Rice paddy art comes to rural Yangzhou

An aerial view of the rice paddy painting, with the four Chinese characters of qinqing Maji (meaning a deep affection for Maji town) at the center and patterns of ribbon and clouds forming a decoration around it. [Photo/yznews.cn]

It is the second time Maji has created a colorful rice paddy painting, with this year's creation being in response to last year's, which was a big success. It is also a prelude to the upcoming Jiangsu Horticultural Expo that will be held in Yangzhou this September. 

The rice paddy art has also become an incentive to develop the local agricultural industry, with the local government pushing the idea of promoting rice paddy art as a way of luring more tourists to the area. Various cities and districts close by to Yangzhou, such as Yizheng, Gaoyou and Guangling, have answered the call and taken in more than 20 kinds of colorful rice. 

"Though it yields less, the colorful rice sells at higher prices and hence makes more profit than the common type," Li said.