「レッツゴー キャム！」Cam, Ikuzo! Come follow Camden’s journey! May 2024

After tilling the soil, it became time to plant the edamame (green soybean) seeds. We made holes in the ground that were about 2 centimeters deep, and in each hole we put in two seeds which were spread about 5 centimeters apart from each other, before filling the holes back up with soil so that the seeds were covered. Since seeds such as edamame have the tendency to be eaten by birds, we laid a net over the area where the seeds were planted. This day was quite busy with making sure the cultivation fields were in proper condition for growing crops in the future, but I was also able to harvest some of the onions that were being grown by a friend of mine, and I later ate some with a salad and was surprised by the sweetness of the onion. I usually would not think to put onion in salad as they usually have more of an astringent flavor, but my friend is quite particular about the sweetness of his onions and purposely grew them so they could be enjoyed raw. I came to realize that there is a lot of freedom in agriculture because one type of crop has so many varieties, and there are countless types of seeds to choose from as well, so it is perfectly fine to be particular about the taste and appearance of your crops.

The next weekend I had another chance to go to the fields, and similar to the first time it was a long day of work and I was able to learn even more farming tips. On this day, I learned that by creating “ridges” in the fields, it creates an environment that is much better for growing crops, and its especially necessary for crops like eggplant which have roots that grow deeply into the ground. To make the ridges, we needed to dig a trench around the field with a shovel and move the dirt to the part of the field that we are going to use to grow crops, raising the surface of the field by a notch higher. It definitely seems like that this kind of work will be very tough in the middle of the summer, but because I also find it fun I plan on continuing to help out in the fields as a newfound hobby.

土を耕した後に枝豆の種を蒔きましたが、土に2センチメートル程度の穴を沢山手で掘り、それぞれの穴に5センチメートル間隔で種を2個入れ、種が隠れるよう、土をかぶせました。枝豆などの種は鳥に食べられる傾向にあるので、無事に育つように網を敷きました。この日は、これから畑をうまく使えるように整える準備で忙しかったのですが、友人の玉ねぎの収穫もできて、サラダで食べて、玉ねぎが甘くて美味しかったです。玉ねぎは普通辛いのですが、友人は甘さのこだわりがあって、敢えて生でも美味しく食べられるように育てました。一つの作物には様々な種類があり、数え切れないほどの種の種類から選ぶことができ、農業は作物の味や外見のこだわりを持っても良い、とても自由な作業であることに気づきました。

次の週末に、2回目の体験をする機会があり、初日と同じように相当長い間体験させていただき、1回目以上に農業のコツを学ぶことができました。2回目は、「畝」を作ることで、畑がもっと育ちやすい環境になり、ナスや他に根を深く張る野菜にとってかけがえのないコツを知りました。畝を作るには、使う畑の表面を一段高くするために、畑の周りにショベルで溝を掘り、その土を内側の使う畑に重ねる必要がありました。真夏になると、このような作業が厳しいと思ってしまいますが、その分作業が楽しいので、新しい趣味として畑での手伝いをこれからも続けていきたいと思います。