Comparative Evaluation of Ridge Sowing Technology for Rice in Rice-Wheat Zone of Sheikhupura

Rice is conventionally transplanted in puddled soil conditions by labour having less plant population, less yield, requires excess water, and causes greenhouse gas emissions in the environment, ultimately causing climate change and deteriorating soil properties, which tend to affect the next crop performance. A comparative study was conducted at Adaptive Research Farm Sheikhupura in 2023 and 2024 to evaluate the impact of different planting techniques on the standard plant population of rice crop, yield and water saving. In this study, three crop establishment techniques were tested, including (1) conventionally transplanted rice in puddled soil condition (CTP), (2) Six planker system followed by broadcasted DSR (BDSR), (3) Ridge sowing of rice (RS) using complete randomized design (CRD). Among all the techniques, ridge sowing of rice proved to be more efficient in meeting standard plant population, tillering capacity, grain yield and water saving as compared to conventional transplanted rice. Maximum grain yield was recorded in RS treatment as 4810 kg/ha and 4897 kg/ha for the years 2023 and 2024 respectively. In BDSR treatment, 4523 kg/ha and 4630 kg/ha grain yield were observed for both years, respectively. Minimum grain yield was observed in CTP treatment as 4276 kg/ha and 4327 kg/ha for the years 2023 and 2024, respectively. Ridge sowing technology performed best in water saving at 27 % as compared to CTP treatment, and 13 % water saving was observed in BDSR treatment as compared to CTP treatment. Based on the results, ridge sowing technology for rice is recommended to achieve a higher plant population, increased yield and water conservation as compared to conventional transplanted rice.