Narrative of Farmland Regeneration by Grazing Cattle and Feeding Weeds - May 2004

Narrative of Farmland Regeneration by Grazing Cattle and Feeding Weeds - May 2004
Back then, what I saw before my eyes was farmland that had fallen into disuse. The grass grew waist-high, mosquitoes and insects flew in the summer, and everyone was wondering what to do with the land that was becoming so desolate. With fewer and fewer people and an increasing number of elderly farmers, there was a limit to how far they could go with their mowing machines. It was then that he heard, "Why don't you let your cows loose on the land?

I was surprised to learn that this had actually been tried in Kanagawa and Tokushima. Cows eat 50 to 70 kilograms of grass a day, and after 20 days, they can see the ground. When presented with the numbers, it was as if the cows were reclaiming the land at a tangible speed. I still remember the feeling of half-laughter and half-convincing agreement when I told my colleagues that this would work.

If you graze the cows, they will not only clear away the grass. The manure they drop will eventually become manure and return nutrients to the land. I was deeply fascinated by this way of using nature as it is, without relying on herbicides or machines. Above all, the idea of "letting the cows do the work" seemed like a practical, albeit joking, solution in a time of reduced manpower.

In retrospect, I think that the way he spoke was not just an introduction of ideas, but a call to imagine the future together. We were at a loss in the face of the wasting away of the land, but the presence of cows gave us "hope". The realization that we had envisioned a form of agriculture in which we could live in harmony with nature was certainly alive and well in the discussions surrounding the revitalization of agriculture in 2004.