Sunday, April 7, 2013

June 27 - 28 1954 Rice Planting


Diary Entry:  June 27, 1954

"Spent morning making cream puffs for supper party at Bray's.  Brays and Belshes are entertaining Inuoe family from Toyonaka.  Cloudy all day.  B went out to get pictures of rice planting anyway.





Just before we were to go to Bray's Mrs. I came running for help.  Margaret Bray was choking on a plastic ball.  Bill got it out but Margaret's throat scratched badly.  Took her to Dr. for treatment.  Finally sat down to nice dinner & then showed slides.  Mrs. I brought me some bamboo mats."


Diary Entry:  June 28, 1954

"A day of packing.  B kept appointment in Kobe with school board member.  B went out in morning for pictures.  Farm women tried to get him to take pictures of one fixing work pants.  "Chotto shashin" (a little photo)they called & pointed to her laughing."


B/W Images and text below are from the book, Japan, by Horace Bristol, 1953

After 25 - 50 days, the verdant seedlings are pulled in bunches, transplanted in straight rows
This is all hand work--goes on rain or shine.


Water must be pumped into the fields by foot power


Or by gravity wheels

In the mountains, rice is planted high on the slopes

Some fields are near the shore


NOTE:  For cream puff recipe:  http://www.annbkennedy.blogspot.com/search?q=cream+puffs

4 comments:

  1. Fascinating pictures from a time gone by but, I guess things aren't much different today?

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    1. Thank you, David! Rice production now is much more modern and just like farming anywhere, large equipment is used in the fields.

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  2. Yo supongo que también allí habrá evolucionado la agricultura, no pasaran tantas humedad, los riñones tendrán menos doblados y las espaldas más rectas. En el 1954 el cereal en España se dejaba de segar manualmente y, tras un proceso de mecanización del campo, ahora ya una sola máquina hace todo el trabajo: siega, separa el grano de la paja, trocea la paja y la enfarda. Ahora eso sí, antes no se enfardaban las codornices con sus nidos y ahora algunas veces. De los abonos, el Nitrato de Chile era menos agresivo que la química (pesticidas, plaguicidas... y otras porquerías) que ahora envenenan los campos. El documento tiene mucho valor testimonial.

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    1. Thank you for your interesting comments. Rice production in Japan as well as other countries has been mechanized and I imagine that agricultural chemicals are used commonly as they are everywhere. Farming continues to be hard work regardless!

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