Experiences and Methods for Intercropping Rice Paddy Eel in Wild Rice Stem Fields
Intercropping rice paddy eel in wild rice stem fields is a new model that combines planting wild rice stem with intercropping rice paddy eel. Production practice in Jingjiang, Jiangsu and other places has proven: Intercropping rice paddy eel in wild rice stem fields not only makes full use of the ecological environment of the water body in wild rice stem fields, with wild rice stem and rice paddy eel benefiting each other through symbiosis, reducing the production costs of planting wild rice stem and raising eels, but also can increase the comprehensive economic output rate of wild rice stem field production.
Experiences on How to Intercrop Rice Paddy Eel in Wild Rice Stem Fields
1. Field plot construction. Level the field, dig around the perimeter a deep 0.8 m, wide 0.5 m trench, dig a deep 0.3 m, wide 0.5 m horizontal ditch, and in the center of the field dig a wide 1 m, deep 0.3 m vertical ditch. Use the excavated soil to raise and reinforce the pond embankment, with the embankment 0.5 m above the field surface, serving as an anti-escape wall, tamped solid and impermeable. And at the field plot's inlet and outlet, cover well with fine-mesh wire netting. As a wild rice stem field plot for raising rice paddy eel, it must have the characteristics of good ventilation, light transmission, convenient water inlet and drainage, and good soil water retention performance. For ease of operation and management, generally the intercropped wild rice stem field plot area of 10-15 mu is suitable.
2. Apply sufficient base fertilizer. After plowing, sun-drying, and crushing the soil, apply per mu 1000 kg of decomposed pig and cattle manure and other organic fertilizers, 40 jin of superphosphate as base fertilizer, evenly spread on the soil surface. At the end of April, in each co-cultivation pond (perimeter drainage ditches, etc.) apply 50-100 kg of chicken manure, fill water to a depth of 0.3 m, to breed large zooplankton for the eels to feed on.
3. Wild rice stem transplanting. Select Zhongjie wild rice stem with high yield, excellent quality, and strong waterlogging resistance. Planting spacing 75 cm, row spacing 80 cm, transplant 1110 plants per mu, transplanting completed in early to mid-April.
4. Eel stocking and co-cultivation. From May onward, purchase wild eels caught by fishermen using eel cages from the local market, select disease-free and injury-free, lively swimming, uniform-sized eel fry with body color yellow or brownish-red. Generally, stock about 800 eels per mu at a size of 20-30 eels per kg. If bait sources are sufficient and water quality conditions are good, it can be increased to 1000 eels. Before the eel fry enter the field, soak in 3-5% salt water for 5-10 minutes to disinfect the body surface, preventing disease from being brought into the field on the body surface.
When stocking rice paddy eel fry, some loach can also be appropriately stocked. When the loach dart up and down, they can increase the dissolved oxygen in the water and can prevent the rice paddy eels from tangling with each other. Rice paddy eel is a carnivorous-based omnivorous fish, especially fond of eating fresh live bait, such as small fish and shrimp, earthworms, fly maggots, snail and mussel meat, aquatic insects, etc. Mainly feed live small fish and shrimp and small snails, adopting once-a-week feeding, with the feeding amount at about 30-50%. Put the live small fish, shrimp, and snails together into the field's high-yield ditches and drainage ditches and other places, letting the rice paddy eels feed themselves.
Also appropriately supplement feeding with some plant-based feed, such as wheat bran, rice, melons and fruits, vegetables, etc. During the co-cultivation period, compound feed with a protein content of 30% or more can also be fed, fed at multiple points, ensuring all eel fry feed evenly. Rice paddy eels have the foraging habit of hiding by day and coming out at night. When first raising, feed in the evening each day, then gradually advance the feeding time. After about 10 days of domestication, they can be fed three times daily at 9 AM, 2 PM, and 6 PM, to ensure sufficient bait for the rice paddy eels. Each feeding must be flexibly controlled according to the weather, water temperature, and the amount of residual bait, generally about 5% of the total body weight of the rice paddy eels. Persisting in the “four fixeds” feeding every day will cause the rice paddy eels to form a conditioned reflex and feed in groups.
5. Disease prevention and control. Before stocking eel fry, soak and disinfect with 3-5% salt water for 5-10 minutes to kill body surface parasites; rice paddy eels intercropped in the water body of wild rice stem fields, with wild rice stem purifying the water quality, create a good ecological environment for the growth and development of rice paddy eels; rice paddy eels have extremely strong disease resistance and are very hard to get sick. As long as during the co-cultivation period, every half month splash the field water body once with bleaching powder at 2 g per cubic meter or quicklime at 10 g, doing good prevention work, and upon discovering sick eels, treat promptly, must achieve “prevent before disease, treat early when diseased”. It is prohibited to use herbicidal, sodium pentachlorophenate, toxaphene and other toxic pesticidal pesticides.
6. Daily management.
① Water quality management. The water area in the wild rice stem field is the common living environment for wild rice stem and rice paddy eels. For intercropping rice paddy eel in wild rice stem fields, water quality management is mainly based on the needs of wild rice stem production while taking into account the living habits of rice paddy eels. At initial planting, irrigate deep water to support the seedlings and help them survive. After seedling recovery, maintain water at 6-7 cm to facilitate raising the ground temperature and promote tillering and plant development. In the late tillering stage, gradually deepen the water layer to 15 cm (favorable for the growth and development of rice paddy eels), control ineffective tillering, and promote early pregnancy and good wild rice stem.
During the co-cultivation period, the pond water must be kept fertile and refreshing, fresh, and with sufficient dissolved oxygen. Generally, change and inject new water once every 5-7 days, each time changing 1/4-1/3 of the water volume, and raise the water level by 10-15 cm, regulating water quality and maintaining good water quality. Before each feeding, be sure to remove residual bait to avoid polluting the water quality. Besides paying attention to daily feeding and water quality management, patrolling the pond for inspection and daily management work should not be neglected, especially always paying attention to weather changes to take corresponding management measures. In stuffy and hot weather, if rice paddy eels are found with their bodies vertical and heads extending out of the water surface, it indicates severe oxygen deficiency in the water body, and new water needs to be added to increase oxygen.
② Scientific topdressing. The first time, 10-15 days after planting, apply per mu 5-6 kg of urea, with only muddy water left at topdressing time. The second time is seedling-promoting fertilizer, 10 days after the first topdressing, apply per mu 50 kg of crushed soybean cake (serving both as wild rice stem seedling-promoting fertilizer and as plant bait for rice paddy eels). The third time is pregnancy-promoting fertilizer for wild rice stem, when most tillers enter the pregnancy stage, apply per mu 7-8 kg.
③ Weeding and leaf removal. Weed twice, the first time 20 days after planting, the second time before the plants close rows. In mid-August, without injuring the plants, peel off the withered yellow diseased leaves to facilitate light transmission in the field and benefit the growth and development of rice paddy eels, and take the peeled leaves out of the field for disposal.
④ Harvesting and catching eels. During the golden autumn period, when harvesting autumn wild rice stem, do not damage adjacent tillers, harvest once every 3-5 days. Catching eels is generally from late October to mid-November. Conventional methods include draining the accumulated water in the field ditches, dry catching, and scoop-net catching, among various fishing methods. Rice paddy eels overwintering until around the Spring Festival are sold with high economic benefits, so overwintering management should be strengthened: drain the pond water and spread a layer of straw or wheat straw, wild rice stem leaves, etc. on top to maintain soil moisture and the temperature in the soil layer, achieving the purpose of moisture retention and freeze prevention. In addition, prevent the invasion of biological enemies such as rats and cats.
Living Habits of Rice Paddy Eels
The body of the rice paddy eel is cylindrical, suitable for burrowing life, very favorable for entering and exiting burrows and reducing friction. It really has a bit of a “hermit” demeanor, with no special attacking ability and no powerful defensive weapon. Its only skill is “of the thirty-six stratagems, fleeing is the best”.
It has neither pectoral fins nor pelvic fins, and even the dorsal fin and anal fin have degenerated to leave only a little skin fold, and the scales have disappeared so much they are hard to see with the naked eye, but the whole body can secrete very slippery mucus, and with a moment's carelessness it can slip away from your hands. The mucus on the body of the rice paddy eel mainly functions to: prevent bacteria and pathogens from infecting the body, reducing disease; prevent the entanglement of parasitic animals and plants, favoring growth; and being oily and smooth, favoring its unimpeded passage through the mud.
How Much Money Is Needed to Invest in Raising Rice Paddy Eels
1. Pond construction cost 200 yuan, purchase 15-20 kg of wild rice paddy eels. Calculated at the summer medium size (30-50 g per fish) rice paddy eel at 15-20 yuan per kg, the cost is about 300-400 yuan.
2. After 5-8 months of raising, the body weight of rice paddy eels can increase 3-5 times. We calculate at 3 times weight gain, then 20 kg of rice paddy eels can gain 60 kg. Calculated at a feed cost of 8 yuan per 1 kg of rice paddy eel weight gain (in reality, using large amounts of fly maggots and earthworms would not require so much), the feed cost needed is 480 yuan.
3. Medicines and other expenses counted at 100 yuan. The above 4 cost items total about 1080-1180 yuan.
Development Prospects of Rice Paddy Eel Farming
1. The market prospects for rice paddy eel farming are very broad, with huge hidden market potential, and market demand showing a year-by-year growth trend. At present, the consumption structure of rice paddy eels is single, and various deep-processed products using rice paddy eels as the main raw material, such as various roasted foods, quick-frozen foods, canned foods, and health products, have not yet been developed, and a diversified consumption structure has not yet formed, thus having broad market space. At the same time, the price of rice paddy eels is mid-range, with a broad consumer group.
2. The development of the domestic rice paddy eel farming industry forms a great contrast with the market demand situation, that is, the rising hot trend of market consumer demand has not stimulated the in-depth development of the domestic rice paddy eel and loach farming industry.
3. The entirely new efficient farming technology guarantee and the establishment of a supporting service system, together with the good opportunity formed by the market situation, jointly create broad space for large-scale farming of rice paddy eels and loach.
Intercropping rice paddy eels in fields is a method currently used by many farmers. This not only achieves the effect of two incomes from one field, but the interaction of the two can also greatly increase each other's yield. Therefore, raising rice paddy eels in wild rice stem fields is a method adopted by many farmers at present, and it has also achieved very good results.