Sunday 22nd November 2020
🍁手と手農園 Tetote Farm🍁
(大分県由布市 Yufu City, Oita Prefecture)
A delicate display of dried flower hung upside down in Fukase san house.
We arrived at Tetote Farm in the evening, and assisted in sealing organic udon made at Tetote Farm. During this, discussions covering the importance of 在来種 Zairaishu, “Native Seeds”, CRISPR (Genome editing ゲノム). The change in policy of requiring manufacturing products to specify if their ingredients are of GMO or not was talked about, we also covered gender neutrality in the context of Women only train cars, Japanese gardens as a topic assignment that both the Fukase couples had to complete to graduated from, and the struggles of local cafe named “珈琲を愉しむ店 ばんぢろ “ that is being affected during Covid 19.
They also shared with us about their previous organic farm name inspired by the novel “Little House on The Prairie-大草原の小さな家”。
（写真）NBC『大草原の小さな家』より
Image by NBC "Little House on The Prairie"
As you can see, we had deep conversation on different topics and enjoy the meals on that day even though we had planned to come there to help them with farming. (〃ω〃)
We enjoyed fresh, organic farm-to-table veggies with Fukase san's family. Minami (our member) is smiling while enjoying raw chemical-free red raddish and a dish made with eggplants from Tetote farm. We were also lucky enough to enjoy some impressive local firework watching. The neighbor who joined us is a vegan cooking instructor who had a cafe in Beppu but has moved back.
(Fukase couple introduced their cute parrots ぴーぴー/ピーちゃん Pi chan, and ポピーちゃん Popi chan that they received from Norahakobune san, the second organic farm we will introduce below)
We also discussed and asked Tetote san about natural mulching and the concern of microplastic by using vinyl cover for BGG to improve the soil. She suggested we use rice straw but apparently compared with vinyl, it would take more effort and time and also challenge over the wind protection during wintertime. However, we are planning to implement a new natural method using newspaper and cloth after receiving advice and suggestions from local people and organic farmers. We also cannot wait to see the results.
Left picture (Masako san, Soleil, Minami), Right picture (Soleil, Ryuji san, Minami)
The organic farm stay with Tetote San was such an eye-opening experience to us to have deep conversations such as about the native seed saving and a more sustainable agriculture without the use of chemical.
About
Tetote Organic Farm & Seed Exchange Project
We first met Fukase san in the Earth Day 2019 event. Fukase san is a organic farmer in Hasama, Yufu city. All of her vegetables and rice are grown without any use of pesticides and chemical fertilizers 🍆🍅🌽. At her seed exchange booth, everyone can bring seeds to share and exchange with her seeds and her message is to preserve native seeds, beautify our lives by sharing seeds. We grow those shared seeds together and jointly nurture our love for nature. Tetote san also deliver Organic Vegetable Box to her customer's doorstep, which comes with a selection of the different kinds of vegetables grown on the farm. You can also meet her at many local events and Oita Organic Market held on every Saturdays
Instagram: @nouentetote
Oita Organic Market:
Venue: オアシス並木通り商店街 大分市中央町4-1-22 (10-15m walking from Oita Station)
“珈琲を愉しむ店 ばんぢろ “ : The coffee shop is said to have Showa atmosphere, like coming back your grandmother house (Japanese traditional house) with the smell of natural wood, a lot of greenery in the courtyard. It’s worth a visit if you love cats with a calming place while talking to the owner. There are many books, music and pamphlets lined up in the store.
Address: 府内町1-5-11 Oita-shi, Oita, Japan 870-0021
Monday 23rd November 2020
ー勤労感謝の日ー
🐎ノラの箱舟 NORAnoHakobune🐎
(Kitsuki City)
Minami seemed to be reading a very interessant book as she suddenly giggled alone when we were riding the train to Kitsuki Station.
NoranoHakobune is a community place based in Kitsuki City aiming for self-sufficient, sustainable living where we can feel like a small interconnected world of human and nature.
今日はゆっくりecoがいい×blue market 2018
Our member visited them in 2019
Our member first met Noranohakobune san in 今日はゆっくりecoがいい×blue market event where they were selling organic Mikan and other veggies in 2018 and thanks to the connection with our senior, we luckily have reunions later after that. Some of our members came there to help with rice planting in 2019.
The Nakamura family used to live and had been doing organic farming in Tokyo. Since the Fukushima earthquake disaster in 2011, they decided to look for a place to move to Kyushu and ended up opening Noranohakobune in Kitsuki.
Nora no hakobune comes from the japanese word for the Noah’s arc, but they change Noah to Nora, which means wild. The farm seems to be applying permaculture methods on the farm as they have animals such as horses (Rin-chan, Saaju chan), ducks, chickens, peacocks, parrots, dog (Peru-chan), birds, a goat (Angel Uriel chan) etc while practicing farming method with no use of chemical. However, we learned that the reason why they want to take care of many animals there is rooted from the mother’s love for animals.
A corner to get a drink and chill
Interesting music DVDs and book are being lined up.
Soleil and Evita with Saaju-chan on the left and Rin-chan on the right
The last picture is the place and method of composting.
We discussed Kunisaki being considered as one of the GIAHS (Globally Important Agricultural Heritage Systems) in Japan. The trees behind are クヌギ (Kunugi: Asian species of oak tree) is said to be suitable for growing シイタケ (Shiitake: one of the most well-known and popular mushrooms in Japan) . We learned that this method is called 原木栽培 (Genboku: log cultivation). We have to cut the tree even shorter, about 1 meter, and make it the size for cultivation called ほだ木 (Hodaki).
Soleil, Minami, Evita and Temma san with Peru-chan. He is naturally high-energy and excitable but also good-natured and kind.
Peru-chan when our member first met him in January 2020. He has grown super fast!
クジャク（孔雀) peacock, ニワトリ (Niwatori: domestic chicken), birds, parrot at Norahakobune. Temma san told us about one kind of Niwatori is 烏骨鶏（うこっけい Ukokkei).
All of the pizzas served here are freshly made from organic veggies here by the earth oven.
The earth oven made by Roncho san - Nakamura family’s friend and hopefully, we will have a workshop soon with him in order to build an earth-oven at BGG. I bet we all can’t wait until the day it can be built in BGG ^^.
On that day we could meet and talk with many musicians such as the legendary Minami san, Molly Young san, Temma san
Minami san (南 正人 みなみ まさと) is known as a Legendary Japanese rock star performed some of his own music to us while we were eating some good home-made pizza from the Earth oven. Minami san has travelled all over the world, and has attended grand festivals in Thailand named “シャンバラまつり “ and in Kunisaki as well. He does not have a social media platform, but travels around playing at bars, restaurants and places like NORA. With a bubbly personality, he was accompanying Molly san who is a fashion designer and musician and runs a band named “BONGERS”.
Molly Young モリヤン san is a guitar musician and a hippy aholic. He also does live tour around Japan with Minami san but also currently running a clothes shop name “NUI NALU" in 唐津市 Karatsu shi, Saga Prefecture. It is located near the long white sand pine forest called Nijino Matsubara and the Hamasaki coast. He also carries out workshops of making Nuinalu Ninja Pants
We think that we cannot forget these meaningful encounters and these genuine smiles
We also could meet our APU senpai (senior in Japanese) Olga Barreda and former WFP employee To Tto san.
To Tto san is a former World Food Programme employee who had worked for 12 years in that sector until quitting after Covid 19 and is now travelling to different places as he is very much interested in the agricultural sector and self sufficiency. He also worked one year in Tanzania and could converse in Swahili.
Olga Barreda is an APU alumni who graduated in 2010 and worked at APU before meeting her Japanese husband who runs a Mexican food restaurant selling Tacos in Bungo Takada named リアル ポイント. She is a regular visitor in NORAhakobune as she believes in being and playing out in nature with her one year old child Haru chan. Is a healthy way of raising her child. At the moment she is working freelance as a translator and helping her husband at the restaurant.
We are so inspired by the wonderful combination of self-sufficiency and communal gatherings where we could feel deeper interconnected relationships and re-appreciation of all things: human, animals and nature. Nakamura family is growing their own food without the use of chemical fertilizers or pesticide, making the most use of the resources they have that come from nature such as using wood chips, rice bran, horses or chickens manual, etc to make compost. There are many interesting books lined up there and live music events now and then to enjoy while conversing with people there.
A banana tree cannot bear fruits due to the climate in Japan. Regardless, it is still beautiful, welcoming the sunlight.
We felt so blessed with the grandeur of the farm expertly integrating permaculture and self sustainability. Through the trip, we learned that what Norahokobunesan is doing is to create a multi-storied ecosystem with mushrooms, fruits and grazing animals and organic vegetables interwoven.
“Life goes on so fast. Make sure you spend 100% of the time to be happy” by Minami-san with Minami-chan and Evita-chan
It's time we have to leave Kitsuki station with Peacock's feathers, the gift from Temma san.
On a very same paths as Tetote and Noranohakobune san, BGG's aspiration is to bring a community garden where we all could rethink, readjust the current industrial monocropping agricultural practices to fit the environmental conditions, start listening to nature and bring human with human together regardless of cultural backgrounds.
About
Nora No Hakobune Blog: http://noranohakobune.blog77.fc2.com/?fbclid=IwAR2Sa35wdfaQsQfA0ZB1ClFrQGs_aqhYJGtdTiD4zp2bvk4kZBVSx78D6H0
Instagram: @noranohakobune8080
GIAHS (Globally Important Agricultural Heritage Systems) http://www.fao.org/giahs/en/
NUI NALU shop ( Karatsu City, Saga Prefecture): https://www.facebook.com/NIJINOMATUBARA
Minami Masato musician:
His live schedule will be updated at: https://www.facebook.com/liveschedule.minamimasato
リアル ポイント. :Olga Barreda senpai Mexico Restaurant in Bungo Taketa.
Instagram: @_realpoint
※ヤマガセイカツ Yamagaseikatsu Project ※
<中津駅 Nakatsu Station>
Yamagaseikatsu is a project to revitalize the Yamaga town in Kitsuki City. One of the pride in here is Rice so they want to draw attention from rice cultivation.
“I am hoping that this area, where I live, has a stronger connection with a lot of people and become more active, so I started these activities. I want a lot of people to be involved in these activities because it can not be improved by the involvement of only local residents. I mean the greater the number of participants, the more problems we can solve and the more things we can learn about each other as well as we can develop this area. To achieve this, first we need to know our situation and teach our situation to other people, then want them to join our activities.”
He shared with us that every year Japan produces 7 million tonnes of rice and the demand of rice is decreasing because people starting to choose other alternatives over rice, which is around 6 million tonnes of rice per year. That said, roughly 1 million tonnes of rice become a waste every year.
The governor, the main manager of the project stated that they cannot do organic because it is located in the downstream where the water has already been contaminated by the other farmers upstream. He said that they just follow the manuals and have been doing the practices for so long. They believe that the manual’s guideline uses a standard for the amount of pesticides that is safe for the body and for the environment. However, the citizen seem to be skeptical that it is not as safe as they think and the number of fireflies in the area also kept decreasing. However, there is no answer from the government level.
The reality of the project has slightly dashed our hopes. We really hope there will be some enlightenment about organic, pesticide-free method ( like Tetote San and Noranohakobune) coming to this project's decision making.
Written by Minami, Evita, Soleil
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