This is a talk by Peter Stuckey on rice/vegetable farming in the Greater Bay Area, with focus in the Tangkou area. There are perhaps 50 separately identifiable operations involved in the growing and harvesting of rice. These days we city dwellers rarely have the chance to watch the rice grow and to appreciate the skills and work involved. At Tangkou, footpaths were widened so that visitors to the Centre can walk freely around the rice and vegetable fields and can get as hands-on as they want. The twice-yearly cycle of germinating rice seeds, planting them, transplanting seedlings, tending, harvesting, threshing, drying and milling makes a fascinating story with beauty, hard work and reward but not without risks.

There are over 30 types of vegetables and fruits at any one time - planting, tending and harvesting throughout the year. The Project employs two expert local farmers. Villagers, as well as visitors, also help on a part time basis. In this presentation, round-the-year activities will be introduced, crops and their development will be identified. But for the excitement of harvesting crops and then eating them fresh in the Tangkou Village Inn - we will have to make do with PowerPoint till our next chance to visit.

The Speaker

Peter Stuckey grew up in Devon seeking out opportunities to hike among the peat bogs of Dartmoor. While at university in Cambridge he found recreation in the fenlands. At work he thrived as a water engineer. It is perhaps no surprise that now he revels in waterlogged paddy fields.

He came to work in Hong Kong in 1977 and has also worked on water projects in Britain, the Nile Delta and in Malaysia. In his retirement Peter has found great satisfaction in helping his friend and fellow RASHK Member, Rocky Dang, develop the Tangkou Community Project in Kaiping. www.tangkoucommunityproject.com . His Project gained an UNESCO Award of Merit for Cultural Heritage Conservation. He revitalised some disused buildings into a comfortable Village Inn and restaurant and established the farm to provide learning and fun experiences as well as fresh food for the guests. Throughout, a guiding theme has been to watch, learn, record and to make the experiences more accessible to others. In turn, Peter has learnt to better appreciate the culture and heritage of his adopted home.

Venue: Online on Zoom

Admission: No charge, please register your attendance in advance

Booking: Please email membership@royalasiaticsociety.org.hk in advance to register your attendance