Native Paddy Cultivation: Understanding of the Practice and Crop Management among Sarawak’s Farmers
Abstract
Native paddy is widely acknowledged for its authentic taste and fragrance but is often reported with low yield. Hence, the objective of this paper was to identify the practice and crop management of native paddy in Sarawak. About 56 targeted participants who actively cultivated native paddy were surveyed from January to June 2021. Our results have revealed their background and management contributed the most to the yield where no irrigation system, low fertiliser application, and the possibility of impurity seedlings become the significant constraints. Besides, unpredictable weather and long-distance travel to buy agricultural supplies worsened this problem. The participants apply fertiliser in low amounts compared to their cultivation areas (>2.5 ha), and those who mixed cropping will share the fertiliser with another crop. Paddy varieties such as Rotan (Wai), Biris, and others need a longer period of growth (5½ months) and are cultivated once a year. This showed unproductive production and a high infestation of pests and diseases. Therefore, we suggest intensive paddy cultivation by addressing the issues found in this study.
Downloads
References
Ansari, N., Ratri, S. S., Jahan, A., Ashik E Rabbani, M., & Rahman, A. (2021). Inspection of paddy seed varietal purity using machine vision and multivariate analysis. Journal of Agriculture and Food Research, 3, 1-7.
Hanafi, M., Hartinie, A., Shukor, J., & Mohamed, M. (2009). Upland rice varieties in Malaysia: Agronomic and soil physico-chemical characteristics. Pertanika Journal of Tropical Agricultural Science, 32, 1511-3701.
Hollaus, A., Schunko, C., Weisshaidinger, R., Bala, P., & Vogl, C. R. (2022). Indigenous farmers' perceptions of problems in the rice field agroecosystems in the upper Baram, Malaysia. Journal of Ethnobiology and Ethnomedicine, 18, 1-25.
Hussain, T., Hussain, N., Ahmed, M., Nualsri, C., & Duangpan, S. (2022). Impact of nitrogen application rates on upland rice performance, planted under varying sowing times. Sustainability, 14, 1-17.
Ismail, A., Haron, I., Mamat, W., & Abd Rani, M. N. (2014). Pengaruh baja nitrogen (N) dan kalium (K) terhadap padi varieti MR 269 dan MR 284 di Sungai Nibong (PBLS). Jurnal Teknologi, 70, 1-4.
Izzah, A. H., & Wan Asrina, W. Y. (2018). Spatial variability of nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium using geospatial techniques on black pepper farms. Azarian Journal of Agriculture, 5, 76-85.
Izzah, A. H., Wan Asrina, W. Y., & Norziana, Z. Z. (2020). Changes in soil organic carbon under continuous farming. Research in Agriculture Livestock and Fisheries, 7, 175-181.
Kamal, M., Haque, A. H. M., Elazegui, F., Mia, M. A. T., Kamal, M., & Haque, M. M. (2012). Increase in rice yield through the use of quality seeds in Bangladesh. African Journal of Agricultural Research, 7, 3819-3827.
Rijala, S., & Devkota, Y. (2020). A review on various management method of rice blast disease. Malaysian Journal of Sustainable Agriculture, 4, 29-33.
Saothongnoi, V., Amkha, S., Inubushi, K., & Smakgahn, K. (2014). Effect of rice straw incorporation on soil properties and rice yield. Thai Journal of Agricultural Science, 47: 7-12.
Simkhada, K., & Thapa, R. (2021). Rice blast, a major threat to the rice production and its various management techniques. Turkish Journal of Agriculture - Food Science and Technology,, 10, 147-157.
Sohrabi, M., Rafii, M. Y., Hanafi, M. M., Siti Nor Akmar, A., & Latif, M. A. (2012). Genetic diversity of upland rice germplasm in Malaysia based on quantitative traits. The Scientific World Journal: 1-9.
Toan, N. S., Hanh, D. H., Dong Phuong, N. T., Thuy, P. T., Dong, P. D., Gia, N. T., Tam, L. D., Thu, T. T. N., Thanh, D. T. V., Khoo, K. S., & Show, P. L. (2022). Effects of burning rice straw residue on-field on soil organic carbon pools: Environment-friendly approach from a conventional rice paddy in central Viet Nam. Chemosphere, 294, 1-6.
Zaimah, R., Lyndon, N., Md Sum, S., & Hussain, M. (2018a). Tahap kepuasan pekebun kecil sawit terhadap amalan integrasi sawit. Malaysian Journal of Society and Space, 14, 97-107.
Zaimah, R., Sarmila, M. S., Novel, L., & Mohd Yusof, H. (2018b). Integrasi sawit dalam kalangan pekebun kecil sawit di Johor dan Sabah. GEOGRAFI, 6, 61-70.