Midori Ippai Project Activities LINE 163Participation in Izu Matsuzaki-cho Ishibu Rice Terrace "Rice Planting Festival" May 14, 2016 NTT West Shizuoka Group
On May 14, 2016 (Saturday), NTT West Shizuoka Group took part in the rice planting festival of Ishibu rice terrace at Izu Matsuzaki-cho.
NTT West Shizuoka Group began to take part in the rice planting festival of Ishibu rice terrace following the conclusion of the "Comprehensive Collaboration Agreement on Regional Revitalization through the Utilization of ICT" between NTT West Shizuoka Branch and Matsuzaki-cho in March 2015.
Ishibu rice terrace is located at an altitude of 120m to 250m at the western tip of the Izu Peninsula. The steep slopes and ease of obtaining fine-quality stones contributed to the unusual landscape of the stone-structured rice terrace.
Another charm of the rice terrace is the panoramic view of Suruga Bay. You can even see Mount Fuji and the Southern Alps on a clear day.
Rice cultivation was actively carried out here since as old as the Edo era up to about 1955 to 1965. However, the area of cultivation gradually decreased with the changing times. By 1999, 90% of the cultivation was abandoned and densely covered with cogon grass.
Local people who saw the devastated state of the land wanted to hand down the rice terrace that was painstakingly built by the ancestors to the future generations. This led to the restoration of the rice terrace since 1999.
In addition to participation from within the prefecture, there is also an increasing number of participants from the Kanto region in the rice planting festival.
A total of 60 members from Shizuoka Group, including nine children, took part in the rice planting festival this time.
Many of the participants were beginners in rice planting, but under the careful guidance of the local community on how to pluck the young rice plants and plant them vertically, the participants got the hang of it immediately. Time passed quickly and planting was completed for five segments of the rice terrace (500m2) before one realizes it.
Both adults and children were covered in mud after the work, but it was an invaluable opportunity to get a hands-on feel of this activity which they can hardly experience in real life. The participants enjoyed the beautiful nature of Matsuzaki-cho while deepening their communication with the local community through the farm work.
NTT West Shizuoka Group holds a rice planting festival in May and a harvesting festival in October every year. We will continue to carry out activities to conserve the satoyama (village forest) through cultivation work from rice planting to harvesting.
NTT West Shizuoka Group began to take part in the rice planting festival of Ishibu rice terrace following the conclusion of the "Comprehensive Collaboration Agreement on Regional Revitalization through the Utilization of ICT" between NTT West Shizuoka Branch and Matsuzaki-cho in March 2015.
Ishibu rice terrace is located at an altitude of 120m to 250m at the western tip of the Izu Peninsula. The steep slopes and ease of obtaining fine-quality stones contributed to the unusual landscape of the stone-structured rice terrace.
Another charm of the rice terrace is the panoramic view of Suruga Bay. You can even see Mount Fuji and the Southern Alps on a clear day.
Rice cultivation was actively carried out here since as old as the Edo era up to about 1955 to 1965. However, the area of cultivation gradually decreased with the changing times. By 1999, 90% of the cultivation was abandoned and densely covered with cogon grass.
Local people who saw the devastated state of the land wanted to hand down the rice terrace that was painstakingly built by the ancestors to the future generations. This led to the restoration of the rice terrace since 1999.
In addition to participation from within the prefecture, there is also an increasing number of participants from the Kanto region in the rice planting festival.
A total of 60 members from Shizuoka Group, including nine children, took part in the rice planting festival this time.
Many of the participants were beginners in rice planting, but under the careful guidance of the local community on how to pluck the young rice plants and plant them vertically, the participants got the hang of it immediately. Time passed quickly and planting was completed for five segments of the rice terrace (500m2) before one realizes it.
Both adults and children were covered in mud after the work, but it was an invaluable opportunity to get a hands-on feel of this activity which they can hardly experience in real life. The participants enjoyed the beautiful nature of Matsuzaki-cho while deepening their communication with the local community through the farm work.
NTT West Shizuoka Group holds a rice planting festival in May and a harvesting festival in October every year. We will continue to carry out activities to conserve the satoyama (village forest) through cultivation work from rice planting to harvesting.
- Organizing companies
- Companies under NTT West Shizuoka Business Unit (NTT West Shizuoka Branch, NTT Business Solutions, NTT Marketing Act, NTT Fieldtechno, NTT Business Associe West)
- Venue
- Ishibu rice terrace (Izu Matsuzaki-cho)
- No. of participants
- 60
