Abstract

Rice (Oryza glaberrima) is a staple food for many people in Africa. In West Africa, especially Liberia, it is the main dish and plays a major role in the political stability of the country despite its insufficient production. The objective of the study was to evaluate how varied cutting heights affected rice yields. The experiment was set up in a Randomized Complete Block Design (RCBD) with three treatments and three replications. Each sampling plot received one of the three treatments: farmers’ practice (T1), 30 cm (T2), or 50 cm (T3). Other agronomic measures like watering, weeding, fertilizer application, and insect and pest control were uniformly applied. The 50 cm cutting height produced the highest grain yield (1.72 t/ha), followed by the 30 cm cutting height (1.12 t/ha), while the farmers' practice yielded only 0.66 t/ha. As the cutting height climbed to 50 cm, all of the selected yield components: productive tiller, panicle height, and number of panicle seeds rose significantly. In general, it can be stated that ratoon rice is more effective at a height of 50 cm and produces higher yields. It could be used as a substitute for traditional rice planting method.

Key words: Rice, ratoon, yield, Liberia.