🍅The goodness of the land🍅

It's been days since I've been around here, several drastic changes have happened these weeks that demanded all my time. One of them was the tomato harvest. A few months ago we planted a few beds and after a fruitful production we are harvesting the last of the season.

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The rains are about to start and what is left of the plants is close to being destroyed by the water, the intense summer sun and the high temperatures. Pests emerge even more than the rest of the year and take over the greenest leaves in the field, although they are few in number. The drought this year was quite prolonged and as we just moved into this house, we don't have the infrastructure to accommodate the weather.

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I am very happy, as the harvest has been long, it has been extended despite not having any irrigation. We have been consuming and delivering top quality tomatoes to neighbours and relatives for two months.

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The plants are still struggling to leave seeds of their fruits everywhere, smaller in size, but in industrial quantities. So we take advantage of this time of year to pick them and make a tomato sauce that we will preserve later.

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For those who have the responsibility of a harvest and the connection with the cycles of nature, the perfect weekend is not always when you go for a walk to see a new place or simply have dinner in your favourite restaurant. A perfect weekend suddenly turns into days of intense work, where your greatest reward is to receive the goodness left behind as a result of great sacrifice.

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The first thing we did was to pick and select the largest tomatoes for the salad and the smaller, but equally good quality ones for the sauce.

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After being thoroughly washed we beat them well to create a tomato paste. This pulp is then strained and separated from the seeds and other impurities that could damage the taste. At this point, all that is left is to cook on a very low heat until the quantity is reduced by almost 50 percent. I particularly add salt, a pinch of sugar and some spices.

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When people pass by on the street and see you with a guataca in your hand or carrying a sack of organic material for your garden, they are bewildered, hesitant... and almost always the first expression that comes out of their mouths is... - "You're crazy, girl! Hahahahahaha.
I don't blame them, it's true that it's crazy -or rather sane-🤔 to be sowing in these times when we want everything too fast. Waiting becomes agonising and having to accommodate to a rhythm of life where natural processes take time, where there are unexpected changes and the mind must remain open to adjust to the new reality, is really a challenge that I like to take on.

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I find no better way to be useful and feel capable than bringing a plate of healthy, organic, 0 km food to the table of my family, friends and anyone who is around with enough good vibes to share. It is one of the greatest satisfactions I have in my day to day life.

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As you can see, it has been a busy weekend. I share with you this little piece of land where already today we started to remove the plants to prepare a new sowing. Now we will plant species that, due to their characteristics, will bring other nutrients to the soil and with a good association in the crops, this patio will flourish again.

But that's...that's another story compay.

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All images are my property

- Sony SLT-A33

- Adobe Photoshop 2022

_{-Translated with www.DeepL.com/Translator (free version)}

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