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Applicability of APSIM to capture the effectiveness of irrigation management decisions in rice-based cropping sequence in the Upper-Gangetic Plains of India

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Abstract

Rice–wheat (RW) production system, which covers over 13.5 million ha in the Indo-Gangetic Plains of south Asia, is vital for food and nutritional security and livelihood of millions of poor people in this part of the region. Availability of irrigation water under projected climate change scenarios is a great concern, and demonstration of the impact of different irrigation regimes on rice, wheat, and system yields is essential to adopt suitable water saving technologies to minimize risk. This study tested the ability of the agricultural production systems simulator (APSIM) model to simulate the effects of different irrigation regimes on yield, irrigation water requirement, and irrigation water productivity (WPi) of rice, wheat, and RW system in upper-gangetic plains of India. The long-term simulated rice yield showed a steadily declining trend at an average rate of 120 kg ha−1 yr−1 (R 2 = 0.94, p < 0.05), while long-term simulated wheat yields showed a lower declining trend at an average rate of 48 kg ha−1 yr−1 (R 2 = 0.48, p < 0.05). The highest WPi of 8.31 kg ha−1 mm−1 was observed under RW system with the rice irrigation (IR) regime of 8 days alternate wetting and drying (AWD) and five irrigations for wheat with a yield penalty of 25.5 %. The next highest WPi was observed in the treatment with a 5-day AWD regime in rice and five irrigations for wheat, with a yield penalty of 20.1 %. Thus, we can suggest that a 5-day AWD irrigation regime for rice combined with five irrigations during wheat could be the best option under water limiting situations.

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Acknowledgments

This work is the outcome of the SAARC-Australia project funded by AusAID and ACIAR. The authors are thankful to Project Leader Dr. Christian Roth and resource persons (Dr. Don Gaydon, Mr. Perry Poulton, Dr. Balwinder Singh and Dr. Ibrahim Saiyed) for providing guidance and support to conduct this study. The first and third authors are thankful to the Deputy Director General (NRM) of the Indian Council for Agricultural Research and the Project Director of the Project Directorate of Farming Systems Research at Modipuram for being nominated to associate with SAARC-Australia Project.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Project Directorate for Farming Systems Research, Indian Council of Agricultural Research, Modipuram, Meerut, 250 110, Uttar Pradesh, India

    N. Subash, M. Shamim, V. K. Singh & B. Gangwar

  2. International Wheat and Maize Improvement Center, New Delhi, India

    B. Singh

  3. CSIRO Ecosystem Sciences, 41 Boggo Road, Dutton Park, Q 4102, Australia

    D. S. Gaydon & C. H. Roth

  4. CSIRO Ecosystem Sciences, 203 Tor St, Toowoomba, Q 4350, Australia

    P. L. Poulton

  5. NRM Division, Indian Council of Agricultural Research, KAB-II, Pusa, New Delhi, 110012, India

    A. K. Sikka

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  1. N. Subash
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  2. M. Shamim
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  3. V. K. Singh
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  4. B. Gangwar
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  5. B. Singh
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  7. C. H. Roth
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  8. P. L. Poulton
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  9. A. K. Sikka
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Correspondence to N. Subash.

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Subash, N., Shamim, M., Singh, V.K. et al. Applicability of APSIM to capture the effectiveness of irrigation management decisions in rice-based cropping sequence in the Upper-Gangetic Plains of India. Paddy Water Environ 13, 325–335 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10333-014-0443-1

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