First we visited Yutagawa, in the township of Tsuruoka, known for its hot springs. The heart of the Mt. Kinpo area is known as a region for producing bamboo shoots called “Yutagawa-moso”. In general, it is said that the clayey soil retains water well, has less runoff of nutrients, and allows the growth of delicious bamboo shoots. There are scattered slopes of clayey red soil in the Yutagawa area. As there is a sufficient amount of moisture that is required to grow bamboo shoots kept in the soil, Yutagawa-moso grows well on the southeast side of Mt. Kinpo and on the slopes around Wasada. A local geologist, Mr. Hohei Uematsu, explains that the red soil is a reaction of iron in the soil being oxidized by the rain and dew. “Probably the red soil of Yutagawa is the Oyama Stratum being exposed. The nature of the soil is that of tuff, a type of rock made of volcanic ash. It was originally green. I think this is an oxidized part of the green tuff, which stretches like a belt along the coast of the Japan Sea,” said Mr. Uematsu.
We went to the slope with the red soil where the bamboo shoots show their face and heard from Mr. Tsuneyuki Ito, who is engaged in agriculture, mainly rice cultivation. “The characteristic of Yutagawa-moso branded bamboo shoots have less harshness and taste sweeter. The harshness comes about when a bamboo shoot touches the air. But the bamboo shoots grown in the clayey red soil grow more slowly underground. It takes more time for them to sprout. Ironically, it is a harsh environment for plants, but it seems that it leads to this fine taste.” Even so, there is no farmer specializing in the harvesting of Yutagawa-moso in this area.
“We have been eating the bamboo shoots just as one of the blessings of the mountain, but we are receiving orders from all over the country in recent years. We have been recognized for the reputation of how delicious it is and the quality of our soil by the outside,” said Mr. Ito.
If we consider agriculture as an economic activity there are a number of points, which should be focused on, such as efficiency of the harvest and standardization of quality. The crops not suitable for such processing are destined to naturally disappear. There is a sufficient amount of yield of Yutagawa-moso for local demand, but not enough of a crop to distribute to market as a main produce of the region. In that sense, it can be said that Yutagawa-moso is a fortunate crop. Because it wasn’t destined to be produced and consumed in large quantities, it has survived as a native variety, produced locally and for local consumption.
