cultural practices of rice production

One of these cultivated species, O. sativa is indigenous to Asia, while the other, O. glaberrima is indigenous to Africa. through local cultural practices of rice production The latter was reported to be distributed mainly in the Savannah along the southern fringes of Sahara desert (Oka, 1988). The species was first grown as a crop in the central Niger delta and Sokoto basins among other places, but later the cultivation spread into bush fallow upland farming systems of the western forest zones. Today it is still being cultivated as a lowland crop in Kebbi and Sokoto States of Nigeria in the Rima River flood plains and as upland crop in the Zuru Local Government Areas in Kebbi State.

The species can also be found in mixtures and sometimes almost replacing the Asian species varieties in the farmers’ fields both in the shallow swamps and the inland valleys and flood plains of the Niger and Benue valley an d also in the dry

land rice fields of the southern parts of the country

These can be done where applicable.

Fertilizer application in rice farm:

Apply 150kg or three bags of N.P.K fertilizer per hectare at planting by broadcasting.

Weeding cultural practices of rice

Weeding is done to ensure rapid growth of rice pests and diseases: these should be prevented or controlled by spraying with appropriate chemicals.

Maturity period of rice:
Rice matures in four to seven months depending on variety.

Harvesting of rice
Red heads of rice are cut off with knife, sickle or combined harvester.

How to process rice using cultural practices

Sun drying: This is done immediately after harvesting for three to four days.

Threshing: This is the separation of the grains from the stalk by either beating with stick, treading with feet or by the use of mechanical threshers.

Winnowing: After threshing, the chaff or unwanted dust and remains of stalks are removed by winnowing. This is a fanning operation usually done by throwing the grains in the air to blow away the dust and other residues.

After winnowing, the grains of rice remain enclosed by the husk to form what is called paddy.

Parboiling of rice.

This process is used to reduce the breakage of grains during pounding. It also brings some vitamins to the outer layer of the grains and it also reduces the labour required to remove the husks. The paddy rice is heated by putting it into boiling water for about 12-15 hours. The rice swells and the husks are forced apart. The parboiled rice is now sun-dried.

Hulling of rice: This is the removal of the husks from the grains. The grains are pounded gently to remove the expanded husks. The husks are then separated from the rice by winnowing

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(f)     Polishing: In some cases, the paddy rice is threshed by machine, and polished. Polishing involves the use of specially designed machines to remove the husks and other layers covering the grains. The portion removed is known as rice bran which is very rich in protein and vitamins. Consumption of polished rice may cause vitamin deficiency disease called beri-beri due to the removal of the bran rich in protein.

How to Store harvested rice as cultural practices of rice