佳芳茶園

「変わらないと、すぐ淘汰されます」陳麗雪さんは毅然とした表情で話します。嫁として、家族の茶畑を有機栽培の方向に変えていました。家族や親戚に反対されて、経済的にも難しかった当時はストレスは言うまでもなく大きかったでしょう。しかし彼女は自分の信じた路を歩いてきました。当時、まだ有機栽培を知られていない時に、彼女は家族の未来を考えて、そして長い間自分を支持してくれる常連客のためにやり続けてきました。

「有機栽培を始めて最初の１、２年間、茶の木は病気にかかったように見え、全く抵抗力がなくて、収穫さえできなかった。」陳麗雪さんは話してくれました。そこで、有機的な肥料を与えながら、人工で虫と雑草を排除し、茶の木の抵抗力を高めて、土地に地力を回復させました。幸い、3年目になって、茶の木は健康に回復して、その上お茶改良場の協力を得て、一部のお茶葉が病気になりにくくなり、そして深層の海の水で灌漑して、酸素が高く含まれる台湾の原生の種類の「青心大冇」をついに収穫できました。その後、彼女は続々と新しい品種を植え始めました。
　現在は金萱、などがあって、自然生態もゆっくりと形成して、小さくて緑のヨコバイ、クモ、螳ミミズ、翻る虫が次第に茶畑での中で現れてきました。

　2010年から、自分のお茶畑を体験できるようなスペースを企画しました。自ら観光客を茶畑まで連れて、お茶に関する様々なイベントを開催しました。例 えば、取り立ての茶葉をそのままミキサーに入れ、梅や蜂蜜を少々加えたら、葉緑素たっぷり、ヘルシーな緑茶は出来上がります。または、小麦粉と緑茶を混ぜ て緑茶入りの中華パンも楽しめます。或いは小麦粉、卵白、バターを赤いウーロン茶と混ぜ、練り粉になってサクッとした口当たりのヨックモックの風味は味わ えます。皆でお茶を飲みながら、お菓子作りにも熱心になって、ワイワイしながらできたてのお菓子を満喫する旅の思い出になるのが彼女の願いです。

茶畑の体験が５年目になった今、彼女は今のところ隣近所(の人)に「一軒に一特徴」と提唱し、周辺の農家達みんなそれぞれの特徴を最大限に発揮し、若い人が故郷へ帰って働くような「有機村」を作り上げること。それが彼女の理想と目標です。

“Either change, or fold up” said Li-Shiue, Chen with a determined expression. As a daughter in law, she determined to turn the family-owned tea garden from traditional farming to organic farming. Facing relatives’ questioning and economic pressure, Mrs. Chen still got through it. When others still didn’t recognize organic farming, or disapprove it, she persisted to do it for her home and her long-term loyal customers.

“In the first and second year doing organic farming, every tea tree looked like being sick, lifeless, lack of immunity, not to mention about harvest.” Mrs. Chen recalled. At that time, only organic fertilizer can be applied, rid of bugs and cut grass by hands, in order to improve tea trees’ immune system, and revive the strength of land. Fortunately, in the third year, tea trees came back to health, with the help of Tea Research and Extension Station. Tea Research and Extension Station helped Mrs. Chen re-plant partially strong, highly resistant, and Oxygen-full Taiwan’s original specie “Qinqxindamao”, and irrigate the tea garden by deep ocean water. Finally, a bit of harvest resulted. Later, Mrs. Chen subsequently replaced the tea garden with the new specie. Now, there are Jin-Xuan and Qinqxindamao in the tea garden, and eco-system has gradually formed, small green leafhoppers, spiders, mantises, ladybugs have gradually appeared in the tea garden.

In the year 2010, Mrs. Chen arranged her tea garden as an experience ground. She led tourists to experience tea pick-up activity, to observe tea garden’s eco-system, and even to experience tea-making DIY. Every year she racked her brain in order let tourists have a good time. For example, she washed tea leaves which were just picked up and put them into juicer to make green tea. Then, she added honey and plums into the green tea to make it a healthy drink. While adding green tea into flour, it became the skin of Chinese herbal rice cake DIY. Or, adding flour, egg white, and cream into red-oolong tea, and mixing all into flour paste, and then it became an egg roll. “Every time when the flavor of egg rolls spread, customers could not resist making one on his own to have a taste.” Mrs. Chen laughed happily, and continued, “Enjoying egg rolls with the tea drink made on site, everyone is leaving with satisfaction and delighted mood.”              

It has been four years since the launch of the tea garden experience activity. Now, Mrs. Chen wants to lead the neighbors to form an organic village in the community by the concept of a feature a household. She hopes young people will be willing to come back to the village, and elderly then will have chance to let young people inherit cultural asset and tradition of the old generation. This is the dream Mrs. Chen strives to achieve in the future.