Comparison of three wet direct-seeding establishment packages for Juma 69-20 rice: grain yield, yield components, and profitability

Abstract

Crop establishment can alter the agronomic and economic performance of direct-seeded rice, but field evidence from the Caribbean is limited. The objective of this study was to compare the grain yield, yield components, plant development, and profitability of three wet direct-seeding establishment packages for Oryza sativa L. cv. Juma 69-20 on an irrigated Vertisol in Esperanza, Valverde, Dominican Republic: manual broadcasting at 116 kg seed ha⁻¹, row seeding with a 10-row Multi-Seeder at 55 kg seed ha⁻¹, and row seeding with a 12-row Semeato at 116 kg seed ha⁻¹. Treatments were evaluated in a randomized complete block design with four replications, using the plot as the experimental unit, and economic performance was estimated with a partial budget per hectare. Establishment package affected grain yield (p = 0.0018), filled grains per panicle (p = 0.0206), unfilled grains per panicle (p = 0.0189), panicle fertility (p = 0.0255), 1000-grain weight (Friedman test, p = 0.0381), and plant height (p < 0.0001), but not panicle weight, panicle density, or panicle length. Multi-Seeder had the highest grain yield (10.26 Mg ha⁻¹), followed by Semeato (8.00 Mg ha⁻¹) and manual broadcasting (6.32 Mg ha⁻¹). When all cost categories were applied consistently across packages, profitability was 87.68%, 42.69%, and 20.74%, respectively. The greater yield under Multi-Seeder was associated mainly with more filled grains per panicle rather than greater panicle density. Because implement type and seed rate changed simultaneously, the findings apply to integrated establishment packages and do not isolate a machinery effect; factorial trials across locations and seasons are needed to separate the contribution of each component.