Yoshika Town

A river is said to start by a cedar.

Ipponsugi Spring

Photo by full moon69 (CC BY 3.0)

01 ／ Ōidani Rice Terraces

Every household in Ōidani formed the Sukehandō Association,which still keeps the terraces alive today.

Old records called the Yoshikaki say the Ōidani terraces were built by the Miura clan, retainers of the Ōuchi clan, who settled here from the late Muromachi period into the Edo period, roughly 600 years ago. In 1998, every household in Ōidani joined to form the Sukehandō ("helping hands") Association, working to keep the terraces alive.

Said to date back roughly 600 years (the Yoshikaki)
1998: Sukehandō Association formed by every household
Listed among Japan's 100 Best Terraced Rice Fields

02 ／ Organic Farming in Kakinoki

Meeting shoppers from Iwakuni,villagers formed an organic farming group.

In October 1980, an exchange with a consumer group from Iwakuni seeking organically grown produce led to the founding of the Kakinoki Village Organic Farming Study Group. In 1991, "a village built on health and organic farming" became village policy. The town adopted an organic farming promotion plan in 2008, and from fiscal 2022 joined a national program, declaring itself an Organic Village.

1980: Kakinoki Village Organic Farming Study Group founded
1991: "health and organic farming" made village policy
FY2022: declared an Organic Village

03 ／ Muikaichi Kōyamaki Grove

On south-facing slopes at Arii and Kurōbara,kōyamaki grow as a near-pure wild stand.

At Arii (有飯) and Kurōbara (九郎原), a near-pure wild stand of kōyamaki (Sciadopitys verticillata, sometimes called umbrella-pine) spreads across south-facing slopes. Designated a Prefectural Nature Conservation Area in 1977, it covers 48.17 hectares, including a 29.06-hectare special zone and a 19.11-hectare ordinary zone. The area is described as a scientifically valuable habitat with exceptional nature.

1977: designated a Prefectural Nature Conservation Area
48.17 ha (29.06 ha special zone, 19.11 ha ordinary zone)
Said to be the only wild stand in the San'in region

Living here

Peaks over 1,000m ring the town.

about 6,000 people
Rural district town

Forest covers 92.2% of Yoshika, a town among mountains over 1,000m tall, including Mt. Anzōji and Mt. Suzunoodani. The Takatsu River runs almost due north-south through it, and in the Kibedani valley an intermittent geyser erupts on a regular cycle. At Higuchi in Muikaichi, a katakuri (dogtooth violet) colony has spread from a private home's hillside, and in Muikaichi a bus stop still carries the name of a station once planned for a rail line that was never built.

People living here: 6,077people
Area: 336.5km²
Households: 2,833households
Rent (average for rentals): —
Healthcare: 1 hospital ／ 7 clinics

Area and habitable land at the same scalee-Stat B1101 / B1103

Children waiting for childcare: —3 nurseries and similar
Home purchase subsidy: —
Average annual temperature: —

These 3 items are waiting on a nationwide data source. We do not fill them with estimates.

Shape

Borders 5 municipalities across 1 prefectures.

Yoshika Town in Japan34.353°N 131.935°E

Territory of Yoshika Town

Boundaries: National Land Numerical Information (N03)

North to south

20.2km

Shimane Prefecture: 津和野町, 益田市
Yamaguchi Prefecture: 岩国市, 周南市, 山口市

Travel times per leg are not published by the municipality, so they are not shown.

Yoshika Town isthis kind of town.

01Yoshika's Ipponsugi Spring is where a cedar said to be over 1,000 years old stands beside Daija-ga-ike Pond, held to be the source of the Takatsu River. In 2008, the Ministry of the Environment named it one of the Heisei 100 Famous Waters.
02Old records called the Yoshikaki say the Ōidani terraces were built by the Miura clan, retainers of the Ōuchi clan, from the late Muromachi period into the Edo period. In 1998, every household in Ōidani formed the Sukehandō Association and still works today to keep the terraces alive.
03The former village of Kakinoki founded an organic farming study group in 1980 and declared itself an Organic Village in fiscal 2022. At Arii and Kurōbara also spreads a wild stand of kōyamaki, said to be the only one in the San'in region.

If something caught your eye, ask the town itself.

Yoshika Town official site ↗Wikipedia ↗