Turning a former rice field into a soybean field.

Even though I do this every year, I feel a little nervous on the day I sow the first seed.

Until just recently,

there was water here.

When the wind blew, the rice plants would sway.

Now, it is soil.

Even though it is the same place.

Turning a former rice field into a soybean field.

I entrust the seeds to the soil, one by one.

I don't know yet if they will sprout.

Perhaps that is why.

I feel a little nervous every year about that first seed.

📝Afterword

When you are growing rice,

it might seem like a rice field will always remain a rice field.

But in this place, there are years when we grow rice, and years when we grow soybeans.

Even though it is a view I see every year,

the moment it changes from a flooded rice field to a dry field feels a bit strange.

After sowing the seeds, there is surprisingly little a farmer can do.

The time begins to wait, trusting in the soil, the rain, and the sun.

🌱P.S.

We grow rice and soybeans in Nishikan-ku, Niigata City.

Using former rice paddies as fields to grow soybeans is also one of the agricultural landscapes of this region.