FOR generations, the image of rice farming has remained largely unchanged: emerald fields standing in ankle-deep water, seedlings transplanted into flooded paddies, the soil permanently submerged. But across parts of India — and across global rice-growing regions — that familiar picture is quietly shifting.
Water scarcity, climate pressures, and the environmental cost of traditional rice farming are pushing farmers to rethink how rice is grown. And as fields dry out, even slightly, something long suppressed beneath the surface is beginning to reappear.
It isn’t new technology or machinery. It’s microscopic life — beneficial fungi living in the soil, forming partnerships with rice plants that could reshape the future of farming.
Why flooded rice is under pressure
Rice is a thirsty crop. Traditional flooded paddies demand enormous amounts of water, and they come with another, less visible cost: methane. Permanently waterlogged soil creates the perfect conditions for methane-producing microbes, making rice paddies a significant contributor to greenhouse gas emissions.
In response, farmers and researchers have been experimenting with water-saving approaches. One method involves direct seeding — planting pre-germinated seeds into fields rather than transplanting young plants into standing water. Another technique, known as alternate wetting and drying, carefully controls irrigation so fields are flooded only intermittently, rather than constantly.
These methods use less water and reduce methane emissions. But they also do something else — they change the conditions underground.
The underground helpers rice lost — and is rediscovering
In drier, better-aerated soils, a group of beneficial fungi known as arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi can survive and thrive. These fungi live inside plant roots, extending fine, thread-like networks into the surrounding soil. In doing so, they help plants access nutrients and water more efficiently — functioning, in effect, as natural biofertilisers.
Flooded rice paddies, however, are hostile environments for these fungi. They require oxygen to survive, and permanent submersion cuts that supply off. For decades, rice was grown in a way that unintentionally excluded these underground partners.
As water-saving rice systems gain ground, researchers have begun asking a simple question: if rice fields are no longer permanently flooded, do these fungi return?
From lab benches to rice fields
To investigate this, a postdoctoral researcher from the University of Cambridge stepped out of the laboratory and into the field, working with water-saving rice varieties developed by the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) in the Philippines.
The results were striking. When a direct-seeded rice variety was grown under traditional flooded conditions, its roots showed no sign of these beneficial fungi. But when the same rice was grown in non-flooded, irrigated conditions, the fungi were present in up to one-fifth of the root system.
The implication was clear: reducing water use doesn’t just conserve resources and cut emissions — it allows beneficial soil life to return.
Other studies have echoed this finding. Research on rice grown using alternate wetting and drying has shown that these fungi can help plants cope better with fluctuations in water and nutrients, increasing resilience in challenging conditions.
Why fungi matter beyond nutrients
The benefits of these fungi go beyond helping plants absorb phosphorus and other nutrients. They can also improve resistance to soil-borne pathogens and help plants survive environmental stresses such as drought.
At a time when climate change is making rainfall less predictable and water shortages more frequent, that added resilience matters. Encouraging these fungi to colonise rice roots could strengthen crops while reducing dependence on synthetic inputs.
This matters because nitrogen fertilisers — widely used in rice farming — are themselves a major source of greenhouse gas emissions, particularly nitrous oxide. Reducing fertiliser use without sacrificing yields has become one of agriculture’s biggest challenges.
Turning laboratory findings into real-world practice, however, is never straightforward. Biofertilisers — products that contain live beneficial microorganisms — need careful handling. They must avoid contamination, survive storage, establish themselves in the soil, and successfully colonise plant roots. Soil conditions vary widely, meaning solutions must be tailored locally.
This is where field partnerships become critical. Through collaborations linked to water-saving rice initiatives already underway in India, researchers began working directly with farmers in Haryana and Uttar Pradesh.
Many farmers were already familiar with the idea of “mycorrhizae” and curious about their potential. Together, researchers and farmers even transformed a local mandi into a makeshift laboratory, using simple stains and microscopes to examine rice roots. When the characteristic tree-like structures of the fungi appeared under the lens, the discovery was shared in real time — science unfolding in public view.
What farmers observed on the ground
Pilot trials were set up across multiple farms, testing locally available fungal biofertilisers alongside water-saving irrigation practices. When researchers returned to the fields months later, farmers reported visible differences.
In Uttar Pradesh, farmers described stronger root systems and more tillers — the branches of a rice plant that eventually produce grain. Similar observations were reported by farmers in Haryana. These early signs suggested the fungi could be improving crop performance under reduced-water conditions.
While these observations are still being formally analysed, the visual improvements were enough to build confidence among farmers and researchers alike.
What comes next for rice farming
The next phase of research is focused on two questions: whether these biofertilisers can reliably reduce the need for synthetic fertilisers, and how sustainable and effective commercially available products really are.
With thousands of farmers already engaged in water-saving rice systems, the potential to scale up testing is significant. If successful, this approach could help cut emissions, reduce fertiliser use, and build more resilient rice crops — without requiring farmers to overhaul their practices entirely.
From breeding programmes in the Philippines to fields in northern India, one thing is becoming clear: changing how rice is watered changes what grows beneath it. And in those changes, the future of rice may be quietly taking root.
This article is a simplified and adapted version of “How I’m helping rice farmers in India harness the power of fungi in the soil” by Emily Servante, originally published on The Conversation. It has been rewritten for a general audience, while preserving the original research findings and conclusions.