This is the sixth year since the farm started. NaZemi Farm grows vegetables in the Awa region, located at the southern tip of Chiba Prefecture. The mysterious-sounding name comes from the Czech language, where the owner, Taeko Tsuruoka, used to live. "Na" means "upper," and "Zemi" means "ground," "country," or "earth."
Tsuruoka's experience in the Czech Republic was what prompted him to start farming.
"At the time, I was working for a trading company, but I felt uncomfortable because it felt like I was just passing things around. I wanted to work in a job where I could make things, but I'm more of a minimalist, and I don't like having material things that remain. I thought that if I was going to make something, it would be better to make something that would disappear."
While searching for a way to live, I was keenly aware abroad that Japanese people love to eat.
"Japanese people, myself included, are always talking about how delicious something was that time, or how we should go out to eat somewhere (laughs). We all love to eat. Also, in other countries, people often get together to cook and eat together, deepening their bonds, and I think that kind of ' eating from the same pot ' kind of power is great. As I was thinking about these things, I naturally became interested in agriculture."
However, his family was not a farming family and he had no experience in agriculture, so naturally, people around him opposed his idea.
"Seriously? Everyone told me it was impossible, but I thought I'd give it a try. First, I returned to Japan and started helping farmers during the harvest season. It was a short-term experience of about six months, similar to a part-time job a student might do during the busy season. I also registered with an agricultural employment agency. When I actually gave it a try, I realized I had quite the stamina and could do it (laughs)."
During his farming experiences, he decided on a policy of "I want to grow food, which is the most important thing for people to live, so I don't want to use chemical fertilizers or pesticides if possible." After researching and trying various things, he came across the idea of circular farming and began farming in Miyoshi Village, close to his mother's birthplace.
"It's a land blessed with the blessings of the sea and mountains, with a mild climate and where organic farming is widespread. Local festivals are also popular, and if there's a festival on a weekday, children are often given the day off from school. I think in the past there were also days off for the rice harvest."
The problem with the fields at the foot of the forest is that they are prone to damage from wild boars, especially the corn and taro that are the boars' favorite foods.
Tsuruoka grows vegetables, mainly of fixed and native varieties, in several small fields scattered throughout the Awa region, without using any pesticides or chemical fertilizers. He uses chicken manure from a friendly neighbouring free-range chicken farm (which doesn't use antibiotics), as well as weed clippings and vegetable waste, which he tills into the soil as fertilizer. The marigolds and basil scattered here and there around the fields are companion plants used to repel insects. The weed-like grass growing at the edges is sorghum, used as green manure.
I no longer feel any of the stress I once felt in the Czech Republic.
We have a friendly neighborhood chicken farm called "Hyakushoyashiki Jiroemu," and we sometimes receive chicken manure from their free-range chicken coops and turn it into compost.
"Of course, because my job is dependent on the weather, I'm constantly worried about my life. Taxes are rising, I'm worried about the declining birthrate, and I wonder if this country is okay. But I don't have to put up with other people's whims. I'm at the mercy of the weather, but I can't get angry about it."
In the fields we visited on the day of the interview, Star of David (okra), black eggplant, purple spinach, water spinach, shishito peppers, manganji peppers, green eggplant, Mexican midget tomatoes, and other crops were growing. Roselle and taro should be ready for harvest around autumn. The cucumbers, whose vines are almost dead and which have grown to the size of a person's arm, are for seed collection.
"For plants that are difficult to collect seeds from, I also grow F1 varieties , but basically, I think that if there are seeds there, I can just collect them and grow them again. If I'm interested in a vegetable, I first try growing it to see if it suits the land. However, the summer heat in recent years has really pushed plants to their limits ... There is also damage from wild animals in the mountains around here, so I hedge my risks by growing the same vegetables in different fields."
When asked what a good producer means to Tsuruoka, he replied, "A producer who can bring out the potential of vegetables and who is considerate of the future of the region."
The most difficult summer farm work is weeding. When there's little rain, it's worrying, but when it does rain, you can suddenly harvest a large amount and get busy. Everything depends on the weather.
"What's necessary for this is to prepare the soil. Land that has been abandoned tends to go to waste. I think it's important to do good things without overdoing it, and just wait patiently. I think it takes about four years to prepare the soil. I'm proud of the deliciousness of all the vegetables I grow. There are differences in taste depending on when they're just starting to grow, when they're in season, and when they're just finishing up, so I want people to experience the whole life cycle of the vegetables."
In the future, they plan to increase the area of their fields and start growing rice in the near future.
"I think it's the same all over Japan, but the amount of abandoned farmland is increasing, so I'd like to try my hand at rice paddies. Rice farming means managing waterways and other things, so it means getting more involved in the local community."
In other words, it is connected to the landscape of the region and even the nearby marine environment.
The "Na Zemi" website states:
"Plant seeds remember.
Seeds bred in far-flung places around the world,
It is sown in this land of Awa, takes root, blooms, and bears fruit.
Then it returns to the soil, leaving behind seeds.
This has been repeated for many generations,
These vegetables will become "Awa region vegetables" that are suited to this land.
We want to be like that kind of seed."
A certain.
Tsuruoka works in the fields with the belief that "the earth is our country, our planet," and this shows us the path to living in harmony and coexistence with nature and the local community.
