Agriculture Review
By Aditya Abhishek
The art of cultivating crop on terraces or steps build on slopes of hills & mountains is Terrace Farming.
Terrace farming practice is most popular in Asia, farmers of countries like India, China, Vietnam, Indonesia, Philippines, Japan, etc. practice terrace farming.
You will be surprised to know that UNESCO has listed terraces of rice found in the Philippine’s Cordilleras as World Heritage Site.
Rice, wheat, corn, pulses, saffron, medicinal herbs, tea, etc. are the commonly cultivated crops in terrace farming.
However according to records, ancient Incas living in South American mountains invented terrace farming method.
On mountain slopes generally soil nutrients get washed away due to rain, but terrace farming prevents loss of nutrients.
Moreover practicing terrace farming also reduces soil erosion by slowing down the flow of rain water. Thus it also helps in water conservation.
Apart from its advantages, terrace farming is costly and labour intensive. If farm is not well managed then chance of mudslides increases.
Thanks for reading!