World's largest terraced paddy fields

World's Largest Terraced Paddy Fields can be seen in the Yuan Yang, Honghe, Yunnan, China. The terraces decrease the surface run-off of rain waters and also prevent erosion of mountain soil and are therefore very efficient way of growing paddy crops which require large amount of water. The Hani people of the Yuan Yang region have been using this technique of cultivation since ancient times and have created a vast area of terraced paddy fields by manually digging up the dry mountain slopes. The rice terraces start from the summit of 2,500 metres high Ailao Mountains and go down about three hundred metres, right up to the Red River bed creating an amazing landscape of terraced steps spreading over several hundred hectares.