Drum Seeding

The drum seeding technique involves direct seeding of pre-germinated paddy seeds using the drums made of fiber material that would dispense seeds evenly in lines with 20 cm spacing in between, on the leveled fields. The paddy seeds have to be soaked the previous night, and allowed to sprout. Also, the seeds must be air dried for 30 minutes before sowing, to ease the seeds dispensing from the drum seeder. But, the sowing should not be delayed as long shoots are not suitable for the drum seeding technique. This method of sowing could be completed in just six hours for one-hectare area as compared to the regular sowing process, which would require 30-40 days. Apart from the time, drum sowing brings in several benefits such as saving seeds, water, manpower, and improves productivity as a result of line sowing and also provides early maturity of crops.

The drum seeding has been demonstrated in 194 hectares covering 367 farmers in Aurangabad, Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, Telengana, Andhra Pradesh, and Kerala. There was an average increase in the yields from nine percent to 29 percent, also an increase in the benefit-cost ratio of 1.9 to 2.9 as compared to regular practices.