The little seeds are no bigger than a grain of rice – because they are grains of rice. Granville Beach, NS farmers have been growing rice in paddies on their property since 2014. “It’s a beautiful crop, as you can see, and it’s fun to grow and it’s delicious to eat,” Clark says. They first got the idea to try growing rice in Nova Scotia after learning about the arsenic issue in rice and decided to find an alternative to commercially produced rice. Niki Clark says rice is a fun crop and is “pleasant to eat”. (Paul Poirier/CBC) The couple attended a seminar in Vermont on rice farming and realized that the Japanese-American farmer hosting the seminar was at the same latitude as Nova Scotia. The island of Hokkaido, a rice-growing region of Japan, is also at a similar latitude to Nova Scotia. “So we thought, OK, how can we do this?” says Kari. The couple planted their first crop of rice in 2014 and, through trial and error, have honed their skills to the point where they now produce 80kg a year. Clark and Curry’s paddy field seen from a drone’s perspective. (CBC) This is much more than the amount they consume in a year, so they sell small amounts to friends. They have even sold some to a restaurant in the valley. “I have a list as long as my people want rice,” says Curry. “The people who bought it loved it and want more. So I have no problem selling my rice.” The husks of this Hayayuki rice must be removed before the rice is eaten. (Frances Willick/CBC) This year, they are growing two types of rice, Akamuro Red, a Japanese variety, and Titanio Rose, an Italian variety. After the seeds have germinated in the greenhouse, the seedlings are planted by hand in a field a short distance from a pond. The field is then flooded and the rice grows in the standing water for the entire growing season. The field can absorb heavy rainfall but, thanks to the lake, it can also cope with droughts, so the crop is adaptable to a changing climate, Clark says. The paddy field is flooded with water during the growing season. If the water drops too low, water is drawn from a nearby lake. (Paul Poirier/CBC) In September, when the heads are full and drooping under the weight of the rice, the field will be drained so the plants can dry before a combine sweeps them and removes the rice from the stalks. Later, the rice will be hulled using a special machine that removes the hard exterior to reveal the edible rice inside. Right now, though, damselflies and dragonflies flit between the stalks, and there’s the occasional croak and click of a frog. The paddy field has created its own ecosystem that attracts a variety of creatures that would not otherwise call Nikian’s farm home. The paddy field has created an ecosystem that includes frogs, toads, snakes, turtles, daisies, dragonflies and sloths. (Paul Poirier/CBC) “Everybody wants to live in the paddy field — everybody,” Curry says. “I have more frogs and toads and snakes and turtles and sloths. Yesterday I was walking and there was a baby nutmeg going out.” Curry and Clark grow a wide variety of crops regularly seen on small, mixed farms in Nova Scotia, including vegetables, fruits and herbs. But they also grow some that might not be as common here, like peanuts, sorghum, artichokes, corn for polenta, and hazelnuts for oil. Curry says he’d like to see more farmers in Nova Scotia grow rice. (Paul Poirier/CBC) They always strive towards self-sufficiency and would like to see others embrace this ideal. “I think we’re all vulnerable, maybe more than we realize because people are used to going to the grocery store and seeing just incredible variety on the shelves. But it’s just-in-time variety,” Clark says. “Covid has been very telling in showing us how things can fall apart quickly. So I think we all really have a responsibility to be more aware of where our food comes from, to support our local farmers so they can take care of us better.” This red Akamuro rice will be harvested and hulled in September. (Paul Poirier/CBC) The couple say they would love to see other farmers grow rice and are willing to share their equipment to help them. “Nova Scotians are famously conservative in agriculture. They get a schedule and stick to it. They don’t look left or right. That’s going to run you right into a brick wall.” A spokesman for the provincial Department of Agriculture said the department knows of only one farmer growing rice in Nova Scotia, and that farmer is in Annapolis County, where Clark and Curry live.
