March Beach Cleanup Day in Onjuku

I was going to write a blog about the March beach cleanup, but nearly two weeks passed in the blink of an eye, and now it’s April.

4 People

On Sunday, March 20th, in addition to my husband and I, Yuriko and Fumio, our field friends, came to Iwawada for a beach cleanup.

As in January, there were not many large trash and fishing nets, but microplastics (plastic smaller than the hole in a 5-yen-coin), cigarette butts, and beverage containers such as cans and plastic bottles were noticeable. Some of the more unusual items were smoke candle, glass ornament in the shape of turtle, and contact lens cases.

It was still cold on this day, but it was a day with many surfers.
When we pass a certain surfer in the parking lot, he said to us,
“Thank you for your hard work!”

On this day, we were on our way home from the farm and wearing coveralls and boots to clean up.
“I bet he mistook us for public cleaning staffs😂”
No doubt!

March is the month of growth

The last time we plowed the field to plant spring and summer vegetables was on March 5. Less than a month has passed since then, but the fava beans have shown amazing growth.

The beans have grown more than three times as tall, and there is no space at all between them, making them too dense and stuffy. The warm weather and good rainfall have created the right conditions for plants and trees to grow. As a beginner in the field, I was surprised and happy to see them grow so big all at once.

The grass has become vigorous and lush, so next weekend, Saturday, April 9, the main work on seed sowing day will be weeding.

I can’t wait for the day when the green pods will be visible among the withered petals now that so many flowers have bloomed.
However, I wonder if the red stem is some kind of disease or not..😔