Changing Landscapes

About a month ago, a significant change occurred. Within a few weeks the entire landscape had been altered. The views from the roadside changed from those of fields overrun with weeds to fields with neatly planted rows of rice as far as the eye could see. These changes came in several stages and will continue to evolve over the next few months. These changes, which are an annual event, are an essential part of not only the Thai landscape, but also the Thai culture.

The rainy season brings with it the yearly influx of water. In a country were rice is a staple crop and a significant source of income for nearly 60% of the population, these monsoon rains are essential. Most of Thailand’s rice is grown in rice paddies. Rice can be grown on dry land, but most rice is cultivated in paddies. However, by taking advantage of rice's ability to tolerate high levels of water, it is more commonly grown in paddies which helps with weed control and increases productivity.

One of the first things that I noticed when I arrived in Thailand for the first time almost two year ago, were the rice paddies. When most people think of Asia, one of the first things to come to mind is rice. Rice, like 7/11, is ubiquitous in Thailand. However, when my family arrived in June and throughout their stay, while rice was a significant part of their diet, it wasn’t a part of the landscape. My family arrived towards the end of the dry season and the beginning of the wet season. The monsoons hadn’t arrived yet and my family was rewarded with very mild weather - we only had rain for a few days they were here and it wasn’t particularly intense rain either. Well, that all changed a few weeks after they left and soon the fields had become inundated with water. That wasn’t solely a natural change as it was also aided by the opening of different canals, sluice gates and different irrigation systems utilized in order to prepare the soil for planting. That change was almost imperceptible. Had I not been living along several rice paddies, I might not have noticed the change. I did, however, begin to notice patches of green sprouting up in different places. These patches of green, located in the newly flooded fields, were what would become the seemingly endless expanse of rice. Rice is a tricky and labor-intensive crop to grow. Unlike some crops, it isn’t just sown straight into the ground. Rice is actually planted in two stages. The first stage occurs in these little patches of green. Here the farmers sow the rice seed. It is scattered about and grows up randomly with the different plants growing very close together. After the rice has germinated and reached a certain height, it is pulled from this small field and moved and spread out amongst many fields across a large area. However, before that occurs they must plow the fields. Traditionally this was done with water buffalo and plow but most of the water buffalo have been replaced with the ‘iron buffalo’ or the tractor. The fields, after having been left fallow since the harvest (which occurred in roughly November or December), have become fields of weeds and grass. During the dry season, these fields become havens for cattle and it's impossible to not spot a herd of cattle somewhere in the distance grazing on top of what once was a flooded rice paddy. The plowing happens in two stages. First, the grasses and soil is turned over and the soil is shaped into neat rows by the plow. After leaving the field for a few days, it is plowed again this time using a flat plow which serves to level out the field in preparation for planting. Flowing that second and final planting, the rice shoots are transferred from the nursery into the fields. This is all done by hand and over the course of several days working in groups of a dozen or more, they slowly fill the fields making sure that the rice is arranged in nice neat rows. What follows is a long period of waiting and tending the fields as the rice matures. Once the rice is ready for harvest, which happens in about November or December, these groups will again descend into the fields and harvest the rice, again mostly by hand. I'll maybe add more about the harvest come December (and add some pictures as the rice around my house is harvested) but until then I'll bring this post to an end.

I just thought that it would be interesting to write about these changes and record for posterities sake what I'd seen happening in the fields around my house and around town as well as what I'd learned over the past few years.

Here are a few photos of the fields behind my house.

The rice season begins with the plowing of the fields. The grass that had been growing there for the past few month is turned over and flooded.
This picture shows a little of every stage of the planting process. The central plot has yet to be plowed, except around the edges. They will start along the edge of the paddy and work their way into the center turning over that thick mess of grass. The plot in the back right has already been plowed. The back central plot which is the darkest green spot in the picture is where the rice seeds are sown and grown before they are transplanted. Finally, the plot in the back left has been recently planted.

After the fields have been plowed, the rice is planted. The seeds are sown in a more protected field and then transplanted by hand into the newly plowed fields.

In a matter of weeks, the fields overgrown with grass take on a new appearance. The neat rows of newly planted rice stretch on as far as the eye can see interrupted only by the edges of the rice paddies.
This last picture shows the whole process.

Until next time,

Ryan