It's been a long time since my last update. . ^^;
Now that Golden Week is over, the minimum temperature in Hokuto is finally no longer dropping below 10°C. This is the time when vegetables and weeds begin to grow rapidly, so we quickly finish planting the summer vegetable seedlings and get busy thinning out the leafy vegetables and carrots that have suddenly become crowded, as well as pulling out weeds.
The vegetables in the fields are growing well and there are already many vegetables ready to be harvested.
We have started accepting orders for our "Early Summer Vegetable Set" which will be shipped from the week after next.
This assortment of vegetables, including refreshingly spicy wasabi greens, beautiful red mizuna, raw salad chrysanthemum, turnips, broccoli, and cabbage, is perfect for the early summer when temperatures fluctuate greatly. They're all easy to prepare, as they can be eaten raw or lightly cooked. Plus, they're rich in flavor, so they don't require seasoning. This is a limited-time, one-off purchase, so be sure to check it out.
https://ame-tsuchi-hito.com/products/5%E6%9C%88%E6%9C%AB%E9%99%90%E5%AE%9A-%E5%88%9D%E5%A4%8F%E3%81%AE%E9%87%8E%E8%8F%9C%E3%82%BB%E3%83%83%E3%83%88
This year, I've made some changes to the way I plant my summer vegetables, planting tomatoes and eggplants among the spring leafy vegetables and onions, improving biodiversity through mixed planting and protecting the soil by reducing the area I need to cultivate. I've been experimenting with mixed plantings a little at a time every year, but this year I've decided to plant them all together.
Tomatoes and cucumbers are planted in the gaps between the komatsuna and wasabi greens that were sown in March. This helps prevent the development of pests and protects them from cold winds.
Eggplants are planted in the gaps between onions, which are due for harvest in June. Both onions and eggplants prefer fertile, moist soil, so planting eggplants in fertile soil where onions grow well allows for a perfect handover. Immediately after planting, the eggplants are protected by the onions, and after the onions are harvested, the eggplants begin to grow rapidly.
Growing a variety of crops in the same place is called crop rotation, and it is a technique established by our ancestors through experience in the days before pesticides and chemical fertilizers. If only one crop was grown, the area would become rife with disease and pests, but by growing a variety of vegetables together, a variety of insects and microorganisms gather, transforming the field into one with just the right balance. There is no need to plow new fields for summer vegetables, and although it is not quite no-till, it does save a considerable amount of energy. We will continue to cultivate crops and establish the Ama-do-jin style of mixed planting technique.
The rice seeds that we planted with the children in April are growing well, and the other day we weeded them. We removed the small weeds by hand, and the three of us were able to finish in about an hour. The rice seedlings are growing in soft soil rather than in seedling trays, and they are stretching out their leaves freely and looking happy. It's almost time to water the rice paddies.
We also planted indigo plants, which we grew from seeds collected last year. Three of us, including a friend who grew indigo plants together in the winter, have decided to grow indigo together this year. This year, we planted about twice as much as last year.
This weekend I'm heading to Tokyo to exhibit the finished bamboo lanterns.
It's packed with content right from the start of the season!!
