Monday - Day One at Second Nature Organic Farm

I’m sure our WWOOF host got a good chuckle when he picked us up at the train station in Narangba today.   We stepped off in our pleather jackets, big sunglasses, make up on, hair done with 2 huge bags, and lots of extra stuff.  Not exactly looking like farmer hands! The farm is only about 2 minutes from town and the train station, which makes me happy.  We can be introduced to the farm experience, but still not be completely isolated and out in the middle of No-where-ville.  We went on a short tour of the farm, and then had lunch outside with the family. Len, his wife Renee, and their children, ages 4 and 4 months live in one house, and Len's parents live in another house on the property.  They emigrated from Italy and started this farm raising chooks (chickens), but now Len focuses on organic fruits and vegetables.

Then it was time for work! What did our afternoon of work look like?  Well, we started out putting tree branches in a pile.  Easy stuff.  And then it was time to shovel cow sh@t.  Oh yes, I can hear everyone laughing from here – hahaha - so hilarious! I can just see you at home cracking up at the image of us two shoveling manure.  Sorry – no photo documentation was taken, so you’ll have to leave that image to your imagination.  How did this work you ask?  Well, there was a guy driving a tractor with a bucket in the back filled with manure.  Pam and I spread the manure out over the crops with a shovel for about an hour or so.  Believe me, the sh#t and cr%p jokes were flying.  What a load of cr$p! We are shootin’ the s&it.  Hahaha, I guess that is what some would call “character building. “ I'll tell you what... I’ve never smelled so bad in my life.

Kale seedlings ready to plant in pots

We then got to plant some kale seedlings in pots.  Now this was way more our style.  We did have to mix in “blood and bones” which is an organic fertilizer made from the remains of a cow.  It sounds pretty gruesome, but it really just looked like sawdust. We were done by 4 and had time to shower, relax, and watch TV.  Our accommodations are separate from the family and pretty nice.  We have a separate bathroom, fridge, and sitting room.   The family made us an awesome dinner, and then it was time for bed since we get up at 7:30 AM.  Agh.  The holiday is over.   So, we will work Monday through Friday with the weekend off to explore the area or take the train to the beach.  I do have to say it feels pretty great to do a little work, to be outside, and to have some meals prepared for us for a few weeks.  We'll see how I feel in a few days!

Banana trees