The Land of the Mosuo: From Slash-and-Burn Farming to Modern Fields

Many visitors to Lugu Lake look only at the lake, never at the fields.

But the farmland around Lugu Lake is scenery too: rape flowers in spring, cornfields in summer, rice paddies in autumn, fallow fields in winter – different in every season.

This article introduces the land of the Mosuo: what they grow and how they grow it.

Where the Mosuo fields are

Mosuo farmland is concentrated in two places:

1. The Yongning plain

The Yongning plain lies north of Lugu Lake, on the Sichuan side. It is the largest basin around the lake – large and flat.

Most Mosuo farmland is on the Yongning plain. This is the Mosuo granary.

2. Gentle slopes around Lugu Lake

At the foot of the mountains around the lake there are gentle slopes with crops. But these plots are small and scattered.

The truly large fields are all on the Yongning plain.

What the Mosuo grow

According to the book Lugu Lake: Regional Habitat and Cultural Evolution, traditional Mosuo crops mainly include:

1. Corn

Corn is the staple grain of the Mosuo. Large cornfields cover the Yongning plain.

In summer the corn grows taller than a person – a sea of green.

2. Potatoes

Potatoes are another staple. Easy to grow and high-yielding, they suit the highland climate.

Mosuo people working in the fields at midday roast potatoes to eat – a tradition.

3. Buckwheat

Buckwheat is the Mosuo's oldest grain. Before corn and potatoes arrived, the Mosuo mainly ate buckwheat.

Now less buckwheat is grown, but some remains.

4. Highland barley

Barley came from the Tibetan areas. The Mosuo grow it too, mainly for butter tea and tsampa.

5. Rice

In the past the Mosuo did not grow rice, because they did not eat it. Later, as contacts with the outside grew, they began planting it.

Now the Yongning plain has large paddies, golden in autumn.

The agricultural history of the Mosuo

Earlier: slash-and-burn

Long ago, the Mosuo practised slash-and-burn farming.

They cut a patch of forest, burned it, and planted in the ashes. After a few years, when the soil was exhausted, they moved to a new patch.

This method gave low yields and damaged the environment. But with few people and abundant land, it fed everyone.

Later: settled farming

As population grew, slash-and-burn no longer fed the people. The Mosuo turned to settled farming, planting the same fields year after year.

Irrigation and fertiliser appeared, and yields rose.

Now: modern farming

Today Mosuo farmers also use chemical fertiliser, pesticides and machinery – no longer the old traditional way.

Compared with the interior, it remains more basic: with few people and little land at Lugu Lake, large-scale mechanisation is unnecessary.

The land system of the Mosuo

The Mosuo land system has changed greatly.

Under the chieftains:

In the past, all land belonged to the chieftains. The plots the Mosuo worked were allotted by the chieftain, and rent was paid.

After liberation:

After land reform, land was distributed to farmers. Every family had its own fields.

Now:

Land can be transferred. Many young people have left for migrant work, so fields are rented to others or simply left fallow.

Farmland and Mosuo life

Mosuo life is bound to the land.

1. Food comes from the land

Corn, potatoes, buckwheat and vegetables are all home-grown. Most of the food on a Mosuo table comes from their own fields.

2. Livestock are raised by the land

Cattle, sheep and pigs are fed on fodder and grain from the fields. A Mosuo pig is raised for years to become "pig-belly meat".

3. Festivals are tied to farming

Many Mosuo festivals relate to agriculture – sowing festivals and harvest festivals pray to the land god for good crops.

Pastoral scenery around Lugu Lake

When you visit Lugu Lake, look at the fields too.

Spring:

The rape flowers on the Yongning plain are in full bloom, a sheet of gold. Against the green mountains behind and the lake beyond, it is a lovely view.

Summer:

Cornfields are green; freshly planted rice paddies reflect the sky. The whole plain turns green.

Autumn:

Rice is ripe, golden across the plain. The Mosuo begin harvesting, and the fields are full of people.

Winter:

After the harvest the fields lie empty. Sometimes a crop of winter rape is sown, preparing for spring.

Farmland protection and the environment

Lugu Lake farmland now faces problems.

1. Fertiliser and pesticide pollution

Chemical fertiliser and pesticides wash with rainwater into Lugu Lake, polluting the water.

So restrictions on fertiliser and pesticide use now exist around the lake, promoting ecological farming.

2. Abandoned land

Many young people have gone out to work; fields go unplanted and are abandoned. This too is a problem.

3. Tourism development taking land

Hotels and roads occupy land. Farmland around Lugu Lake is shrinking.

There are now rules that basic farmland must not be occupied – protecting Mosuo land.

Summary

Mosuo farmland lies mainly on the Yongning plain, growing corn, potatoes, buckwheat and rice.

From slash-and-burn to settled farming, the Mosuo have farmed this land for over a thousand years. The land has fed the Mosuo and shaped Mosuo culture.

When you visit Lugu Lake, remember to look at the farmland around you. It is part of Lugu Lake – the root of Mosuo life.