Evaluating the Agronomic and Economic Yield of Rice: An Effective Way for Delivering Extension Service

Africa has experienced the fastest-growing demand for rice in the world over the past decade, making rice remarkable economic and social importance. However, compared to other rice-growing regions, Africa's rice yields are among the lowest, with imports meeting most of the demand. Yield improvement can be achieved by adjusting elements of the cropping system, such as planting date and density. Therefore, this experiment aims to determine the proper seedling age and optimum planting density of NERICA 10 for maximum grain and straw yields as well as high net profit. The experiment was conducted using a factorial randomized block design with three replications. Seedling age of 21 and 28 days after sowing (DAS) and planting density of 14.5, 20.0, and 25.6 hills/m<sup>2</sup> were used as factors. Plant length, stem number, leaf color, heading date, paddy yield, yield components, and straw yield were measured. Data were analyzed using Microsoft Excel and JMP (ver.14.0). There is no interaction effect between seeding age and planting density on growth, paddy yield and yield components, straw yield, and harvest index by ANOVA. However, seedling age had significant effect on plant length, stem number/m<sup>2</sup> and headings; while planting density had a significant effect on the number of stems/m<sup>2</sup>, panicles/m<sup>2</sup>, and spikelets/panicle. Number of panicles/m<sup>2</sup> had also a strong and significant relationship with paddy yield. In paddy yield estimated from yield components, A2D3 had a 5.4% advantage over A1D2, However, in Tsubo-Gari sampling, A1D2 outperformed in paddy and straw yield that reached up to 28.3% and 30.2%, respectively, and gave net benefit advantage between 978.35 to 2329.33 USD over alternatives. Applying A1D2 (14.5 hills/m<sup>2</sup>) decreased seedling cost/ha by 198.7 USD, increased milled rice by 0.98 ton/ha and net profit by 1982.05 USD over A2D3 (25.6 hills/m<sup>2</sup>). Therefore, treatment A1D2 confirmed as a better recommendation.