On June 7th, the sound of drums and flutes echoes through the rice fields in Mibu, Kitahiroshima Town, Hiroshima Prefecture.
``Mibu No Hanataue'' is an agricultural ritual that combines plowing with decorative oxen (plowing the rice fields) and hand-planting rice to the tune of rice-planting songs. It is registered as a UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage.
🐂 Decorative cows plow the fields and plant seedlings with songs
Mibu's flower rice planting consists of two main scenes. The first half was puking by a decorative cow. Cows decorated with flowers and cloth walk through the rice fields and plow the soil. The second half is rice planting. Women called Saotome, dressed in matching costumes, line up in a row and plant seedlings all at once to the rhythm of rice-planting songs played by hayashi players (players of drums and flutes).
Rice-planting songs have been sung from generation to generation to set the rhythm and relieve fatigue during the monotonous rice-planting process. The way the Saotomes take a step back and plant the seedlings in time with the melody of the song and the rhythm of the drums has a unique beauty that combines agricultural work and entertainment.
Mibu's flower rice planting is one of the rice planting events called ``hayashida'' that once existed widely in the mountainous regions of the Chugoku region. While it has disappeared in many areas, in Mibu it has been preserved and passed down by the local people.
Points of appreciation
This is the point to see Mibu's flower rice planting.
- Dates and schedule:In 2026, it will be held on Sunday, June 7th. The procession begins at around 10:50, and decorated cows and Saotomes are paraded to the venue. Hanataue (rice planting) will be held from around 2pm.
- venue:It will be held at a special venue located at Tokiwabashi Kitazume in Mibu, Kitahiroshima Town. It can be viewed from the rice field ridges and surrounding banks.
- photograph:The biggest highlights are the scene where the decorative cows enter the rice fields and the scene where the Saotomes plant seedlings in a row. If the weather is nice, you can take beautiful photos as the greenery of the mountains and the sky are reflected on the water surface of the rice fields.
- access:Approximately 5 minutes by car from Chiyoda IC on the Chugoku Expressway. Access by public transportation is limited, so it is practical to rent a car from Hiroshima city or use the shuttle bus that runs on the day (confirmation required). It is about an hour's drive from Hiroshima city.
🌾 Mechanized rice planting and rice planting with songs
Currently in Japan, almost 100% of rice planting is done mechanically using rice transplanters. The sight of planting seedlings one by one by hand has almost disappeared from daily farming. Mibu's Hana Taue is an event that still carries on as a ritual the ``rice planting by hand while singing'' that was commonplace in rural Japan before mechanization.
This event, which is held in the mountainous region of the Chugoku Mountains, about an hour's drive from Hiroshima city, has the quiet power of a rural festival, unlike a large-scale tourist festival. If you plan to visit Hiroshima in conjunction with sightseeing, it would be a good idea to consider securing a rental car early.