Mayantoc, Tarlac – The Department of Agriculture-Philippine Rice Research Institute (DA-PhilRice) has put its rice paddy seeder through rigorous field testing in this town, ensuring that the machinery works flawlessly.

According to DA-PhilRice, the paddy seeder was researched and developed under the Scaling Modern and Adaptive Rice Technologies (SMART) Integrated Crop Management (ICM) Project. The machine efficiently scatters seeds in rice farms.

The equipment creates small canals for water to flow through and ensures a level planting area for rice. The technology was made possible through the efforts of the Rice Engineering and Mechanization Division, in collaboration with the Tarlac Provincial Agriculture Office and the Mayantoc Municipal Agriculture Office.

The SMART-ICM project aims to provide recommendations and technology tailored to the specific conditions of rice paddies in Central Luzon.

Last week, DA-PhilRice also demonstrated the use of agricultural drones in Barangay Ambalingit, Mayantoc. The drones were used to spread seedlings across rice farms.

According to rice farmer Jesus Tabora, spreading seedlings across a hectare of farmland now only takes 10 minutes — a task that previously took half a day. He also noted that the seed coverage, which used to take an entire day, can now be done in a matter of hours.

He added that the seedlings are now spread proportionately, creating more space and allowing for increased planting density.

This technology is being rolled out through the efforts of the SMART-ICM Project, the Tarlac Provincial Agriculture Office, LGU Mayantoc, and AgriDOM.