Why rice fields are flooded with water
Day 152 / 365
If you would have seen a rice field (or maybe just a photo of one on the internet) you would have seen that they are flooded with water. Such a field is actually known as a paddy field. And this is quite an old method of cultivating rice. Archaeologists have found sites for paddy fields in China that are over 6000 years old!
So how does all this water help? well, there are a few reasons.
Killing off the weeds
Farmers have to keep weeds from growing in their fields as they hamper the growth of the actual crop. Now commonly this would be done by manually pulling off weed plants or by using chemical weedicides.
The advantage of rice is that it can live in a water-rich environment, which would kill off most weeds. Thus flooding the fields is an easy way to get rid of the weeds without affecting the rice.
Rice-fish culture
Many farmers also put small fishes in these fields. They help by eating some of the insects and pests, improving oxygen circulation, and their excrements can even act as a fertilizer for the soil. This can potentially increase the crop yield by 10%
This post is part of my 365 Day Project for 2019. Read about it here
Yesterday’s blog — An Ultra Marathon