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Solar Cafe & Farm’s Mt Fuji White Eggplant! mmm…..
Traditional and Hi-tech Japanese Farm Tools
Hirata-san, our rice farming teacher, shows us here the traditional Japanese hand tool for weeding rice fields. The wooden machine with the skis is old style. The long pipe with the chains is Hirata-san’s original tool! He is using ancient know-how, a simple hand pulled device, with modern ideas. His new tool can do 10 rows at once, instead of one at a time like in the past. This... [Read more]
Japanese Cedar Soaking Bath at the Shojiko House
This soaking tub was retro-fit into the bathroom at the Shojiko reformed Minka home. We also added a large step for easy access and a spot to sit and swing your legs over the edge into the tub for elderly bathers. The double pane windows were added for extra warmth, and the original maple leaf glass on the north side was retained for charm, and so we actually have triple paned glass there. The house... [Read more]
UA came to visit the cafe again!
One of Japan’s biggest divas and recording stars, Ua, came to visit the cafe again this year. She and her husband have a farm in Nagano and she stops by for lunch with her kids once in awhile on her way through our area. She is one of the brave ones, a pioneer in J-pop as well as the new farm cuisine trend, as so many Japanese love to stare and point at our cafe as they drive by, but are afraid... [Read more]
Companion planting, white eggplant and basils
Wow! That rock flew out of Mt Fuji!!!
Our neighbor Watanabe-san was digging away with his tractor, bringing up rocks to sell for stone wall building, and one day the tractor was stopped for a few hours so I went to see what was up. I found him in this 5m hole with a hammer and chisel, breaking up this behemoth by hand! These local boys know how to get it done. I think he is secretly planning a pyramid.
1 Day Mini Farm House
At the Solar Cafe Farm we have 2 new interns, Jane and Marc, agricultural and business students from a university in southern California have joined us for a three month program. We have 5 interns now and a lack of rooms, so we decided to put up a quick summer home with materials on hand. The 19mm greenhouse arches will hold a large blue-sheet tarp which will make a large waterproof roof to extend... [Read more]
Our stage, ready and waiting.
The warm weather on Mt Fuji has us getting ready for a busy summer season at the Solar Cafe. The event space is available for rental. Contact us for bookings.
Organic Mint Chocolate Strawberry Tofu Cheesecake!!!
New on the Solar Cafe menu….this cake is made with organic mint and strawberries grown on our own farm, and fair trade organic 100% cocoa powder from Alishan. The “cheese” cake is made with tofu instead of cheese, so it is waaaay healthy too!
Companion Plants. Our salad lettuce and carrots together again!
Eco-Greenhouse & Earthships Building Workshop
This summer we will build a passive solar Earth Ship greenhouse that can be used as a living space or for growing plants year round. Earth Ships are built largely with recycled materials, most of which are easily available and free for the asking. Used, steel-belted automobile tires, packed solid with earth, become giant 400- pound bricks that create sound-proof, fire and earthquake resistant, fortress-... [Read more]
Companion Planting; Organic Rice, Wheat and Soy Beans
We planted our first rice paddy today! The organic rice “ine” (seedlings) are especially adapted to thrive with the cold weather we have been having this year. We planted about 125 tsubo (410m2) which should yield about 200kg of rice come harvest time in November. Seven Earth Embassy farm staff and interns did this in about 2 hrs. Thats 100kg an hour! We also helped local farmer Hirata-san... [Read more]
The Solar Shower is heating up!
The solar shower at the Solar Cafe & Guest House catches rainwater from our roof, which is stored in 3 (200litre) tanks in an insulated box which heats up in the sunlight. The building itself was done with recycled floor boards from the Shojiko High Village house second floor. The boards are over 150 years old, with the original ax marks still showing where they were hand hewn long before advent... [Read more]
Our Fruits are almost Ripe ALREADY!!!!
Despite a chilly spring, all of our fruits and berries are already coming! The strawberries will be ripe within the week, the blueberries are getting some size to them, and the peaches are already starting to get a little yellow around the edges. It is going to be an amazing year for pies and shakes at the Solar Cafe. We also just perfected the recipe for our own HOME-MADE graham cracker crusts... [Read more]
Solar Cafe’s Spiral Kitchen Garden, fresh for the pot!!!
Shojiko Kitchen – Classic Japanese meets Ikea
Reforming this kitchen was the biggest adventure of the whole house. We pushed out the south wall into the garden, and added big windows to let the light in and a deck next to the pond. The heated cherry floors were the only place in the house where we used imported wood; every where else is Japanese cedar. The real charm was when we exposed the beams above the drop ceiling that had been added.... [Read more]
The treehouse
Basil and Rasberry canes in pots, open for business….
Top Sercet – Basil Pesto Pizza!
Wild Strawberries and Wild Dogs
These strawberries are actually a man-made variety that has grown wild in our home garden. They have been unattended for over 10 years, but are still growing strong, complete natural farming. We simply go in once a year and pull out some of the weeds around them. Even our animals help! Nora-chan, a wild dog from the village who adopted us last year, loves eating grass and was a big help with the... [Read more]
