The bittersweet feelings of choosing natural farming for persimmon tree cultivation

Editor's note: The author is a farmer who grows persimmons using natural farming methods. Days of heavy rain in June caused a massive fruit drop. Unable to apply chemical sprays, the farmer lost everything. To make a living, he temporarily went to work in someone else's orchard. He does not spray himself, yet he toils in a conventional orchard that does use sprays to earn his living expenses, which is deeply frustrating. The following is the author's state of mind in the face of setbacks, and his thoughts on farming.

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It has been a while since I wrote on the blog

I spent some time sorting out my feelings and accepting the fact of the severe fruit drop

Facing a serious crop failure and the major impact it will soon have on my life, I tried to find any method

To rekindle hope at this moment when both body and mind are exhausted

Before this June's heavy rain, I always spoke breezily of my own boldness and free spirit

(About the matter of farming without pesticides and without fertilizer)

I never seriously thought about what I would do if one day I truly faced the predicament of having no harvest

Now, that day has finally arrived, and a dispirited will has replaced my former passion

Like taking a blow to the head. I want to cry, but I cannot find any reason to

 

Burying my head in the sand is something not only ostriches do; I do it too

Temporarily escaping, I came to the mountains of Dahu, to my uncle's sweet persimmon orchard, to work and earn a little living money

Seven jiao per bag, working more than twelve hours from morning to night, even if the heat is unbearable and sweat keeps pouring

In order to earn a daily wage of 2,500 yuan, I do not even answer the phone, and I drink just enough water to keep sweating

Moving along at an average pace of 300 bags per hour. 100 bags every 20 minutes,

From pulling a bag out with one hand and opening it in one motion, slipping it over the fruit and parting the leaves to cross the bag opening, to finally sealing it with a stapler

Each bag must be completed in only 12 seconds, then on to the next one; one moment of distraction and I fall behind

 

This is already the second year of going out to work. My own persimmons have nearly all dropped, so I need to work seriously and earn money

More than once I have asked myself: choosing the path of challenging myself with no pesticides, and getting myself into such a state, am I actually happy?

Under the questioning gaze of so many relatives and friends, do I really feel nothing at all

Although my wife and child are willing to lower their material desires and cooperate fully, how can I bear it in my heart

Facing the persimmon trees that are not doing too well, just looking at them, they do not seem very happy either

I have not fertilized for three years now, and the nutrients that should have been consumed ought to be used up by now

To be honest, if you think about this from a "human" perspective, starving the trees to such a state

And still taking the fruit they produced with all their strength to sell and make a living from

Then this farmer is extremely selfish

Moving through fields under conventional farming

Experiencing how terrifying pesticides are, making me spend money to buy pesticides is absolutely impossible

And I cannot find a way to improve the disease resistance of the persimmon trees

Facing the persuasion and suggestions of relatives and friends around me, I truly have no way to respond

 

Silence, perhaps I will choose silence for a while

My uncle says you need a good harvest to have a sense of achievement, and I agree

Seeing him so overwhelmed by work as numerous as ox hairs, does this sense of achievement really make my uncle happy

Or does he only enjoy that brief moment of happiness when he can chat over tea about his "great achievements"

For the sake of insisting on the ideal of natural cultivation, I will gladly endure any effort I make

Persistence requires courage, and courage comes from family who work hard alongside me, and from the silly farmer friends who struggle together with me

The setting sun is infinitely beautiful, only it is near dusk. Facing such a beautiful scene, what I think of is not stopping to admire it

But speeding up my hands, wanting to bag a few more before the sky goes completely dark.

For a farmer who reveres nature, this has already broken the great taboo of being unable to properly enjoy life

But at this critical juncture, whatever needs to be fought for, let it be fought for thoroughly

 

Postscript: Farming method is an extension of one's attitude toward life

Although frustrated, I still want to say:

My persimmons are no longer simply about letting consumers eat with peace of mind and boosting sales

Rather, while earnestly enjoying the natural farmer's life, I also hope that heaven and the persimmon trees can show me a little favor

Farmers are indeed silly, but the richness of the spirit drives me to keep going

Life is short, and people are always afraid of waiting, but I have chosen to wait together with Mr. Kimura, who grows apples

Taiwan, China's climate and environment are indeed complex, yet also full of challenges

Farming is fun, fun because it is exploring an unknown world with infinite possibilities