Dapeng Zhang

Hier Rice Research Center, Hainan Institute of Tropical Agricultural Resources, Sanya, 572025, Hainan, China
Author    Correspondence author
Field Crop, 2025, Vol. 8, No. 3   
Received: 18 Apr., 2025    Accepted: 29 May, 2025    Published: 21 Jun., 2025

This is an open access article published under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

The optimization of rice field irrigation methods is of great significance for alleviating water resource shortages and reducing agricultural greenhouse gas emissions. This study systematically reviews the impact of alternating dry and wet irrigation (AWD), a water-saving irrigation technology for rice, on rice yield and greenhouse gas emissions from paddy fields. The results show that AWD effectively reduces methane emissions from rice fields through periodic dry-wet alternations, significantly reducing methane flux by 20% to 70%, while only accompanied by a slight increase in nitrous oxide emissions. Moderate AWD treatment (such as a soil water potential threshold of approximately-15 kPa) will not significantly reduce rice yield. In some cases, it can promote root development and improve nitrogen use efficiency, thereby achieving stable and increased yields. Excessive drought stress (such as soil water potential below-30 kPa) may inhibit root growth and photosynthesis, leading to a significant decrease in yield. Both field trials and large-scale demonstrations have demonstrated that implementing AWD while ensuring yield can save 25% to 30% of irrigation water, enhance water use efficiency and reduce irrigation costs. The promotion of AWD helps to reduce the comprehensive warming potential of rice fields and achieve emission reduction and efficiency improvement in rice production. This article simultaneously discusses the adaptability and limitations of AWD in different ecological regions, its synergistic effect with other low-carbon agricultural measures, and looks forward to future research directions and policy support priorities. Research suggests that the scientific implementation of AWD technology is of great significance for ensuring grain production, conserving water resources, and reducing greenhouse gas emissions in the field of rice production.

Alternating dry and wet irrigation; Rice yield; Methane emissions; Nitrous oxide; Water use efficiency