Rice Bowl of Bali

With the rich and fertile volcanic soils and plentiful water, rice cultivation in Bali is of key agricultural importance and is well known worldwide for its unique and efficient use of irrigation water in the many terraced paddy fields.  One of the fundamental backbones of this rice production is the subak.  Subak is the name of water management or irrigation system for paddy fields in Bali. For Balinese, irrigation is not simply providing water for the rice plants, but water is used to construct a complex, artificial ecosystem. Paddy fields in Bali are built around water temples and the allocation of water is supervised by a priest.

The subak comprises many individual parts:

• a dam and collectively owned irrigation canals 
• the rice terraces within clearly defined subak boundaries 
• all the farmers who cultivate land within the subak  boundaries
• a religious unit consisting of rituals on the individual level, the subak level, and the inter- subak level
• a legal unit, with a clearly defined set of rules that regulates the rights and duties of its members

With the growth of tourism and urbanisation in Bali the subak is coming under increasing pressure. with farmers tempted to sell their rice fields and move into other more lucrative jobs such as construction or tourism. The highly productive arable land is unfortunately getting lost at an accelerated rate due to excessive building and tourist activities.

  

Rape

This bright and vivid yellow splash of colour seen in many of the fields in Scotland at this time of year is rapeseed which is grown for the production of canola oil.

Rapeseed (Brassica napus), also known as rape, oilseed rape, rapa, rappi, rapaseed (and in the case of one particular group of cultivars, canola) is a bright yellow flowering member of the family Brassicaceae (mustard or cabbage family). The name derives from the Latin for turnip, rāpa or rāpum, and is first recorded in English at the end of the 14th century. Older writers usually distinguished the turnip and rape by the adjectives round and long(-rooted) respectively. See also Brassica napobrassica, which may be considered a variety of Brassica napus. Some botanists include the closely related Brassica campestris within B. napus. Rapeseed was the third leading source of vegetable oil in the world in 2000.

Rural Bali

This is  a very typical rural scene in the outskirts of Ubud, Bali, Indonesia. These stepped padi fields are very common and you can watch the locals tend the rice using traditional methods. 

Rice, to the Balinese, is more than just the staple food; it is an integral part of the Balinese culture. The rituals of the cycle of planting, maintaining, irrigating, and harvesting rice enrich the cultural life of Bali beyond a single staple can ever hope to do. At the beginning of planting time, after the water buffalloes walk the rice fields several times to prepare them, ceremonies are held to carry the young stems of rice that have been nurtured in a special nursery. On each section of the rice fields, the corner nearest to Gunung Agung will receive the honor to be the first place to receive the young stems of rice. 

The water level in each section is perfect; little streams of water effortlessly flow from the highest section up on top of the hill to the very bottom section. The planning and responsiblity of the irrigation and planting schedule are arranged through subak, a Balinese system that ties together rice cultivation with its water temple system. Historical evidence dates this system to around the 11th century, yet the yield per acre of a Balinese rice field is about the highest in the world!

Before planting, throughout growing time, at harvesting, ceremonies are held and offerings are presented to Dewi Sri, the goddess of rice. In the middle of rice fields far from the village, you often find little shrines with netaly presented flowers, fruit, and offerings for Dewi Sri.

Papaya

This beautiful papaya tree was seen in Bali, Indonesia. The papaya (from Carib via Spanish), papaw or pawpaw is the fruit of the plant Carica papaya, in the genus Carica. It is native to the tropics of the Americas, and was first cultivated in Mexico several centuries before the emergence of the Mesoamerican classic cultures.

It is a large tree-like plant, with a single stem growing from 5 to 10 metres (16 to 33 ft) tall, with spirally arranged leaves confined to the top of the trunk. The lower trunk is conspicuously scarred where leaves and fruit were borne. The leaves are large, 50–70 centimetres (20–28 in) diameter, deeply palmately lobed with 7 lobes. The tree is usually unbranched if unlopped. The flowers are similar in shape to the flowers of the Plumeria, but are much smaller and wax-like. They appear on the axils of the leaves, maturing into the large 15–45 centimetres (5.9–18 in) long, 10–30 centimetres (3.9–12 in) diameter fruit. The fruit is ripe when it feels soft (like a ripe avocado or a bit softer) and its skin has attained an amber to orange hue. It is the first fruit tree to have its genome deciphered.

Balinese Farmer

In the rice paddy fields on the outskirts of Ubud in Bali I came across this wonderful farmer who spoke fluent English and was so enthusiastic about telling me about his rice paddies and his prize cow which he then insisted on showing me. I think the demeanor and delightful character of these Balinese people is hard to match anywhere and makes me think I must go back there again soon.

Above the Glaciers

Above the Frans Josef and Fox glaciers on the west coast of the south island of New Zealand lie scenic snow fields running up to the west side of Mount Cook. This area is popular with climbers and skiers and there are a number of helicopter companies who arrange flights up and around Mount Cook and over the two glaciers.