Winter potatoes in rice fields

Farmers in China have developed a tillage system that allows them to produce a winter potato crop on paddy rice soil.

Potato production in rice fields is very complicated and affected by many factors, including weather, soil, planting methods, fertilization, mulch, varieties, and seed. The farmer-developed system is costly, which discourages poor farmers from planting a winter potato crop.

The result of research and experimentation in three South China provinces will be a new, simple, low-cost planting method combined with the optimized use of rice straws and fertilizers, minimum tillage, suitable varieties, high-quality seed potatoes, and appropriate small-sized machinery.

CIP aims to build flexibility into the system so it can be applied on a wider scale in Southeast Asia.