As we know that around 75 % The Balinese are farmers but most of the income we have because of the tourist business. And the rice terraces located every where such has: Tegallalang, Jatiluwih, Bukit Jambul and Pupuan are the most popular and the most beautiful rice terraces to be seen.
About The Rice
Rice cultivation has shaped the social landscape- the intricate organization necessary for growing rice is a large factor in the strength of Bali’s community life. Rice cultivation has also changed the environmental landscape – terraced rice field trip down hillsides like steps for a giant, in shades of gold, brown and green.
There are four words for rice namely;
- Padi is the growing rice plant (hence paddy fields)
- Gabah is rice after harvesting,
- Beras is uncooked grain
- Nasi is cooked rice,
As in Nasi goreng (fried rice) and nasi putih (plain rice). A rice field is called Sawah. The whole rice field has a farmer organization called “Subak”
Subak (Balinese Farmer Organization)
Subak in Bali does not belong to the Banjar and has its own leader. The people who become the Subak members are not always the same people who become the Banjar members. The Subak members are the owners or the people who work on the rice field that getting the water irrigation from the dams regulated by a Subak organization. Not all of the Subak members live in the same Banjar. On the other hand, there could be a Banjar member who has many rice fields in different areas and get the water irrigation from the dams organized by several Subaks. Therefore this Banjar member will join himself in all of the Subak where his rice fields are located.
The Process of the Growing the Rice
The process of the rice growing starts with the bare, dry and harvested fields. The remaining rice stalks are burnt off and the field is then liberally soaked and repeatedly ploughed. Nowadays this may be done with a mechanical, petrol-powered cultivator, but often they will still use two bullocks or cattle pulling a wooden plough. Once the field is reduced to the required muddy consistency, a small corner of the field is walled off and the seedling rice is planted there. The rice is grown to a reasonable size and lifted and replanted, shoot by shoot, in the larger fields have to be kept in a working order and the fields have to be weeded
