[Visit to a Branch Producer] New Income Source for Forestry Workers: Establishment of an Andromeda Japonica Production Area in Kurotaki Village, Nara Prefecture

Asebi, one of summer's representative cut branches, may face a supply shortage

There are two main methods for harvesting "cut branches."

The first is artificial cultivation in a cut branch field, known as "cultivated branches."

The second is harvesting plants that grow naturally in the mountains, known as "wild-harvested."

In recent years, the demand for wild-harvested varieties like Doudan Azalea and Asebi has surged, leading to potential supply shortages.

Hearing this, my journey to find cut branches began.

While Asebi grows wild throughout Japan, Nara, Wakayama, and Mie prefectures are particularly known for their beautiful Asebi with fine leaves. We reached out to various forest associations in Nara Prefecture through our network, and eventually connected with the Kurotaki Village Forest Association.

A "forest association" is an organization where forest owners collectively engage in forest conservation and forestry-related businesses. However, they have been facing challenging conditions in recent years due to declining timber prices.

Mr. Matoba of the Kurotaki Village Forest Association stepped forward, expressing a desire to overcome this situation and explore potential new income sources beyond construction materials like cedar and cypress.

We immediately set off to see the Asebi in the mountains, but the journey to our destination was terrifying.

As our car navigated the narrow forest road with continuous sharp turns, there was a sheer cliff right beside us... It was incredibly scary! Apparently, this road was also built by the forest association members. It truly is a life-threatening job.

Along the way, we spotted deer in the distance. They also encounter bears about once a year (!).

After a hair-raising journey, we arrived at our destination, where we found numerous magnificent Asebi with glossy small leaves! We were delighted by the beauty of this treasure we had finally found, but for forestry workers, it's treated as "weeds" growing at the base of construction timber like cedar and cypress.

They were very surprised to hear that the Asebi they had been meticulously cutting and disposing of could now be sold as a product.

Although Asebi is evergreen, new shoots begin to emerge around April to May. They cannot be shipped when the new shoots are young and red, as they are prone to wilting.

They become ready for shipment around June when the new shoots have hardened a bit and turned yellowish-green, and their green color deepens through July and August.

To guide the people of Kurotaki Village, who were new to shipping ornamental cut branches, Mr. Kashiwabara (left in the photo), in charge of cut branches at Naniwa Hana Ichiba, and Mr. Konishi (right in the photo), a producer with 20 years of Asebi shipping experience, accompanied them.

They generously shared their knowledge on pruning and sorting methods.

Asebi from Kurotaki Village is already being used in our "Summer Cut Branches" deliveries from late June to mid-August.
*Asebi from other regions is also used.

Excluding Mr. Konishi, all major Asebi producers currently shipping to Naniwa Hana Ichiba are elderly, and many are expected to retire within the next few years.

Many cut branch production areas we have visited, such as Iwaki City in Fukushima Prefecture and Mount Akagi in Gunma Prefecture, face the same challenges.

If nothing is done, the distribution volume of cut branches in Japan will continue to decrease, and the culture of "cut branches" will cease to exist.

SiKiTO will continue to do what it can to ensure that we can keep delivering "a life with cut branches" to our customers.

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