In rice production, sowing is an important step that determines the growth and yield of rice plants. Direct sowing of seeds by the broadcast method is a common practice of rice farmers in Quang Tri. However, up to now, this method has high rice production costs due to the large amount of seeds, fertilizers, and pesticides. Reducing the amount of seeds, fertilizers, and pesticides to reduce rice production costs, improve product quality and profits is not only a concern of farmers but also a goal of the provincial agricultural sector. In the summer-autumn crop of 2024, the Quang Tri Agricultural Extension Center has transferred the implementation of the model of "Organic rice production by cluster sowing combined with fertilization and linking product consumption" with high efficiency and support from farmers.

Rice production model using cluster seeding machine combined with buried fertilizer application for high economic efficiency - Photo: VTH

Kim Long Cooperative, Hai Que Commune, Hai Lang District was selected to pilot the model with an area of ​​6 hectares, with 11 participating households, ensuring standards of good soil quality, proactive irrigation, convenient transportation, and contiguous plots. The rice varieties used are of good quality, yield, and quality. The Agricultural Extension Center organized training to guide the technical process of rice production using the cluster sowing method combined with fertilization for 11 households participating in the model and households in the area.

At the same time, coordinate with the Commune People's Committee, commune and village agricultural extension workers and the Cooperative Management Board to manage, assign and closely monitor the implementation of the model. Households participating in the model are supported by the center with 50% of seeds, fertilizer materials, cluster seeders and technical guidance throughout the implementation process.

The cluster seeding machine combined with fertilizing has a seeding belt width of 3 m with 12 seeding rows; the distance between rows is 25 cm, the distance between clusters is 14 cm; the working capacity is 6 - 8 ha/day. The land is plowed and harrowed carefully, the field surface is flat, with good drainage ditches. The amount of fertilizer used is 200 - 220 kg/ha and the amount of seeds used is 60 kg/ha. Thanks to that, labor is reduced in the sowing stage, reducing the amount of seeds sown by 40 - 50 kg/ha compared to row sowing and broadcast sowing, helping to save costs in production and increase economic efficiency.

After being instructed by technical staff on the technical process, Kim Long Cooperative conducts concentrated seed soaking and incubation to ensure the germination of the seeds to ensure the standards of cracking and rooting, convenient for sowing with cluster seeders with high efficiency. Combining fertilization with burying fertilizer into the soil at the same time as sowing limits fertilizer loss due to evaporation in hot weather, or being washed away by water if water overflows the field, thereby also reducing environmental pollution.

Fertilizer is buried close to the rice clump, helping the rice clump to access the fertilizer and absorb it easily, limiting the loss of fertilizer to weeds, thereby helping to improve the efficiency of fertilizer use. In particular, burying fertilizer at the same time as sowing will provide nutrients to the rice plant in a timely manner right from the first days after sowing, ensuring the mineral needs of the rice plant, helping the rice plant to be vigorous, tillering early, and concentrating is an urgent requirement for cluster-sown and sparsely sown rice fields to ensure the number of tillers and flowers/m2 for maximum yield. The solution of burying fertilizer can help reduce the amount of fertilizer by 15-20% compared to the process of fertilizing the field many times as has been done so far.

The results of the 2024 summer-autumn crop pilot show that the rice plants are healthy, with green leaves that last from the beginning to the end of the crop. In the early stages, the cluster-sown rice fields are sparser than the control spread-sown rice fields, but at the tillering stage, the cluster-sown rice fields have strong tillering, covering the field, with an average of 3-4 tillers/crop, twice as high as spread-sown rice fields.

This is the outstanding advantage of cluster sowing. The rice plants are free from pests and diseases from root to tip. The rice panicles in cluster sown fields are long, the rate of empty rice is low (16.8%), reaching an average of 288 panicles/m2. Although the number of panicles/m2 is lower than that of broadcast sown rice fields, the total number of grains/panicle (172 grains/panicle) and the number of solid grains (143 grains/panicle) are much higher than that of broadcast sown rice.

The rice flower has gravel grains, uniform grain formation, bright yellow color. The suitable density makes the field airy, has few pests and diseases, minimizes the use of fertilizers and pesticides, the land is improved, the field ecosystem is balanced. Thereby, contributing to improving economic efficiency, developing agriculture in a sustainable direction.

Director of Kim Long Cooperative Nguyen Huu Phuoc said that through the pilot production, it has been shown that the use of cluster seeders combined with fertilization helps rice fields have appropriate density, creating conditions for healthy rice growth, good photosynthesis, strong tillering, long panicles, increased grain density, low rate of empty grains, less pests and diseases; reducing labor, facilitating the use of mechanization in other stages such as fertilization, harvesting with combine harvesters. The rice yield reached 63 quintals/ha.

Director of Quang Tri Agricultural Extension Center Tran Can commented: The difference between the cluster sowing model and mass sowing rice production is that it reduces labor, saves production costs, and promotes mechanization in agricultural production. Plants grow well and are healthy. Rice blooms evenly, concentratedly, and shows off its flowers.

Thanks to the use of small amounts of seeds; the amount of fertilizer from the beginning of the crop is buried in the soil, so there is less loss; the field surface is airy, there are few pests and diseases, the spraying of pesticides to prevent pests and diseases is also limited, the land is improved, and the field ecosystem is balanced. The yield of rice in the cluster sowing model is equal to that of the broadcast sowing model, but due to the reduction of seeds, fertilizers, and pesticides, the investment cost is lower, giving a higher profit of 4-5 million VND/ha.

This is the first crop to apply cluster seeders combined with buried fertilizer for sowing and basal fertilization for high production efficiency. This model needs to be replicated in production to gradually replace the current method of broadcast seeding and fertilizer application by broadcasting on the field many times.

From the results of the pilot application of cluster seeders combined with fertilization in the summer-autumn crop in 2024, the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development decided to expand the model not only to organic rice areas but also to all fields, especially large fields with flat fields in the coming crops. Thereby, improving the efficiency of rice production in the province.

Vo Thai Hoa