SAITAMA, July 22 — Now is the best time to see the rice paddy art in Gyoda, Saitama Prefecture, which is created to support Noto Peninsula hit by a major earthquake in January.
The display, made by planting rice seedlings of different colors on a 2.8-hectare field, depicts the Kiriko Festival, traditional summer festivals in the Noto region of Ishikawa Prefecture featuring large lanterns and portable shrines.
Organizers of the rice field art asked members of Noto High School’s calligraphy club to write kanji characters including fukko kigan, meaning “prayer for restoration,” used in designing the art.
The entire artwork can be viewed from a 50-meter-high observation platform located next to the field.
Part of the fees charged to get on the platform will be donated to support the restoration of the Noto region.
In June, some 800 volunteers planted seedlings of four different rice varieties. The green part is formed using Sai no Kagayaki, the variety developed in Saitama Prefecture.
The rice paddy art creation was organized by a council including the Gyoda Municipal Government and JA Hokusai, a local agricultural cooperative.
“We hope many people will come to see it,” said Takayuki Hosomura, 31, an official of the Gyoda government’s agricultural administration division which also serves as the council’s secretariat.
A rice paddy art in Gyoda, Saitama Prefecture, featuring the Kiriko Festival of the Noto region of Ishikawa Prefecture