The Amish Beekeeper's Dilemma by Patrice Lewis

Author:Patrice Lewis
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Harlequin
Published: 2023-12-05T13:59:10+00:00

Chapter Nine

After lunch, Rebecca was just about to head for the garden to do some weeding when Jacob stopped her.

“I’m going to be adding to the new garden space,” he said. “I could use an extra pair of hands.”

“Ja sure.” Her words were automatic, but then she paused. Did she really want to work on a project with Jacob? A small inner voice scolded her, You do if you want to keep your job.

She mentally shrugged. Jacob was now part of Caleb’s farm whether she liked it or not. Besides, she was curious about what he planned to do with the new garden space.

“Let’s move the chicken tractor first,” he suggested as they left the house and walked toward the garden. “I want to see how much they’ve scratched up.”

For the next several hours, he kept her busy. Together they trundled the chicken tractor to a new location, and then moved and spread compost over a new section of ground.

“It’s a long-term process,” he explained as they worked. “Permaculture is not something that is built up in a year, but over several years. However, once things are in place, as much as possible it starts to mimic the way nature does things, so going forward it’s mostly maintenance-free.”

“But how can a farm turn a profit if it doesn’t grow crops?” she asked, raking an area.

“It will grow crops,” he countered. “Just not in large fields of monoculture. In some ways, Caleb’s farm is the perfect size. It’s not so big that it dwarfs what I want to try, and it’s not so small that it won’t provide enough produce to turn a profit.”

He went on and on, explaining enthusiastically about his ideas, and Rebecca listened. She began to understand he didn’t want to dismantle the work she and Caleb had done, so much as supplement it. Despite herself, she was fascinated.

“How did you get involved in this newfangled farming technique?” she asked.

“I attended a day-long seminar,” he replied. “I learned that small-scale farming doesn’t have to mean years of backbreaking labor. Permaculture nurtures the soil, it creates happy livestock and it provides meat, eggs, fruits and vegetables that everyone demands—all for less work.” He stopped and gazed over the farm for a moment, a faraway look in his eyes. “I watched my father struggle to maintain the difficult work schedule as he got older, and I recognized there’s an easier way to keep a farm running than working oneself into the ground.”

“That’s why there are daadi hauses,” she replied. “So the older people don’t have to work as hard, and the younger people can take over the burden.”

“Ja sure, but my youngest bruder wasn’t old enough to take over the farm until my daed had worked himself too hard. There had to be an easier way, and I think permaculture is the answer.”

“But you said you were working for your older bruder on his farm, and he wasn’t interested in incorporating anything you suggested?”

“Ja. My older brother is a gut man, but stubborn.

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