Field Crop 2025, Vol.8, No.5, 238-246 http://cropscipublisher.com/index.php/fc 240 rice and fish grow better together. Because if too much pesticide is used, it is easy to hurt rice and fish and affect their growth (Berg and Tam, 2018). Therefore, using fish to prevent insects not only saves pesticides, but also ensures yield, killing two birds with one stone. Figure 1 Positive interactions and complementary use of nitrogen (N) between rice and fish explain why the rice-fish coculture system maintains productivity for long time periods with low input of chemicals. (A) Positive interactions between rice and fish: Fish remove pests from rice through feeding activity, while rice plants moderate the field environment for fish, which in turn promotes fish activity and pest removal. (B) Complementary use of N by rice and fish: Unused fertilizer N promotes plankton in paddy fields that is consumed by fish. The unconsumed fish feed acts as an organic fertilizer, with the N in the unconsumed feed being gradually used by the rice. Thus, rice and fish use different forms of N, resulting in a high efficiency of N utilization in RF (Adopted from Xie et al., 2011) 3.2 Lower weed infestation and herbicide use Fish swimming around in rice fields stir up the water, making it difficult for weeds to grow. When the water and soil are stirred up by fish, weed seeds are less likely to germinate and grow more slowly. This reduces the number
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