This year's indigo field

This year's indigo fields are a trial and error process, so it's hard to say we're proud of growing indigo!

The reason (this is an excuse) is that the coronavirus outbreak occurred around Golden Week, and there was a period when we were unable to move, but in Itoshiro, that was the start of farm work.

Everything has been delayed, and the resulting delays have made it difficult to make up for it, which is where we are now.

However, this year the germination rate of the indigo buds was very good, and many sprouts came out. They haven't grown big yet, but I'm trying to plant them all in the field before the rainy season really starts, so I'm planting the small seedlings one by one.

Normally we would lay down a plastic material called "mulch" to control weeds and raise the ground temperature, but due to the influence of Okamoto Yoritaka, we want to aim for farming that produces as little waste as possible, so we are recklessly planning to do one field without mulch.

Why is it reckless? Because weeding is extremely difficult, and it's cold here, so we don't know whether the seedlings will grow big without mulch...

However, if you rely on mulch all the time, you'll be stuck in a cycle of buying plastic every year, laying it down in your field, and then having to peel it off, throw it away, and buy new stuff the following spring.

It may not work, but I'm going to keep going this year as it will be the first step towards breaking out of this cycle.

I heard that people in the past used to put cut grass in their fields, so perhaps that served as a weed control measure, or perhaps they went into the fields every day to remove the weeds... I don't know if I can do something like that (it's difficult to do it while my small child is crying, so perhaps I can do it early in the morning when my child is asleep...).

It's been seven years since I started the indigo farm. There are many things that happen, but I feel that the most important thing is to continue. No matter how thin or small it may be, it's important to continue the field and the seeds.

There are many things I can't do perfectly, but once I stop, it's hard to go back, so I try to keep doing what I can at the time. Then, I think that one day, I will arrive at the shape I envision.

Even if it's small, just start by doing what you can little by little.

So, let's go into the fields again today and admire the small indigo buds.