adekun’s japan blog

Over the past week, the nights have been noticeably cooler. So much so, I seem to have disappeared deep under the covers, in lieu of concluding anything (except beer).
Today was hot. In the morning, I checked on the brassicas and found that the tender centre of one of the hakusai had been devoured. The glum feeling was soon vanquished as I spotted the first shoot of garlic to have speared through the soil.
The garlic is adjacent to the herb garden and a presently unkempt corner of the garden. Prior to lunch, I went out again to see if there were any more developments. I counted a further two and heard something rustling between my feet. I looked down to find an incoming snake, rather like that scene with Roger Moore in Live and Let Die. Without a cigar and aftershave, I could only hop to the side as it raised its head and call to my wife. It scuttled back from where it had come, which was rather good of it, giving me a decent look of it. It might have been a Shimahebi or Hibakari?
Most lunchtimes, my wife’s aunty takes her break at the house. She said she has seen a few Aodaishō (Japanese Rat Snake) in the front garden, they reach a length of between one a two metres. Still, it was somewhat unexpected.

I think I have been somewhat influenced by Patrick and Steph over at Bifurcated Carrots and In the toad’s garden. If being a touch frugal the garlic could last until late spring. Instead, it’s being invested, along with some elephant garlic, in the ground.
Although it doesn’t look a lot, the size of the cloves are more akin to heads of the organic stuff sold for ¥300 a piece. A potato ricer might be more appropriate than the nice stainless press my parents gave me. The Aomori garlic is to the left.

The heads were broken up at the beginning of the week, only today did I start planting them. A dozen hakusai (Chinese cabbage), several cabbages, and a few broccoli plants jumped the queue. Still got about a hundred cloves to plant, but hopeful the bending over will keep us stocked closer to a year.

Over the weekend, both of my wife’s uncles chose to harvest the rice. Whilst my father-in-law went to help his brother, I turned up about ten-ish to help Shigeki.
After Shigeki (pictured), did the edges (to keep the smile on his face), I ploughed the field ready for next year.

The combine was then jump-started and off he rode, standing up and if he was in driving a Panzerspähwagen. It was amusing to see him bending over to light a fag, whilst in ‘command’. Once the bulk was harvested, I had a turn and break from loading the truck up with bags of rice.
Despite the odd shower, early on, it turned out to be a good day for it. After harvesting rice, most people drive off to a nearby grain store to sell their rice, resulting in queues that last for hours. Fortunately, on our two trips, this was not the case. Later some of the rice will be redeemed from the silos in lieu of full payment. At the weigh-in, the combined loads came to 810.6 kg, about 32 kg a sack.

On our return, I got the job of mooching around a field, with 50 kg of ‘stuff that makes the rice taste good’ (I think it was a herbicide) on my back, scattering it about. Following several loads, it was back on the tractor before retiring for a bowl tan tan men noodles and gyoza. I was rather sad to call it a day.

I first noticed the autumn beers were out on the shelves in the third week in August. A month on, summer is still to give way. It seems any ounce of creativity or drive I had has been wicked away by the unrelenting humidity (it’s back). Somewhat untimely, as the previous week I started a little teaching and have to dream up engaging lesson plans.
Miho’s wedding broke the monotony of the month. During the reception, I enjoyed watching people rushing around with bottle of beer, introducing themselves, filling glasses and hurrying back to grab another bottle. It was rather like one of those Japanese endurance games, but in suits and kimonos. Rather surprisingly, I felt bright as button the following day.
The garden is much the same, if a little tidier, still waiting for the strong sun to fade. Kento continues to stumble about and is keen on pulling himself onto anything head height.

In the paper the other day, there was an article about the finding of ハマオモトヨトウ (Brithys crini) caterpillars in the prefecture. They were last since around parts in the mid Fifties. The name is derived from their favoured plant Hamaomoto, found between Minami-Kantō and Okinawa. The report shows a chap with hundreds of larvae swarming around a plant in his garden. Surprisingly, it cites the greenhouse effect and the rise in CO2 levels as the cause.

Since the remaining tomatoes were getting a touch of Botrytis, the chutney making plans were brought forward. I would have liked to have harvested a couple of kilos of the larger momotaro. However, I had to make up the first kilo with the firmer skinned iko. The mix was bulked out further with the addition of a couple of aubergines and a courgette. I’ll add a recipe to the appropriate section in a few weeks, it will need in the least a few weeks to mature.

It has rained since Monday and looks set to continue throughout the whole of next week. After the first day, the ground was sodden and the mizo full. Overnight the rain has been particularly heavy. While the water soon drains away, the ground could do with a thorough drying out. The weather seems to go from one extreme to the other; it wouldn’t be so bad if it were every other day. As a result, the lingering green tomatoes are splitting, weeds are overrunning, and the deshima potatoes have rotted in the ground. The flipside is that the sweet potatoes and asparagus are benefiting.

The allotted patch isn’t great, however it is a distance from the rest of veg. Earlier six raspberry plants were transplanted. About a tenth of the number of mosquito bites I picked up. The canes are dry and only one has some leaves, albeit limp ones. Nevertheless, they might perk up and should fare better than their cardboard box home.

We have had a bit of rain overnight, very much nearer the beginning of the week. The seedbed holds one uneaten kohlrabi, a few beetroot shoots, and a tangle of weeds that have appeared suddenly. The cucumbers have become few and far between, I took the last three and added the vine to the freshly charged compost bin. It’s brimming with weeds at the moment. Below is possibly the pick of the crop.

I gave the patch chosen for the raspberries and digging over. It should be double dug it, but it so hot and humid (earlier today it was 35°C). I really can’t be arsed, the raspberries can’t wait until I can. After a few hours, I called it an afternoon and had a beer (it isn’t beer though).
I quite liked the idea of swapping it for a Strigil, the tool used to scrape in Roman baths.

Lit: when rain fall?
It’s been above thirty degrees for weeks. Whilst the humidity has rendered me lethargic, the lack of water has turned the veg patch into parched wasteland - with a few tomatoes. The seedlings survived a week of thunderstorms, but the heat, dry earth and the herbivores has been too much for them to endure. Moreover, I’ve not seen one carrot top.
Early September should bring a change to the weather and the odd shower may offer some respite until then. Although there are plans for autumn and winter vegetables, I reckon the cauliflowers will get the drop and make room for another seed scattering.