7-26-10

SSSSSSSSNAKE

SO CLOSE

TOYS "ᴙ" US AREN'T THE ONLY ONES WHO CAN DO IT

NOEL

The loafing continued with Lorna and Carl away, and we took advantage by reading. Jen is enjoying Pillars of the Earth by Ken Follet. The novel is set in the 1100's and almost everyone in the story has farming skills, even the priest. In those days, if everyone didn't grow their own food, or a portion of it, they would starve. It brings up questions about our society, and how if fewer and fewer people possess farming skills, what will be the consequences down the road? Aaron started and finished reading The Rebel Farmer, an autobiography by Sepp Holzer, a farmer who utilizes permaculture techniques on his Austrian mountainside farm. Time and time again, Holzer's unconventional strategies were questioned by neighbors and government officials. He was often reprimanded for going against the grain, but almost always, his revolutionary organic systems eventually proved superior to "conventional" farmers, and today, people from all over the world look to him for advice on farming and permaculture. Aaron enjoyed it.

Lorna and Carl returned tonight as Pascal and we sat down for dinner. Conversation quickly turned to fruit trees and pruning and grafting. One evening this week, they promised us a hands on demonstration. We are extremely eager to learn about these skills and gain some practical experience. We've heard and read some about orchard management, but theory alone won't help us have a productive orchard of our own one day. Regardless of where we end up, planting fruit trees is a very high priority, and we want to ensure we select proper fruit trees for our climate, and provide them with the best environment to thrive. This lesson will hopefully be a wonderful stepping stone in that direction.