PhilRice recommends rice varieties for rainy season

Planting early- maturing and highquality rice varieties is vital for the rainy days, the Philippine Rice Research Institute said.

Dr. Norvie Manigbas, head of PhilRice’s Plant Breeding and Biotechnology Division, said after the onslaught of drought, the next challenge is to select the varieties suited for the rainy days.

Farmers are advised to plant varieties, which stand at most 100 cm with strong stems that can withstand 40-60 kilometers per hour wind speed.

Some of these varieties are PSB Rc14, PSB Rc68, NSIC Rc9, and NSIC Rc222.

Manigbas said there are also varieties released in 2011, which are good for dry conditions or for areas that normally experience delayed or almost no rainfall.

Rainfed areas are also prone to flooding. The varieties suited for this condition are PSB Rc18 (Ala), which can withstand 5-7 days of complete submergence, NSIC Rc194 (Submarino 1), which can survive, grow, and develop even after 10-14 days of complete submergence, and PSB Rc68 (Sacobia), a submergence-tolerant and a drought-resistant variety. These varieties can recover when submerged during vegetative stage.

PhilRice also emphasized the reduction of fertilizer application rates.

“While fertilizers are beneficial for plants, in high amounts, they may cause lodging. Fertilizers cannot be maximized, as there is a limited amount of sunlight during the rainy season. Depending on soil analysis results and recommended nutrient requirement rates, it is better to reduce fertilizer application rates by 20-30 percent in wet season,” Manigbas said.