlds wetlands. Although not a viable
equivalent of natural wetlands, ooded and
irrigated rice paddies are the richest agro-
ecosystems in terms of waterbirds. Many spe-
cies using rice elds originate in wetlands and
grasslands.
There is abundant seasonal and spa-
tial variation in the habitat, with mosaics of
ooded, moist, and dry elds alternating with
dikes, says Dr. Bouman. Irrigation adds
ditches and water tanks that further enrich
the habitat and provide refuges and reservoirs
for aquatic animals.
Although not a full-edged substitute for
natural wetlands, rice elds are increasinglyrecognized as vital for bird conservation, mi
gratory birds in particular. In the Mediterra-
nean, where most wetlands have been drained
for malaria control and farming, rice elds are
the only wetlands le during the dry summer
and autumn, providing a vital stopover to mi
gratory birds. At least 100 designated Ramsar
sites across the world include rice elds. Ram
sar sites are wetlands of international impor
tance designated under the Ramsar Conven
tion.
The book has been wrien by seven ex
perts in biology and agriculture and compiled
by the Dutch Centre for Agriculture and En
vironment (CLM). It costs 24 or about US$33
plus shipping costs. To order, send an email to
IRRI scienst writes forbook on farmland birds
Internaonal rodent conferenceheld in South Africa
Bas BoumanTrina Leah Mendoza
Rica Joy Flor
Conference parcipants from dierent countries go on an African safari.
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In BriefThe wild life of Alex StuartPROFILE
Trina Leah Mendoza
A
lex Stuarts life is anything butboring. The young rodent ecologistfrom Britain thrives on adventure,
and takes on challenges that are not for thefaint of heart or the weak-willed.
Alex is a research ocer at the Verte- brate Pests Unit, School of Biological Sci-ences at the University of Reading, UK.He recently received his PhD in biologicalsciences from the University, where he ex-plored rodent ecology and management inthe complex lowland agro-ecosystems ofthe Sierra Madre Biodiversity Corridor inthe Philippines.
Alex conducted a pioneering 2-yearstudy of rodent communities along a boundary of intensive rice agriculture,rice-coconut production, and secondary re-generated forests in a remote region of thePhilippines, says Dr. Grant Singleton, oneof his supervisors. This work was con-ducted under trying physical conditionsit would take 3 hours to set a trap line of 15traps in the secondary forest. His strong
commitment and perseverance, coupledwith a nicely thought-out study, led tondings which made us rethink rodentmanagement in these agriculture-forestryecotones.
Alex is no stranger to rodents or livingit rough, having done his MS degree in theIfugao Terraces in the Philippines, study-ing the habitat use and feeding ecology ofnative rodents. Rodents occur throughoutthe world and have received a lot of aen-tion as pests, but very lile is known ontheir ecology, which is important to under-
stand when aempting to control them,says Alex. Many interesting nonpest spe-cies of rodents are benecial to ecosystems,
such as the Striped earth-rat, which eatsgolden apple snails and giant earthwormsthat are destructive to the Ifugao Rice Ter-races.
He fell in love with the beautiful di-verse landscape of Sierra Madre, and thewelcome hospitality of the local people.These and the potential for research tohelp the community and the environmententiced Alex to choose the site. Living nearthe sea where he and his wife, Inyoung,could swim and surf aer a hard day oftrapping rats was a bonus.
His fascination for wildlife began as achild growing up in South Africa, whichhe describes, has abundant wildlife in allshapes and sizes. He has done volunteerwork at the Gibbon Rehabilitation Cen-tre in Thailand, monitoring the behaviorof captive and reintroduced gibbons andeducating visitors. At the Loddon NatureReserve in Berkshire, UK, he helped carryout monthly mammal surveys.
But it was at Mkuze Game Reserve,South Africa, where Alex had his most ter-
rifying encounter with wildlife. During amammal transect count, he ventured alonethrough a bush and accidentally walkedinto a branch. As he stumbled forward,
rubbing his head, he suddenly realized hewas a few feet away from a herd of bualoone of the most dangerous animals in Af-
rica. Luckily, they did not notice him andhe escaped.
Studying rats also exposed him to raand snake bites and diseases, but they areminor setbacks compared to the highshe gets from not knowing what species heis going to catch in a new location. Whilegoing around the traps, every dierenspecies encountered in a trap is like open-ing a Christmas present, he says.
These highs inspire Alex to continueworking on rodents. He plans to developmore sustainable management strategies
for controlling rodent pests, and to developour understanding of the benecial roles ononpest rodents.
Despite frightening encounters withanimals and hardships in the eld, Alexadvises biology students to be open to altypes of animals and not to focus only onthose that look cute and cuddly. All specieshave their own unique characteristics thatmake them fascinating and which earnthem their place in this world.
With his positive, hard-working ai
tude and sense of adventure, it will not besurprising if we hear about Alex next trapping rats in some far-ung area in an exoticcountry, back into the wild.
TRAPPED! Alex Stuart with his furry friend cap-tured in Mt. Sierra Madre, Philippines.
LIFES A BEACH: Alex and wife, Inyoung, onboard a tricycle in Baler, Philippines, their home for 2
years while Alex was doing his PhD.
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Contribung on a global scale
N
ormal. Simple. Ordinary. Wordsused by Shaobing Peng to describehis personal l ife. But the work and
achievements of this scientist from Chinasay otherwise.
Born in Wuhan, Dr. Peng studiedagronomy at Huazhong Agricultural Uni-versity, China, then went on to obtain hismasters degree in crop physiology at theUniversity of California-Davis, USA. Hepursued his PhD in crop physiology at theTexas Tech University, USA. Dr. Peng iscurrently a senior crop physiologist in theCrop and Environmental Sciences Division(CESD) at IRRI.
He has dedicated the past 19 years
at IRRI to studying the yield potential ofood-irrigated and aerobic rice. His otherresearch thrusts include nitrogen-use e-ciency, stress physiology, hybrid rice, cropand natural resource management, and cli-mate change in relation to rice production.
In 2004, he coauthored a paper titledRice yields decline with higher night tem-perature from global warming, whichhighlights the impact of night tempera-ture on rice yields. The paper reportedthat grain yield declined by 10% for each
1 C increase in night temperature dur-ing the crop growing season. The reportdemonstrates that decreased crop yield islinked to increased nighime temperatureassociated with global warming. As a re-sult, other scientists started to focus moreon night temperature during crop growth.This nding also got the aention of majornews outlets worldwide, especially withthe media buzz surrounding global warm-ing.
Global warming is actually more as-sociated with nighime warming; and
it also has a very negative eect on riceyield, explains Dr. Peng. We scientistsare working hard to study the adaptationmechanism in rice varieties, because some[varieties] are more tolerant of warm nighttemperature.
He worked with the IRRC in deter-mining and improving the nitrogen-useeciency in Guangdong Province, China.Together with IRRC coordinator Grant Sin-gleton and IRRI principal scientist RolandBuresh, Dr. Peng collaborated with part-ners at Guangdong Rice Research Institute
(GRRI) on the 3 Controls Technology. Thetechnology is based on the principles ofsite-specic nutrient management (SSNM)
that enables rice farmers to tailor nutrientmanagement (read more on SSNM on page6) to the specic conditions of their eldand provides a framework for best man-agement practices for rice.
Dr. Peng says that they were able towork with Chinese partners in modify-ing nutrient management practices basedon the SSNM principles to suit the envi-ronment and rice production situationin Guangdong. This modication, nowcalled 3 Controls Technology, had positiveoutcomes for the farmers. The technol-
ogy helped reduce crop losses caused bylodging and reduced expenses through adecrease in the application of nitrogen fer-tilizer and insecticide. According to eldstudies done around the province, therewere economic returns of about US$220 perhectare for farmers practicing the technol-ogy. The 3 Controls Technology has nowexpanded from fertilizer management toother aspects of crop management.
As a long-time scientist at IRRI, hecontinues to enjoy working with the peoplein the Institute. A unique aspect of IRRIis that you get a chance to work with andlearn from many scientists from dierent disciplines and cultures. You get professional and personal growth. He alsovalues the contribution of his nationallyrecruited sta, expressing that without hisstas support and hard work, he wouldnhave achieved as much as he did.
Still, Dr. Peng has set more goals forhimself. By working with other scientistshe aims to contribute to eorts that wouldincrease rice yield potential or maximumyield by 10%. He believes that geing the best traits out of a wide range of germplasm and introducing them into locahigh-yielding varieties will help achievethis goal.
Whenever he can, Dr. Peng unwindswith a game of tennis, badminton, or tabletennis. A typical rest day would be spentwith his wife and children at home. He is
also fond of watching basketball games onTV whenever they involve fellow country-man and superstar athlete Yao Ming.
Though he is far from retiring, thiscrop physiologist wants to be rememberedby his research team as nice and pleasanto work with. And even if perhaps I makemistakes, I hope that the scientic community would see me as an honest and reli-able scientist, he says.
Rona Nia Mae Rojas
PROFILE
Dr. Peng (right) examines a rice plant with a Chi-nese collaborator, Prof. Jianchang Yang (le),from Yangzhou University.
ON HOLIDAY. Dr. Peng and his family opt forsome quality me in China during his homeleave from IRRI.
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Volume 5, Number 2May-August 2010
This newsletter is produced by theIrrigated Rice Research Consortium
(IRRC) with support from theSwiss Agency for Development
and Cooperation (SDC). The IRRCpromotes international links amongscientists, managers, communicators,
and farmers in lowland irrigated riceenvironments.
Materials in this newsletter do notnecessarily reect the ofcial views of
IRRI, SDC, or collaborating institutionsof the IRRC.
EdITORIAL ANd
PROdUCTION TEAm
IRRCTrina Leah Mendoza, Grant Singleton,
Rona Nia Mae Rojas,
Jennifer Hernandez
CPSTess Rola, Bill Hardy
CONTRIBUTINg AUTHORSRoland Buresh, Katherine Nelson,
Carlito Balingbing, Rica Joy Flor,Bas Bouman
Please direct further correspondence,comments, and contributions to
Trina Leah MendozaSenior Communication Specialist
International Rice Research InstituteDAPO Box 7777
Metro Manila, PhilippinesEmail: [email protected]
Web:www.irri.or/irrc
RubenLam
payan
Public-private partnerships pushfor AWD in Bangladesh
T
he alternate weing and drying
(AWD) method, an IRRC water-saving technology, is making
waves in Bangladesh and will soon in In-dia and other countries with much help
from the private and public sectors.AWD has been validated as an ef-
cient technology in saving water in ir-
rigated rice systems in Bangladesh andother rice-growing countries aer IRRI
developed and shared it with many na-tional partners, says Dr. Hamid Miah,
IRRI liaison scientist for Bangladesh.Government organizations led by
the Bangladesh Rice Research Institute,Bangladesh Agricultural Development
Corporation, Barendra MultipurposeDevelopment Authority, Rural Develop-ment Academy, and the Department ofAgriculture Extension tested AWD on a
large scale from 2006 until the end of the
2009 winter season. Private companiesSyngenta and PetroChem and the non-
government organization (NGO) Practi-cal Action have also promoted AWD infarmers elds.
Water pump owners, sometimes lo-
cally called waterlords, are now con-
vinced of the importance of AWD, par-ticularly in Rangpur, where RDRS, anNGO, operates. Waterlords earn their in-come by selling water to farmers. Previ-
ously, they doubted whether they wouldearn enough prot if they reduced irriga-
tion frequency or saved on fuel neededto pump water. Now, they have started
to realize the importance of saving re-sources for their countrys economy and
for the environment.In January, RDRS organized an ori-
entation program on AWD and invited
50 people, including 36 pump owners.The waterlords vowed to adopt AWD intheir irrigation command areas and per-suade farmers to try it on at least one of
their plots, if not in all.Syngenta promotes AWD through
the distribution of water tubes, whichthey call pani (the term means water
in Bangladeshi) pipes. They have distrib-uted pani pipes and conducted training
courses on AWD for farmers in SouthAsia (Bangladesh, India, and Pakistan),
with plans for other countries in 2010.
On 27-31 April, Syngenta held a rice expo
in Cabanatuan, Philippines, promotingAWD and other technologies to more
than 2,000 farmers, agricultural tech-nologists, seed growers, and other stake-holders.
In Bangladesh, Syngenta conductedthousands of trials in farmers elds,
which resulted in a 3050% reduction inwater consumption per trial plot. Their
results also showed that AWD reducedirrigation cost by 2127%, as well as la-
bor, fuel, and machinery costs. Yields in-
creased by 29%.Syngentas eorts to disseminate
AWD in Bangladesh this year are quite
remarkable, and they plan to include thepani pipe in their educational programaction plan next year in India and Paki-
stan, says Dr. Ruben Lampayan, IRRCWater-Saving Work Group leader.
Through a program called SyngentaConnections, selected agricultural sci-
ence students from Australia will visitIndia for 2 weeks and learn the technol-ogy from Syngentas eld sta. The aim
is for these students to conduct trainingand demonstrations for 3,000 local ricefarmers in the country.
This is really an amazing devel-
opment where a private company withseemingly no direct benets for promot-
ing water-saving technologies is engagedin outscaling our IRRC AWD methodol-ogy based on what we call the eld water
tubes, says Dr. Bas Bouman, IRRI water
scientist. In the eld of natural resource
management, I dont think we have many
such examples!
Dept. of Agriculture Extension officialsobserve the pani pipes in training doneby IRRCs Ruben Lampayan in collabora -tion with BRRI in October 2009.
Trina Leah Mendoza