Rice Seedling Nursery: The new approach to develop local small enterprises

Abstract

Farmland fragmentation is a significant factor influencing the sustainability of crop production. In this respect, the development of rice seedling nursery centers (RSNC) is an underlying and key strategy to keep the sustainability of rice production in small paddies. The development of RSNCs aims to reduce production costs, facilitate the seedling nursery process, and contribute to producing healthy and rigorous rice seedlings that are appropriate to be planted by transplanters. The present research explored the factors influencing the development of these support centers in Guilan province, Iran using an interview and survey methodology. The statistical population was composed of 34 executives of RSNCs across Guilan province. Data were collected by in-depth face-to-face interviews with the research panel using a self-design questionnaire. They were then analyzed statistically. The final results show that the managerial-policymaking, knowledge-skill, and economic factors were the most to least important factors influencing the development of RSNCs in the study site. So, to ensure the sustainability of rice production, especially in small-scale paddies, the organizations in charge of rice production must consider ‘developing and enforcing efficient insurance regulations’. ‘Technically supporting RSNCs via the production of high-quality paddy seeds with optimal purity, ‘’enhancing the technicalskill knowledge of RSNC executives via holding technical training courses,’ ‘forcing RSNCs to use the technical supervision of experts’, and ‘supporting the suppliers of high-quality seedling boxes and substrate’.