A brief glimpse into a day in the life of modern day rural Japan. Selective management of a Hinoki Cypress forest on a mountainside.
I had the rare opportunity to assist grandpa in the management of his acre or so of mountainside Hinoki Cypress forest. From time to time he selectively thins the trees and removes windfall to encourage healthy growth and make use of the wood. He has recently planted some Oaks that will be used for cultivating shitake mushrooms and wanted to clear some canopy space to allow the small trees to catch up.
At 90, he is not at all short-sighted, the Oaks may not be ready for a decade or more, yet he is investing in the project for the benefit of future generations. I hope that there are some in the younger generations that can understand and learn this way of thinking.
90 years old and planning for 2030. Ready to roll for the day.
View from the mountain across the rice fields.
View of the garden from the mountain side.
Plenty of light coming into the new glades, now time to move all that wood down the 30 degree slope and stack it up.
To the left, some windfall left to help prevent erosion and slides into the backs of the homes. To the right some of the cut wood, about two-thirds of the way down the slope, and above it the finished and cleared area.
Mountain access path through the bamboo grove. The bottom of the mountain slope extends right to the homes.
Sharpening A Kama
this is a bit sketchy as i had to hold the stone on edge to sharpen the tight inside radius, immediately (for real) following this video i built a wooden holder to keep the stone on edge…the old steel seems to be the best, though anything made properly from aogami or shirogami is gonna be great too.