Vergara - 1976 - Physiological and morphological adaptability of ri

50 CLIMATE AND RICE
resistance of rice will become more and more important. or will there be a shifi in the crops
planted—such as wheat or barley’?
Hake: I feel that both trends will develop. Breeding for low temperature will most certainly
develop because populations do not easily shifi avray from the use of traditional foods. ln the
longer run. however, the shift to alternate crops will develop, not only in cool areas but also
where low or unreliable rainfall is a problem. Rice production will become even more concentrated
on the areas in which the best yields can be obtained year afier year.
BRADY: Do not intercropping, and double- and triple-cropping systems and their potential
require a diflerent analytical approach from that you give for rice alone’?
Hake: Yes, l ltave directed my comments to what I see as the most common practice in
South. Southeast. and East Asia today. i.e., a single main crop of rice followed in a small portion
of the fields by a second crop, most commonly a vegetable or an oil crop.
I Feel safe in saying that double- and triple-cropping can be successful ivillwu! the use of vast
amounts of energy.
KHusH: A good example of that is large areas of Bihar and Bengal. “rherc rice was grown in
the winter season. These now have shiflcd to wheat. You also mentioned that people will not
change their eating habits. All of the three meals in that region used to be rice. Now it is one of
Mheat and two of rice. People are growing wheat. and people are eating wheat in that region.
fluke: There have also been very profound changes in consumption of rice in Japan. and in
some other places.