• Journal of the Korean Geographical Society
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• v.38 no.1
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• pp.48-69
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• 2003

Colonialism heretofore described merely as a political economic phenomenon denotes another aspect, namely, an ecological imperialism that accompanies the biological implantation of human beings, crops, weeds, domestic animals, and pathogens onto colonized lands. Foremost, the Korean Peninsula during the colonial period served as a testing ground for the transplanted Japanese varieties of rice. Near the mid-1940s, the new varieties came to dominate over 90% of cultivated rice paddy. The speedy diffusion of transplanted rice was attributable to the aggressive promotion of agricultural institutions led by the Institute of Agricultural Tests and Experiments. Various policies and tactics were also instrumental to the nationwide distribution of new varieties, and they included naming recommended varieties, sponsoring rice contests, establishing crop inspection offices, educating young farmers at training camps, and publishing newsletters for agricultural societies. The forward and backward linkages that came along with the new varieties of transplanted rice helped to consolidate colonial status quo and to create hybrid agricultural landscapes in the Korean countryside.