2006 April - Rice Today

Reducing poverty through agricultural development

In August 2003, the government of Japan revised its Official Development Assistance (ODA) Charter for the first time in 11 years. Since then, Japan has...

The direct approach

Direct-Seeded rice (right) matures 3–4 weeks earlier than transplanted rice (left), and so is more likely to avoid damaging early-season drought and...

Genuinely Lao

LAO farmers tend vegetable terraces on the Nam Khan River near Luang Prabang. Improved rice production allows farmers to diversify their crops, and therefore...

Back to the future

The Mekong River, pictured here at Luang Prabang, Lao PDR, is central to the lives of hundreds of millions of people. (Photo: Peter Fredenburg) The...

Drought perpetuates poverty

Drought is a major constraint to rice production in Asia, where at least 20% of the total rice area is drought prone. When rice is grown under rainfed...

Work needed to weed out farmer’s problem

Since land was first cultivated to create a favorable environment for crops, other less desirable plants have exploited the same land more effectively. Control of weeds has been described as humanity’s biggest single occupation, and while herbicides have greatly reduced the effort needed to control weeds in some farming systems, in others, controlling them requires more...

Claiming rice fields from wild rivers

The Alimit River winds through remote northeastern Ifugao Province, Philippines. (Photo: IRRI) In the overleaf that follows, the breathtaking bird’s-eye...

Rice Today Vol. 5, No. 2 (April-June 2006)

Mekong special:Lao rice revolution Linking rice and livestock Hunting genes for hardier rice The direct approach: Moving away from transplanting in South...

Monthly Archives: April 2006