Evaluation of a simple technique for characterizing rice root systems in relation to drought resistance

Summary Drought is a constraint to rice yields in much of Asia's rainfed rice crop. Although genotypic variation for root system characteristics is well documented in this semiaquatic species, little improvement of rice for drought resistance has been attempted. No simple method to evaluate root systems exists. In this paper we report the development and testing of a simple device to measure the pulling force required to uproot rice seedlings. The force required to pull rice seedlings from the paddy soil was correlated with root weight, root branching and thick root number. The capability to separate rice cultivars by this technique and relationship of the root pulling force to other drought screening methods are illustrated.