Rice Physiology as Influenced by Heat and Drought

Heat stress combined with drought is one of the major limitations to food production worldwide. As the world population continues to grow water resources for the crop production decline and temperature increases the development of heat and drought tolerant cultivars is an issue of global concern. Although rice has been used as a model plant for many years the responses of rice genotypes combined with high temperature and drought is still poorly understood. The combination of high temperature and water stress represents an excellent example of multiple abiotic stresses occurring concomitantly in the field. But relatively little information is available with reference to combined high temperature and water stress in general and at the most sensitive flowering stage in particular in rice.