Rice is a water-guzzling crop cultivated mostly through inefficient irrigation methods which leads to low water use efficiency and many environmental problems. Additionally, the export of virtual water through rice trading and the looming water crisis poses significant threats to the sustainability of rice production and food security. There are several alternative rice production methods to improve water use efficiency. These include aerobic rice, direct-seeded rice (DSR), alternate wetting and drying (AWD), saturated soil culture (SSC), drip-irrigated rice, a system of rice intensification (SRI), and smart irrigation with sensors and the Internet of Things (IoT). However, each method has its own advantages and disadvantages. For example, drip-irrigated rice and IoT-based automated irrigation are not feasible for poor farmers due to the high production costs associated with specialized machinery and tools. Similarly, aerobic rice, drip-irrigated rice, and the SRI are labor-intensive, making them unsuitable for areas with a shortage of labor. On the other hand, DSR is suitable for labor-scarce areas, provided herbicides are used to control weeds. In this article, the suitability of different water-saving rice production methods is reviewed based on factors such as climate, soil type, labor, energy, and greenhouse gas emissions, and their prospects and challenges are evaluated. Additionally, the article examines how cultural practices, such as seed treatment, weed control, and nutrition management, contribute to enhancing water use efficiency in rice production.

Climate change is a critical yield–limiting factor that has threatened the entire global crop production system in the present scenario. The use of biostimulants in agriculture has shown tremendous potential in combating climate change–induced stresses such as drought, salinity, temperature stress, etc. Biostimulants are organic compounds, microbes, or amalgamation of both that could regulate plant growth behavior through molecular alteration and physiological, biochemical, and anatomical modulations. Their nature is diverse due to the varying composition of bioactive compounds, and they function through various modes of action. To generate a successful biostimulatory action on crops under different parameters, a multi–omics approach would be beneficial to identify or predict its outcome comprehensively. The ‘omics’ approach has greatly helped us to understand the mode of action of biostimulants on plants at cellular levels. Biostimulants acting as a messenger in signal transduction resembling phytohormones and other chemical compounds and their cross–talk in various abiotic stresses help us design future crop management under changing climate, thus, sustaining food security with finite natural resources. This review article elucidates the strategic potential and prospects of biostimulants in mitigating the adverse impacts of harsh environmental conditions on plants.

Inadequate nutrient management is one of the major challenges for sustainable soybean production in semi-arid climatic conditions. Hence, a 3-year (2015–2017) field experiment was conducted to assess the effect of foliar application of macro- and micronutrients on the growth, productivity, and profitability of soybean. Eight foliar nutrient sprays at the pod initiation stage—water spray (WS), 2% urea solution, 2% di-ammonium phosphate solution (DAP_2%), 0.5% muriate of potash solution (MOP_0.5%), 2% solution of 19:19:19 nitrogen phosphorus and potassium (NPK_2%), and a 0.5% solution each of molybdenum (Mo_0.5%), boron (B_0.5%), chelated-zinc (Zn _0.5%) and no-foliar nutrition (NFN)—were compared with a basal-applied recommended dose of fertilizers (RDF: 30 kg N, 75 kg P, and 40 kg K ha⁻¹) in a randomized block design (RBD), replicated three times. Foliar-applied chelated Zn@0.5% (Zn_0.5%) at the pod initiation stage resulted in more pods per plants. In addition to Zn_0.5%, urea_2%, NPK_2%, and B_0.5% significantly improved the pods per plant over treatment by no-foliar nutrition (NFN). The RDF-supplied soybean subsequently sprayed with Zn_0.5% produced the highest seed yield, which was 18.5–37.8% higher than that of NFN treatment Yield improvement due to the application of B_0.5%, DAP_2%, and urea_2% varied between 19.2–23.7, 16.6–20.4 and 18.6–20%, respectively. Foliar nutrition showed the largest net returns from Zn_0.5%. The water-use efficiency (WUE) and production efficiency increased by 18.4–37.6 and 34.9–37.5%, respectively, due to Zn_0.5% over the efficiencies from NFN treatment. Monetary efficiency (ME) gains due to Zn_0.5% were 24% higher, while ME efficiency gains due to urea_2%, NPK_2%, and B_0.5% varied between 15–16%. Thus, this study suggested that the foliar application of 0.5% Zn and B, urea, NPK fertilizer, and DAP at 2%, along with RDF. is a profitable nutrient management option for quality soybean production in a semiarid region. However, nutrient partitioning, changes in soil chemical and biological indicators, and environmental aspects need critical examination in future studies.