Sora Farm
Tag: island roots market
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Sora Farm Newsletter-Vol. 68
Cherry blossoms are famous in Japan but camellias are beautiful at this time of the year. These are Sasanqua Camellias, and the name writes as 山(mountain) 茶(tea) 花(flower). They are popular roadside trees or park trees as both flowers and leaves are alive and beautiful in winter. Leaves can be used as tea. Last week
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Sora Farm Newsletter-Vol. 67
A happy new year! To me, new year comes with sunrise rather than countdown at midnight, especially when I am getting older and it’s getting hard to stay up late… For a few days before new year, people clean their home and cook special dishes, and on New Year’s day, they keep eating and spend
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Sora Farm Newsletter-Vol. 66
Our farm is guarded by an owl (and our kind neighbours) while we are away. It is almost New Year’s Day, which is the biggest celebration in Japan, and the preparation has already begun. Family routine of New Year’s Eve in my childhood was visiting a nearby shrine around midnight, praying for happiness for the
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Sora Farm Newsletter-Vol. 65
All markets are done for 2025! It has been quite a journey for us. Our garden has less rocks and more nutrients than last year after so much digging, or so we hope… We have ordered 2 truck loads of compost and many bottles of vegetable seeds for next year, but for now, let us
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Sora Farm Newsletter-Vol. 64
My childhood memory of Christmas is decorating a tree, and eating a strawberry shortcake with my family. Christmas is not a national holiday in Japan. They say that only 1% or less of the population are Christians. Most of the people celebrate Christmas with no religious meaning attached. So, how all the celebration started? At
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Sora Farm Newsletter-Vol. 63
Did you know that sushi was originally fermented food? Recently, we came across this video about the history of sushi, and found it very interesting… More than 1200 years ago, original form of sushi came from Southeast Asia as a means of preserving fish. Fish were salted and preserved with rice for 2 years. Then
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Sora Farm Newsletter-Vol. 62
Have you heard of “hamanatto”? We discovered it during our trip to Japan last year. It is not the same as sticky, slimy “natto”. It is preserved food/condiment made with black beans. They are full of umami. Last week, my koji teacher in Toronto had a class online and we all made it. Process is
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Sora Farm Newsletter-Vol. 61
November 23 is “Labour Thanksgiving Day” in Japan. We have never fully understood what this holiday is about, so we did some research. Labor Thanksgiving Day originates from a ceremony named niinamesai. This ceremony is held at the Imperial Court for the Emperor to offer new crop of rice to the gods of heaven and
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