Abstract: Farmers’ “double cropping to single cropping change” reflects the dynamic change of the rice cropping pattern selection, which is affected by the economic historical conditions and the characteristics of the land itself. Based on a survey data of rice farmers from 4 southern provinces of the middle-down Yangtze River plain and applying a binary logistic model, this paper analyzed the commonly adopted production modes and investigated the influencing factors of cropping pattern selection. Results show that this area mainly has two production modes: single-cropping and double-cropping. Agricultural machinery and social service reduced labor time and helped farmers to adopt double season cropping pattern. Lot characteristics significantly affect rice farmers’ cropping pattern selection: farmers tend to choose double cropping for the land of flatness, short distance to home, high soil quality, and non-cold waterlogged, and farmers tend to select single season cropping for the land with characteristics of machines accessibility or poor irrigation . Families with lack of agricultural labor and low degree of commercialization tend to choose single cropping pattern. Therefore, to improve rice cropping index, this paper suggests to focus on improving agricultural machinery and social services, promoting land remediation, and fostering specialized households.