Hill Country - Rice Fields Photo and Text by Siri
Since ancient times, rice has been the most commonly used food grain for a majority of the people of the world. Although the total area planted in rice is far smaller than that devoted to wheat, the rice crop feeds a far greater proportion of the world's population. Rice plants require a steady supply of water, and therefore, fields are often flooded by irrigation or planted during periods of excessive rainfall. Rice seed is either broadcast by hand or grown in nurseries, and the young plants are transplanted by hand into swampy soil. Rice fields are kept flooded until just before harvest. Water control retards weed growth, but chemical controls are also often necessary.

||- Next -||- Previous -||- Page One -||