Summary of the Interview with the local farmer Martin Keller
The journey to the local farm was a great experience as we learned a lot about apples and gained knowledge about farming. Martin Keller didn’t just told us the answers to our questions, he also showed us the apple plantation, other fruit trees and told us about differences between the sorts, he gave us apples and apple cider (Apfelmost) to try and he told us different stories about his job which actually is also a big part of his life.
Arriving at the farm, first of all, Martin showed us around. Interestingly, the local farmer owns more than 12 different sorts of apples as well as pears, cherries, grapes but also horses, cows and the naughty (frech) cat called Flocke.
The lifecycle of an apple trees starts with choosing and growing the baby tree, they are grown in tree nurseries (Baumschulen) and can bought with an age of one or two years. Martin Keller personally tend to buy two years old trees as first apples can be harvested from the apple trees third living-year on. More...
Last week the first climate lawsuit in Germany was negotiated in Berlin. Although the complaint was rejected, the three farmers concerned and their lawyer speak of a partial success.
Two weeks before the trial Claus Blohm leaves his harvest. A coach parks in his yard, next to it boxes full of apples with brown spots. Young people in Greenpeace rain jackets line up around the fruit trees, which did not bear a single apple this year after last year's hot summer. Blohm wants to show the young people that climate change is not taking place somewhere in the world and not just in computer simulations - but here, More...
Hello everyone!
We have an interesting project idea: the life cycle of a local product. In our view it is very important that we support local farmers and buy regional fruits and vegetables.
We would like to show the different steps from how an apple tree got planted to how and when the apples will be picked from the tree. We want to find out how big or small the ecological footprint of this production and its impact on the climate is. In conclusion: What is needed that such a popular product ends up in the grocery store?
We look forward to find some other people who are interested in joining us and do the same project in their country so that we can compare our results. If you are interested, please comment this post and we will contact you as soon as possible.
Tamara Keller and Simone Etter, TZ 19
Nashi-Pear (Pyrus pyrifolia var. culta) also called Apple-Pear or Asian-Pear originate from the Rosaceae family (Rosengewächs) and was raised in China. Its name is japanese as "nashi" means pear (fun fact: We call it "pear-pear" 😄). In Japan there are 1'000 to 1'200 different sorts. They are mainly cultivated in East-Asia but in todays time also in Europe, South America and other parts of the world. This is because this species is able to abide temperatures up to minus 20 degrees celsius, therefore this plant also survives the cold swiss winters outside. The more sun and the less wind the better and profitable the harvest. The bountiful crop can be gathered in August/September. The nashi-pear consist more water than pears originated in Europe but the nutritional values are about the same. The trees don't have a gender, they are all hybrids and nontoxic. More...