Stair cultivation - kaidan kousaku

This is the cultivation of crops on sloping land converted into stepped fields. It is a type of terrace cultivation. The area is smaller than if the land were cultivated as it is on the slope, but it is more effective at preventing soil erosion. It can also be cultivated on fairly steep slopes. It is also called terrace cultivation, and citrus fruit cultivation is popular in western Japan. In terrace cultivation, lifting and lowering materials and harvested products is hard work, so in recent years the transportation method has been mechanized. In the Tohoku, Chubu and Hokuriku regions, it is often used as rice paddies, and these are called "tanada" (rice terraces). The cultivated surface of rice paddies is horizontal, but in fields it can be slightly sloping. It is common along the Mediterranean coast, on the island of Luzon in the Philippines, on the island of Bali in Indonesia, and in China.

[Hoshikawa Kiyochika]

Source: Shogakukan Encyclopedia Nipponica About Encyclopedia Nipponica Information | Legend

傾斜地を階段状の田畑に改造して農作物を栽培すること。テラス耕作の一種。斜面のまま耕作するよりも面積は減るが、土壌流出を防止する効果は大きい。また、かなり急な斜面でも耕作できる。段畑耕作ともよばれ、西日本では柑橘(かんきつ)類の栽培が盛んである。階段耕作では資材や収穫物の上げ下ろしが重労働であるため、最近では運搬の機械化が進んでいる。東北や中部、北陸地方では水田利用が多く、棚田(たなだ)とよばれる。耕作面は、水田では水平であるが、畑の場合はやや傾斜をもつ場合もある。地中海沿岸、フィリピンのルソン島、インドネシアのバリ島、中国などにも多い。

［星川清親］

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