In northern Laos, upland rice is grown as a
subsistence crop under rainfed conditions with no
fertilizer inputs. It has traditionally been grown under slash-and-burn systems with long fallows, which restore soil fertility and reduce insect and weed pressure. However, increasing population density and government policies aimed at reducing the area under slash-and-burn have reduced fallows to as little as two or three years between rice crops. In this paper the impact of intensifying upland rice cultivation and rainfall on upland rice productivity was evaluated