Japan's Emperor plants rice at Imperial Palace in annual tradition
Japan's Emperor Naruhito planted rice seedlings at a paddy inside the Imperial Palace in Tokyo on Wednesday.
The Emperor's grandfather, late Emperor Showa, started the tradition as a way to promote farming.
At 11 a.m., the Emperor, wearing boots, entered the 240-square-meter paddy.
He then planted 20 seedlings of Nihonmasari, a non-glutinous rice variety, and Mangetsumochi, a glutinous rice variety. The seedlings, which had grown to about 10 to 15 centimeters tall, came from seeds the Emperor himself had sown a month ago.
The rice will be harvested in autumn and offered to deities in Shinto rituals at the palace, including the Niiname-sai harvest festival in November.
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