Author Archives: marerobster

Poor Ruedi. Our choir is tuning our concert repretoire at a retreat in a beautiful Black Forest resort. While the rest of us butter nutty whole wheat croissants and top slices of braided loaves with our Black Forest ham, Ruedi … Continue reading →

Every farmer knows a tractor burns fuel when used and makes sure to check the gauge every so often. No one wants to be left stranded at the side of the road or field. But if we don’t check, there’s … Continue reading →

As kids, if we were angry with each other, we’d yell, “You’re a dumb cow!” We had it wrong. Cows aren’t dumb. If anything, their owners might be, because they don’t understand what their cows are saying to them. Communication … Continue reading →

Pastel primula cover whole lawns, violets push through the dead grass, and the winter cereals are a lush green. Spring is in the Swiss air, and so is liquid manure and Decis. The beginning of the growing season is a … Continue reading →

Tuscany holiday highlights are supposed to be admiring Michelangelo’s statue of David in the Galleria dell ‘Accademia in Florence, or visiting the many duomos (domes) of cities like Siena with their frescos and marble carvings. We didn’t see David – … Continue reading →

We’re back ‘home’ in Switzerland, far from the Tuscan sun and ocean and olive groves. We never did get to visit with the bigger farmer. Instead we got a lesson in organic olive farming from Serena di Malfatto and husband … Continue reading →

“We’re both farmers,” I tell Serena, as we check in at the Agriturismo Costa Etrusca in the Tuscany. We’re spending the week at their resort and small farm near San Vincento, on the Tuscany coast. “And you come to stay … Continue reading →

How could 2011 be a record year for sugar beet yields in Switzerland? Remember the picture I posted last May during the drought with my hand deep in a crack in a sugar beet field? And then many fields got … Continue reading →

I’ve been watching something happening these last years, since Robert quit farming, which I think has important consequences for the next generation. It’s not unique to Robert either, which is why I want to pass this on here. He talks … Continue reading →

I needed a discussion group like this one 30 years ago – when I first married Robert and moved onto the Swiss family farm with him. Not just with him, but with his mom and dad, and on the weekends … Continue reading →