1. DESIGN - Strip-split-split plot with 3 replications at each of two Bangladesh Agricultural research station sites (Dinajpur - sandy loam soil; Rajshahi - silty clay loam soil). A triple crop rotation of wheat (Triticum aestivum) - mungbean (Vigna radiata) - rice (Oryza sativa) were grown in 2001 and 2002. TREATMENTS Main Plot:- Permanent raised beds (PB) (15 cm high, 75 cm furrow to furrow - 2 rows per bed) - Conventional flat (CT) Sub-Plot: - Band placed nitrogen - Broadcast nitrogen Sub-sub Plot: - 50% recommended nitrogen - 100% recommended nitrogen -150% recommended nitrogen INTRODUCTION Raised bed agriculture is widely used in developed countries and has proven to be an excellent option for wheat in Mexico (Limon-Ortega et al., 2000) 1. Permanent raised beds may also offer good possibilities for the rice-wheat system of South Asia. Without tillage (only reshaping), beds would allow soil aggregation to be rebuilt over time, provide deeper rooting, and better air/water relationships in the soil. Particularly attractive are the possibilities that water use can be reduced, as furrow irrigation is more efficient than flood irrigation, and that fertilizer N recovery can be increased for both rice and wheat by banding nitrogen into the soil between two rows on a bed. 1 Limon-Ortega, A., K.D. Sayre, and C.A. Francis. 2000. Wheat nitrogen use efficiency in a bed planting system in Northwest Mexico. Agron. J. 92:303-308. METHODS RESULTS & DISCUSSION RICE FLAT BED WHEAT FLAT BED YIELDS Yields from the PB treatments were significantly higher than those from the CT planting configuration for all crops, at both sites (p < 0.05). Mean wheat and mungbean yields from the PB treatments were 17-34% and 12-20% higher than yields from CT plots, respectively. Rice yields were 39-41% higher on beds than those from conventional treatments. Few differences in crop yields were attributed to nitrogen placement at either site. Challenging Tradition: Permanent Raised Beds for the Rice-Wheat Cropping System A.M. Talukder 1, M.I. Hossain 1, M.A. Sufian 1, J.M. Duxbury 2, J.G. Lauren 2, C.A. Meisner 3 1 Bangladesh Agricultural Research Institute; 2 Cornell University; 3 Int. Maize & Wheat Improvement Center RAJSHAHIDINAJPUR Wheat '01 Yields (t/ha) NS Wheat '02 Yields (t/ha) p = 0.02 Rice '01 Yields (t/ha) p = 0.0001 N Level (% of Recommended) p = 0.005 p = 0.009 p = 0.0004 NITROGEN RECOVERY With a few exceptions, wheat and rice yields from CT treatments were less responsive to fertilizer N than from the PB treatments at both sites. However without a zero N level control to determine soil N contributions, it is unclear whether bed planting improved fertilizer nitrogen recovery over the conventional flat practice. Wheat 2001 grain and straw N contents were not significantly different between treatments at either site. IRRIGATION Despite no puddling and a sandy soil texture, 17% less supplemental irrigation was required in the PB treatments relative to CT at Dinajpur during rice 2001(2025 L vs. 2430 L). Water supplied to wheat on PB at Rajshahi in 2001, was 66% of that applied to CT. WEEDS At Rajshahi, weed pressure was reduced in PB compared to CT treatments in each of the three crops in the rotation. Similar weed observations were made at Dinajpur. MUNG '01RICE '01WHEAT '02 Soil Management C R S P Research funding from the Weed Counts (#/ m 2 )