Bangladesh Farmers Achieve 25-30% Higher Rice Yield with Dry Bed Technique.

Bangladesh Farmers Achieve 25-30% Higher Rice Yield
Bangladesh farmers have achieved 25% - 30% higher rice yield in the current boro season by using a new system for growing IRRI-boro saplings called 'dry bed technology.' Many farmers in the northern region of the country used this technology to grow IRRI-boro saplings and said that this system of growing saplings is better than the traditional system as it saves land, time, money and labor.
 
The new system allows the farmers to grow saplings in dry beds and does not need much water unlike the traditional system in which the saplings have to be grown in low lands where there is ample water. The saplings grown in this method are not damaged by cold weather or heavy fog and they yield 25-30% higher than the saplings grown by the traditional method. While 50-60 days are needed to grow saplings under traditional method, only 25-30 days are needed using the new technology. Growing saplings with the new dry technology needs about Tk 271,700 - Tk 284,050 (around $3,444 - $3,600) per hectare compared to Tk 382,850 - Tk 395,200 (about $4,853 - $5,009) per hectare with the traditional method. Also farmers can easily harvest these saplings as they are healthy and strong.
 
Nearly five hundred farmers in different villages in the Lalmonirhat district have used the new system for producing IRRI-boro saplings, according to the district's agriculture officer. At least 16 - 19 hectares of land have been used for producing IRRI-boro saplings using the dry bed technology, and they are satisfied as they got 100% output from their seedbeds compared to only 50%-60% output from the seedbeds sown under the traditional method. The officer noted that the agriculture officials are encouraging farmers to grow saplings under the new method and said he was confident that more number of farmers will use this method in the next season.

Brown Mang