Letter No. 8 The Taming
back approach and listing day for me calmer!
Day length decreased severely and the working time is shorter.
The 2008 season will stretch until frost with our strawberries, yet and again! But have you seen each week, they are different!
There will be a few more apples, grapes, corn, still a few other varieties of melon, a few figs, .... and then here. For some time now, I'm in preparation for the 2009 season. Which did not improve too much market invent other tricks to get the job done better, more efficient, etc. .... You
balances the 2008 season, assessments and forecasts of the 2009 season. You can participate in the management group with which we establish the short-, medium-and long-term contract price and the 2009 and its composition. This group meets 2-3 times between November and late December. You're invited, you advertise.
Two major difficulties are highlighted in this season: the technical and manpower. The technique
advance. Each season is a little better! Much remains to be done, but the means are at my fingertips. It must, season after season, place markers, and gradually tame the land and its culture.
The first job of a farmer is observation. It takes time unheard of for all its data and use them and sawing (Ohlàlà I do not know how it is written and the computer gives no indication !) I am well supported by Jean-Luc Petit, my technician arbo-bio. I must bone up again and again these cycles of disease and parasites to understand, in the moment, the right thing. At school (farming) I have learned everything by heart and often but when it comes to applying it in real time! So there ..... such, must be learned. In short the technique, with a little enthusiasm and motivation, that's okay. But
labor, then I'm very pessimistic. But hey if the technique increases, labor is a little lower, yes. But the time for harvesting strawberries is not compressible.
This year I was fortunate be accompanied by my really good employee, Stephanie. She agreed to return next season if it is available. In agriculture, everything was an infinite time! And no luck, is what is the most expensive labor! Approximately 50% of your contract goes to the post. So you think when it comes to the increase! It will be widely released for discussion at Management Group. This year, I carefully noted my work time. And I'm still a little surprised! There are days when I beat all the records and I want no account distributions! This is my share of volunteer work!
crops are doing well. The deduction is soon empty and I'm afraid of running out for planting strawberries in three weeks. Anyway since the last storm, I water less. But with temperatures that have risen to the bottom, it will take me to be vigilant.
I opted for the maximum value of each crop and especially those who are less.
I refer in particular fisheries, some fisheries that I have harvested after the frost has passed, after the aphids are overfed. I consider my gardens as an extension of my home garden and I take the crops as if they were for the family. It is therefore possible that the quality is lower. I picked peaches with a side damaged, cracked tomatoes, etc. .... I know some of you do not like it. I wish from the bottom of each crop have me on top! But you know it's not quite as often. So I made the choice that you know what our cultures give us time to look like! sometimes truly beautiful and others totally detestable. So forgive this non-perfect! It is my way to connect you to what the earth gives us.
A creation operation, I had planted 500 seedlings of table grapes. The whole had burst. In 2006, I started with three lines each year. This season, we had be the first clusters. But Mr. Downy got involved and my clusters are all ugly and scattered. Difficult for me not to share it with you. Again it is not easy to exactly when to intervene when you have so many different cultures. It will come and you'll see it happen! Because I believe and I know that sooner or later, work, courage and love are rewarded. So be lenient with those crops that do not pay mine !!!!!
Ah! Welcome back everyone, especially children.
letter No. 7 ABUNDANCE
Here is many days I need you tell. But only now do I take the time.
I chose the title because it causes plenty of questions.
But first she pleased! Me first! As a reward, a gift.
But at what price! I would like to thank all those who make this possible in his daily adventures. I mean the workshop participants, harvesting watermelons, strawberries, put a lump of strawberry, etc. ... and those who are involved day after day, the distrib, storage of watermelons, the car repairs, etc. .... Both
poor harvests leaves us in frustration, both crops at the height of the work undertaken, I request a different organization and means biggest and unfortunately I did not have them considered quite extensively in my forecast.
So it's not easy! Physically and materially. My little fourgeonnette largely run out of steam and cracks everywhere, every distro becomes an obstacle course. It is imperative to find bigger, beefier while in funding acceptable. To view ..... it takes a little longer ...
And physically I am at my limits. Since three weeks I save the furniture and go to urgentissime: watering and harvesting. Everything else is on hold and I will pay later. But despite that I'm in a state of fatigue intense and I expect every morning to do more to get up. Therefore I resign myself to further reduce the amount of urgentissime! While my calls have been heard but a fairly limited and insufficient for me to calm my fatigue. And more heat is tough and the body is much to regulate.
All these parameters will be taken into account by the management group (which you can participate, call you) for the 2009 season. But in the meantime we must keep.
The gardens are brave this heat wave. Irrigation water can be absorbed only when temperatures are around 28 ° c. My installations are proven. On Rondin site where there's gardening, apple and pear cups (planted in the creation in 2003), the channel has been cut a week and I'm over the river with. The most powerful engine left, chained to a tree on site is operated every day and no restrictions! (Just go and start it!). But it did not prevent the mites from attacking here and there the beds, but good productions take: tomatoes, melons, Galia, tomatillos, corn is in bloom ..... melons guard prepare : Spain, the Canary, ball gold, antibes, etc. .... The Herbs also benefit ...... with Stephanie, when they were trampled harvest! On the site of
Peissonnel must juggle. I have installed a solenoid valve controlled by a timer, but it does not work as I want, I'm wasting water. We must find more effective solutions. I water by industries. We must, again, I floss there to operate the valves and watch it work. Pumping from the lake has had problems for a week and I found no time to fix it. But now whew, I increased the diameter of the hose pump and it works great. Simply start up when my tank is full it stops everything alone.
Strawberries are well watered but suffer from the heat. The watermelons pavannent and weight they are laughing and they cause headaches for the transportation and distribution. They are malignant! I love them so much I can not get them ignored, but they are the major cause of the condition of the car, my back and my fatigue. Peach trees suffer too much, I did not even blow it all washed down with gel that has robbed us of the harvest, I forget and am still a little angry, even if they gave us some delicious peaches. Aphids settle down with this hot.
The new planting apple trees magnificent and I try to give him his share of water as best I can. The new planting apricot is lovely but a bit rather weak, it will load into compost. And then the rest I do as I can.
fences work well when I get to spend the weedeater though. There he would do it again ... There's one that I have not had time to ask. That of young plantations and plum line greengage.
Apples / pears come in very small quantities because there are few trees and they are still small. This year, I have managed to keep codling moth (the worm) so far. But then I surrendered. You'll still have apples visitées.J 't still plenty to say, but the sheet is too small! Damn
