The characteristics of swampland rice farming in South Sumatra: local wisdom for climate change mitigation

Swampland has been used for agriculture for hundreds of years, yet most still use traditional ways. In general, rice farming in swampland is cultivated once a year before the dry season depending on land classification. This paper presents the swampland rice farming system’s role as local wisdom that needs to be maintained for environment preservation and climate change mitigation. Data was collected through interviews with farmers and extension workers and reviews of relevant experimental studies and articles. The success of rice farming in swampland is primarily determined by nature such as sudden flood and drought. Swampland is divided into three typologies, namely shallow swampland, mid swampland, and deep swampland. The nursery system and rice variety selection are key for successful rice farming in swampland. There are dry and floating nursery systems in South Sumatra. The dry nursery is carried out in dry land and field beds, usually done for shallow swampland; floating nursery is carried out in higher water level swampland using rafts made from waterweeds. Some of superior adaptive varieties in swampland are Inpara-1, Inpara-2, Inpara-4, Batutegi, Limboto, Inpari-1, Inpari-4, Inpari-6, Inpari-9 and Mekongga which may increase production in swampland.