A field experiment was conducted during the
kharif seasons of 2023 and 2024 at the Agronomy Research Farm, ICAR-Indian Institute of Rice Research, Rajendranagar, Hyderabad, Telangana, to evaluate the influence of crop establishment methods and nitrogen management practices on the growth and yield of rice. The study was laid out in a split-plot design with three replications, comprising three establishment methods, transplanting (M₁), mechanical transplanting (M₂) and wet direct-seeded rice (M₃) in the main plots, and five nitrogen management practices, 100% RDN through urea (S₁), LCC-based nitrogen management (S₂), 75% RDN + nano urea sprays (S₃), 100% RDN through slow-release urea (S₄) and control (S₅) in the subplots. Data were analysed using ANOVA, and treatment means were compared at the 5% level of significance (P = 0.05).
Across both years and pooled kharif data, significant treatment effects emerged from 60 DAS onward. Wet direct-seeded rice (M₃) and mechanical transplanting (M₂) consistently recorded higher plant height, tiller production, dry matter accumulation, grain yield and straw yield than transplanting (M₁). Among nitrogen treatments, slow-release urea (S₄) and LCC-based management (S₂) produced the highest yields, highlighting the importance of synchronized nitrogen availability. Conventional 100% RDN (S1) through urea and reduced basal nitrogen combined with nano urea (S₃) sprays resulted in moderate performance, while the control (S₅) recorded the lowest values for all parameters. Harvest index remained unaffected by establishment methods or nitrogen practices. Overall, the results indicate that integrating wet direct-seeded rice or mechanical transplanting with slow-release urea or LCC-based nitrogen management is a productive and sustainable strategy for improving kharif rice performance.
