I had never heard of this type of farming but we saw tons of it in Iowa like this:
According to Wickipedia:
In agriculture, a terrace is designed to slow or prevent the rapid run-off of irrigation water. Often such land is formed into multiple terraces, giving a stepped appearance. This form of land use is prevalent in many countries, and is used for crops requiring a lot of water, such as rice. Terraces are also easier for both mechanical and manual sowing and harvesting than a steep slope would be. Terracing slows down the speed of water and therefore allow more run-off to be sucked up by the soil.
My MiL said that each "step" is two combines wide which is best illustrated in this picture:
So, I get a nickle for learning something new:-) What did you learn on your vacation.
12 comments:
I had heard of it before, but I've never seen it. The sad thing is that I wouldn't have recognized it if I had! I'm glad you showed this.
What an interesting fact! The house I practically grew up in had a terraces in the front yard. After a good hard rain, we'd go out looking for arrow heads. We always found at least one every time.
Yes, Iowa certainly does have a lot of fields. Several farmers in our area use terrace farming or what I call strip farming.
Isn't it amazing that each region is different and that one way of "farming" doesn't work everywhere? i love how innovative we are as a species.
That is very interesting. I don't know a whole lot about farming but your photos are beautiful.
that is such an amazing picture.. I learned also.. On Vacation I learned to eat a lot and get as much rest as you can.
I haven't gone on vacation yet, but when I do I bet I'll learn a lot! WE're going to a couple of historical ghost towns and a hand on kids science museum. :-)
I feel smart now.
Wow, I never knew! But, I think the last time I saw land like this was 20 years ago! LOL
Pretty cool picture and info.
I learned never to take the "shorter" distance while driving along the coast of Oregon. It's windy and scary in the dark. The highway is faster and more direct!
How cool! I didn't know that either.
Have a great weekend!
Sherry
Very cool. I didn't know that.
Post a Comment