Sustainable Rice Fallow Crop Production Challenges and Opportunities: An Overview

Abstract

The main objective of this review is to assess the scenario of sustainable production of rice fallow crops. Rice (Oryza sativa.L) is a staple foods in Asia, that is extensively grown in various regions. A rice fallow cropping system is an interesting concept for maintaining the sustainability of crop production and better utilization of resources. However, the following are the criteria for crops that are to be grown as fallow crops. The crops grown under rice fallow conditions utilize the moisture retained in the residues of the previous crop. Therefore, the plants are not subjected to moisture stress until there is residual moisture and soil moisture retention. Hence, short duration crops, varieties and drought tolerant crops are mostly preferred for rice fallow situations. Predominantly, pulses, millets, oil seeds and fibre crops such as cotton are preferred under fallow rice conditions, on the basis of the soil texture.