Champa Rice Variety

Timeline

1. 900–1000Kingdom of Champa · ChampaFarmers in the Champa (Linyi) region developed an early-maturing rice with a growing season of about a hundred days, tolerant of drought and poor soils and suited to the tropical monsoon climate. It achieved a high cropping index locally and became an important food crop resource for Southeast Asia.
2. 1000–1100Coastal Fujian and Zhejiang · Southeast coastChampa rice reached Fujian, Zhejiang, and other parts of China via maritime trade. Northern Song officials and farmers successfully trial-planted it; because it ripened early, it eased the spring food shortage and shortened the lean period between harvests, earning the endorsement of local officials and records in agricultural treatises and memorials.
3. 1100–1300Middle and lower Yangtze · Yangtze basinDuring the Southern Song, Champa rice spread inland along the Yangtze, and rotation with winter wheat established a rice–wheat double-cropping system, while some humid areas developed double-cropping rice. Per-mu yields and land utilization rose markedly, supporting the Southern Song's economic base south of the Yangtze and its population growth.
4. 1400Rice-growing regions of southern China · Southern rice-growing regionsSuccessive generations of farmers continued to breed from Champa rice, producing many local early-maturing varieties. Its early-maturing and drought-tolerant traits profoundly influenced southern Chinese farming systems and food culture, and provided important genetic resources for modern rice breeding.