Hasta La Ideas

In southwestern Bangladesh, farmers are turning to the 200-year-old practice of growing produce on floating rafts as a response to rising sea levels. Bangladesh’s flooding season used to last for around five months which created the necessity for floating farms. Now, however, the land is underwater for eight to 10 months, forcing farmers to revitalize the ancient technique to secure food. To do so, they weave the stems of invasive hyacinths to create rafts (a process that takes almost two months). From there, they plant fruit and vegetable seedlings, including tomatoes, cucumbers, radishes, gourds and papayas. The practice is a crucial lifeline to many that helps grow crops more reliably than on land and it “requires less space than conventional farming and does not need pesticides,” says Bangladesh agricultural officer Digbijoy Hazra. “When we’re fighting…the impact of global warming, floating farming could be the future.” Read more about it—and view the stunning images—at Reuters.

Image courtesy of Mohammad Ponir Hossain/Reuters