INLE LAKE, MYANMAR, FEBRUARY 2018:

The stilt house of a tomato farmer on Inle Lake. The house is surrounded by floating gardens used to grow tomatoes.

The flotation of the soil is achieved by piling it onto strips of matted water hyacinth tubers. Water hyacinths have buoyant bulb like nodules that float and after about 20 to 30 years the hyacinths form into dense mats of leaves, sediment and debris that can support the weight of the soil. Farmers cut these mats into strips and anchor them into place with bamboo poles.

The farmers rely on cooperative labor with their neighbors to plant and harvest the crops. Here, neighboring women are being fed breakfast by the farmers wife (far left) prior to going out to plant seedlings.

Thanaka, the cosmetic paste used by women in Myanmar has been around for over 2000 years. It is used not only for cosmetic beauty but also to prevent sunburn.

A worker enjoys Burmese tea, a combination of strong black tea leaves mixed with evaporated and condensed milk.

After breakfast the workers head out to plant tomato seedlings. All of the work is done from boats.

The seedlings are planted in an assembly line fashion. First a worker creates a line of holes in the soil by the use of a small board with dowels protruding from it.

After the holes have been made the workers plant the seedlings which have been grown from seed on the farm.

The owner of the farm oversees the days work from his boat. Two seasons of tomatoes are grown every year.

The floating garden method of agriculture, locally known as ye-chan, probably dates back to the end of the 19th century but was not widely practiced until the 1960’s when new infrastructure made it easier to get crops to market. The practice has continued to grow and has created concerns over its environmental impact, particularly the use of pesticides which run off into the lake.