[ad_1]
As soon as we entered Anželika Kedar’s courtyard, we heard a warning to turn off the Internet on our mobile phones; In the village on the outskirts of Belarus, the bills can be very unpleasant. However, this inconvenience is quickly forgotten when a huge dog rushes in and waves to greet the hostess, and two beautiful horses bob their heads nearby.
Grows organically
A woman born in Gomel County, Belarus, first came to Lithuania at the age of 16, then returned as an adult, married, gave birth to two children, raised them alone after divorce, and worked in a garden childhood. Later, she remarried and her path strayed from Lithuania, first to Moscow, where a man worked, and then to Israel. There, Anželika says that she received the first lessons in organic farming, which she is now trying to apply on her farm.
The organic farm in the Šalčininkai district grows various kinds of organic salads, beets and their leaves, onion leaves, coriander, dill, tomatoes. All this can be found on the tables of Vilnius restaurants and on the stalls of shops selling organic products. Chickens are born here too, which the hostess says she only feeds organic food. And at the dam, Anželika’s two beautiful horses constantly crave her attention: one came with her even from Israel, and the other woman already bought it in Lithuania.
Sigismund Gedvila / 15min photo / Angelica Kedar’s Farm
“My story is, so to speak, feminine: a strong woman who dreamed of the land. I love artistic souls, dancing, drawing, riding horses, sewing. I do a lot, I really like everything that has to do with natural materials , the land and nature itself, the animals. All this surrounds us here, everything is very close to me. This is my dream, I have dreamed of having such a farm for ten years, “says Anželika.
My story is, so to speak, feminine: a strong woman who dreamed of the land.
He bought a house in the Šalčininkai district without even seeing it: “I had two conditions: that the land should be at least one hectare and that the neighbors should not be closer than a kilometer apart. I found such a piece, I asked a friend to organize the paperwork and everything. Then a year later, I came to see what I had bought. I was already living in Israel at that time. “
Fell in love with Lithuania at first sight
Anželika dreamed of having a corner of her land while still living in Lithuania, but only after surviving in Israel for about 8 years does she claim that she has realized that she can now make her dream come true. “The prices were good, so I started looking. I lived there, I saw it online. When I saw the farm, which suited me both for its price and its location, I asked a friend who came, looked and confirmed: this It’s what I want. 3.8 acres, neighbors away, so I should take. So I decided, “recalls the woman.
Perhaps he could have established such a farm elsewhere? However, he says he deliberately chose Lithuania – he fell in love with the country for the first time.
“The energy is great here, rural life and that distance, nobody comes to you. Let’s say that Russia, Belarus is constantly thinking, and what will people say? It is not here. Although there is also rural life in Belarus, to the people he really likes to get into someone else’s personal life which has a huge impact, it has bothered me so much there since I was a kid, I’m out of breath from this.
Sigismund Gedvila / 15min photo / Angelica Kedar’s Farm
And here in Lithuania the way of life is very close to me, many people with an artistic soul who sew, weave, animals, everything … nobody left anything “, – Anželika praises Lithuania and Lithuanians.
When asked if he deliberately chose a region near Belarus, he denies it: he looked around the plot of land somewhere around Molėtai, Švenčionis. “I didn’t even know that Švenčionys and Šalčininkai are completely different areas,” he admits with a smile.
And that uncontaminated nature – I can’t help but wonder how the crowds of people leave the green lakes and the beach is kept completely clean, beautiful, nobody left anything.
Organic agriculture was studied in Israel
His desire to establish a place here for people with artistic soul to meet, organize meetings, trainings, camps. So far, trying to apply the experience gained in Israel: “Unfortunately, my marriage to an Israeli has collapsed, but I have taken away a lot of good things that are related to agriculture. I completed organic agriculture courses there organized by the Israeli Ministry of Agriculture.
The courses were amazing because they are led even by doctors who share their experience working with vegans, vegetarians, provide specific analysis and research results of those people and their illnesses by eating fruits and vegetables from supermarkets instead of organic food, believing that they are just as good and useful. None of that, I heard that it is impossible to wash it, clean it, it is like a poison. When ingesting these chemicals in such amounts, it is best not to become vegetarian or vegan. If you don’t eat organically. “
In Israel, the woman grew organic pomegranates, squeezed their juice, owned vineyards, made wine without additives, and also had olive trees: she squeezed about 250-300 liters of olive oil a year and salted about 500 kilograms of olives.
Sigismund Gedvila / 15min photo / Angelica Kedar Cheeses
Now all this is a thing of the past and a woman appreciates Lithuanian vegetables with her own hands. When asked what this organic farming is, Angélica is open: “It is a way of life. Many are pushing for organic farming due to higher EU payments, but it should be a way of life that aims to produce really clean products.
We are faced with the need for compost. Here we are rescued by goats and horses, although this is not enough for us to fertilize the land. In our area, it is quite poor, so we constantly mulch the land. Two years ago, I bought about 10 trailers, each with about 25 tons of straw. I spent € 200 on a straw because I wanted to cover the whole area with it. He looked at me like crazy, but what farmers, important to buy. I did a soil test before and after mulching; the quality improved almost four times a year. “
Anželika also raises goats, they live on an empty farm in the neighborhood. The woman, who loves milk very much, says that as soon as she learned about the value of goat’s milk, she decided to buy goats. Now she has nine, makes cheeses, studied them in courses, visited the south of France, organic farms, where she also gained experience in making cheeses with white mold. Now she is trying to apply this experience and what can be confirmed by testing Angélica cheeses, she succeeds.
The horse came from Israel
Anželika takes care of the farm with her two children. One is an artist, a dancer, who picked grapes in vineyards in France this summer, the second is a more technical mastermind of the estate, as the woman says, but also of an artistic nature, having already shown her blacksmith work in exhibitions.
One, my beloved, flew with me from Israel. The plane flew three horses to Belgium, from where we have already brought it 1,800 km.
Anželika also calls her children two horses. “One, my beloved, flew with me when I moved from Israel. The plane, practically business class, flew three horses to Belgium, from where we had already done it 1,800 km one way. He’s a great man, he was standing in the trailer for 26 hours, ”Anželika said of the assembled animal.
When asked who needs it, he responds instantly and very simply: “Because I can love.”
The second horse appeared on his farm as a gift, dismissed as unfit for sports. And both horses were born on the same day, February 14, with only two years of difference between them and one in Lithuania, the other in Israel, only now he received a Lithuanian “passport”.
Sigismund Gedvila / 15min photo / Angelica Kedar’s Farm
While looking for a plot in Lithuania, Anželika knew exactly what she would do on that farm: “I wanted people of an artistic nature to meet here, to have cognitive seminars and yoga to take place. I myself was dedicated to both dancing and sewing, pottery, everything that interested me. So it was important to me: if you want to bring everyone together, you have to feed everyone and eat good food. And you need to put everyone to sleep, a place where everyone can be, have a big desk, a big kitchen. After all, I will not invite everyone home, it would cause discomfort, it would suffice to say several times that it is enough. So we started to think about the guesthouses and the kitchen first. “
I only survive for one thing: that not everything is very finished with us, so much work.
For the second year in a row, Anželika is more active on the farm, inviting people, never giving up if someone is interested and wants to come. “I only survive for one thing: that everything is not finished yet in our country, so much work. During the quarantine, we encouraged ourselves and began to invite volunteers to help us on the farm ”, admitted the host of the farm.
The threat of a coronavirus, however, not only blew courage, it also significantly adjusted the plans for this season. Angelica says that she has many friends in Israel, who admire the way of life on the farm, along with the animals, only that no one could come this year.
By inviting guests, Anželika ensures that she wants to focus on families with children, so that they know where the eggs are, the milk, what a goat, horse or hen looks like on the table.
[ad_2]
