North of Tokyo, near Mt. Tsukuba. An old-fashioned farmhouse with a thatched roof still sits here, home to a young couple and their 2 children. Thatched roofs are eco-friendly, and a symbol of Japan's traditional farming communities. Under their roof, the Yamada family enjoy the slow life in harmony with nature. They've fostered a mutual aid network who gather for each season's farming milestones and celebrate their successes. The Yamadas' "thatched living" is at once familiar and new.

Newly-thatched home
Changing the thatch
The Yamada family
Planting-rice

Transcript

00:02

80 kilometers northeast of Tokyo, at the foot of Mt. Tsukuba, we find a home with a thatched roof, an uncommon sight these days.

00:13

This is the story of the people who live here, a life that is old-fashioned, but also forward-looking.

00:24

The family has two sisters.

00:26

Dependable Hana is a great big sister.

00:33

That's washed. Take it to Mom
and say, 'Here you are.' Little Kaya enjoys being the baby of the family.

00:47

Here's their Dad: Yamada Kotaro.

00:52

Six years ago, he left his corporate job and moved here with his family to take up organic farming.

01:03

And here's their Mom, Maiko.

01:06

She was in full agreement with the plan to raise the girls in the countryside.

01:14

And there's the family dog, Hikari.

01:22

All four of them work together, living off the farm and having fun doing it.

01:35

This area has a long New Year's tradition of making red and white mochi to decorate the tree branches.

01:47

The local farmers scolded me
for not making decorations.

01:53

So I'm fixing that!

01:57

If the family ever has questions, they start by asking their neighbors.

02:04

- Happy New Year.
- And to you.

02:08

I use coloring for the red?

02:12

Mix it in a bowl and
then make little balls.

02:21

I stopped after my husband died.

02:25

Are you the last generation
that does it?

02:30

Other folks stopped, but he made
such a fuss about doing it.

02:37

The family begins making mochi.

02:42

First, they steam rice they harvested themselves, and pound it in a large mortar.

02:50

Whatever the task, they savor it together.

03:03

Dad pounds the dough while Mom and the girls turn it.

03:11

All done!

03:21

Hana and Kaya both love freshly made mochi.

03:31

Next, they make the red mochi.

03:33

Kotaro has decided to make use of red rice they grew themselves.

03:44

I wanna do it with Dad!

03:50

Ready, go!

03:55

Ready, go!

03:59

Can you manage, Hana?
Go for it! And, go.

04:05

Kotaro decided to use red rice rather than food dye - a natural color.

04:13

The mochi balls are added to the branches.

04:17

These festive decorations are said to represent silkworm cocoons.

04:23

Why is it pink mochi?

04:27

Because red and white
are lucky colors.

04:38

The family completes the traditional decorations.

04:52

That hot water was to wash the mortar, Kaya, not for you to have a bath!

05:02

This has been the traditional life and landscape for generations of Japanese farmers.

05:09

A new family inherits this legacy as they take up thatched living.

05:28

The heart of an old thatched home is the irori hearth.

05:32

The family listens to the crackling logs as they wait for dinner.

05:46

Daikon radish, carrots, and
napa cabbage. That's it.

05:52

And miso!

05:58

Wood collected from the forest is added to the fire as organic vegetables from their fields bubble away.

06:05

A little homemade miso is added to the pot.

06:14

Thank you for this meal!
Thank you, Dad. Thank you, Mom.

06:21

Thank you, Hana. Thank you, Kaya.
Thank you, Hikari.Thank you.

06:27

Thank you, everyone.
Let's eat!

06:52

Thatched homes have high ceilings, which means air has room to circulate, staying fresh even when the fire is lit.

07:03

This house was built about a hundred years ago for a silkworm farmer.

07:09

The roof is thatched with bundles of kaya, a variety of grasses that provide excellent insulation and ventilation.

07:18

Since the thatching can be recycled, it's also an eco-friendly building material that is gaining more attention these days.

07:30

The Yamada family's thatching was last changed out over 20 years ago.

07:35

The northern side, which gets little sunlight, is covered in moss.

07:41

This could lead to problems with leaks.

07:50

Worried about his children, Kotaro has wanted to rethatch the roof for some time now.

07:56

They've been making preparations for over a year.

08:14

Today the whole family is out to gather grasses for the new roof.

08:21

Hide and seek!

08:30

In this area, Japanese pampas grass is one variety of kaya that's widely used in thatching.

08:43

Kaya was also used to make ropes and other everyday items; it was a vital resource for farming communities.

08:51

But today, it's hard to find space to harvest it.

08:57

We're by the mountains here.

09:02

There are wild boars.
No room for a tractor.

09:06

It was a bad place to grow rice,
so it was abandoned.

09:10

But it's just right
for pampas grass.

09:43

Daddy!

09:45

Ready?

09:48

All done.

09:51

By working together, they have gradually gathered enough material for a new roof.

10:05

The Yamadas live in Yasato, an area that has been struggling to find people to take over the farmland.

10:13

Kotaro was able to rent close to six acres at a low price.

10:37

It's time to plant the rice seedlings in the fields.

10:40

A large group has gathered.

10:44

Thanks for coming today.

10:47

This is our fifth planting
since we came.

10:51

You've been so good to us every
year. We're very grateful.

10:58

Thank you for joining us again.

11:01

Mr. Shimada helped with all the
seedlings we're planting today.

11:06

He also cut all the grass
around the edges.

11:09

Thank you very much.

11:13

Suzuna is in Hana's year.
Our youngest is Taisei.

11:19

We're the Totsukas. Miteki,
and Misuzu. Hi, everyone.

11:24

Hana is in first grade.
This is Emika.

11:27

Our third is due in November.

11:33

My youngest is in Kaya's class.
Hi, folks!

11:38

I'm Nakajima,
from Uwaso nearby.

11:45

I've known the Yamadas
since they were students.

11:48

I'm from Vietnam.

11:51

We went to Ibaraki's College of
Agriculture. So did Tran.

11:56

So we dragged her into this!

12:01

Most of the group are parents from Hana and Kaya's nursery school.

12:06

None of them are farmers.

12:08

But they come every year so the children can try their hand at planting rice.

12:23

Next one!

12:26

Children and parents line up in a row and plant a seedling.

12:30

A scene like this has become a rare sight in Japan's rural villages.

12:40

Hana has grown up in these fields since she was a baby.

12:44

She's already a veteran...

13:00

Other children decide to enjoy the water once they get in.

13:12

Kotaro's rice paddies use no agrochemicals whatsoever, so parents can rest easy.

13:31

They could do all of this
without me!

13:36

Next one!

13:41

Kotaro has rice paddies in nine different places, but thanks to his network of friends it takes only four days to plant them all.

13:55

After the planting comes something fun...

13:59

The fathers take turns pounding mochi.

14:02

Go for it, Dad!

14:22

It used to be normal for farming families to help each other out with big tasks.

14:27

It's a lot harder to make that happen today.

14:31

Kotaro has spent six years building this new network.

14:43

Lots in here. Garlic, potato,
zucchini, daikon radish.

14:50

Wow.

14:54

Naturally, all of the ingredients are freshly harvested from Kotaro's fields.

15:12

The dayflowers' petals gleam in the rain.

15:18

But they're blossoming on the old, moss-covered thatch.

15:21

The threat of leaks is very real.

15:28

Kotaro starts final preparations.

15:37

Today, an important guest will be coming.

15:52

This is their guest: Mitarai Takayuki.

15:57

He's one of only 200 or so thatchers left in Japan.

16:03

One of Japan's top thatchers
lives out in Aizu.

16:10

Told me Mitarai had potential,
so I introduced them.

16:15

That's not what I heard.

16:19

'You'll need my extra coaching!' We moved here in 2016.
Took up farming as well.

16:31

I asked for a house with
a storehouse as well.

16:37

They suggested this place.

16:43

A big decision.

16:46

It was already coming loose
in places back then.

16:56

Thatch will always rot.

17:00

You have to keep taking care
of the bad patches.

17:07

It's time to rethatch.

17:10

But we could replace part of it.

17:18

That will give you another
5-10 years.

17:28

For financial reasons, they decide to do a partial replacement of the thatch.

17:36

They'll start the work next February.

17:51

Kotaro heads out to harvest the summer vegetables.

17:55

He does this twice a week, covering vegetable patches in 13 different places.

18:05

He doesn't use any agrichemicals or chemical fertilizer.

18:09

So naturally there are weeds growing alongside crops.

18:22

I'm not sure what to pick.

18:34

Our fields are scattered all over.

18:37

This one drains badly.
The soil is very wet.

18:43

Water spinach likes rice-paddy
soil, so we planted it here.

18:56

The sun rises above the mountains.

19:12

Kotaro grows around fifty varieties of vegetables each year.

19:19

The star of this season is ripe tomatoes.

19:22

But relying on the power of nature alone means some fruit is lost to pests.

19:28

He carefully harvests the remaining tomatoes one by one.

19:41

He returns home after 8.

19:49

This large open space used to house people and silkworms.

19:53

It's a perfect setting for sorting vegetables.

20:00

So many tomatoes!

20:12

Once the tobacco budworms are out,
we can't harvest for a month.

20:20

We have lots of spiderwebs in
our tomato house this year.

20:28

The budworms get caught
in the webs.

20:33

And the spiders eat them up.
It's a huge help.

20:42

Tomatoes are always
a crowd pleaser, after all.

20:49

I'm glad we can pack so many up.

20:54

They pack the fresh vegetables and sell them as a delivery service.

20:59

This work keeps the Yamada family books balanced.

21:03

Around 70 households in surrounding regions look forward to their weekly boxes.

21:12

Kotaro and Maiko always add a handwritten letter.

21:18

It's called the "Gashappa Newsletter".

21:23

"July 26th.

21:26

Our fields don't use chemicals, so they house lots of bugs for swallows to eat.

21:32

The local swallows are delighted.

21:35

We hope they'll build up their strength here before migrating to south-east Asia."

21:45

"The tomatoes are great raw but their flavor is amazing when cooked.

21:49

Try frying some with eggplant - it's good!"

22:01

The Gashappa Newsletter keeps them connected to their customers.

22:12

After 6PM they fetch the children from nursery school and prepare dinner.

22:29

Hana helps cook.

22:31

This is just what Maiko did as a child.

22:40

That's good, that's good.

22:42

I always followed my mom
around in the kitchen.

22:49

Mom always said
the key is farming.

22:57

She is a huge influence
in my lifestyle today.

23:04

Maiko was raised at the foot of Mt. Fuji.

23:08

Her family wasn't a farming family, but her mother was a passionate gardener.

23:13

Maiko studied organic farming at Ibaraki's College of Agriculture.

23:44

Kotaro loved bugs and animals from childhood, so he also chose an agricultural college.

23:51

It's where the couple met.

23:54

They fell for each other quickly and married after graduating.

23:59

Kotaro took a position as a cameraman for a newspaper, but left the job to spend more time in nature.

24:07

I think about myself
in 30 or 40 years' time.

24:14

And I want the me of the future
to be self-sufficient.

24:21

I do think that's something
very important.

24:25

Farming is a way to
make that a reality.

24:31

They moved to this area six years ago to take up organic farming.

24:46

Here it is.

24:50

Today's menu features handmade udon noodles, grilled eggplant, and summer vegetable tempura.

25:02

Ready?

25:03

Thank you for our meal!
Thank you, Dad. Thank you, Mom.

25:07

Thank you, Hana. Thank you, Kaya.
Thank you, Hikari. Thank you.

25:13

Thank you, everyone.
Let's eat!

25:41

We've been living in
a thatched home a while.

25:46

It can be a lot of work.

25:52

But it feels really worth it.

25:58

I want my kids to feel
connected to this path.

26:09

Growing up in the natural world, playing, and learning from it.

26:14

This is Kotaro and Maiko's hope for their children.

26:24

Summer.

26:25

The fields are a sea of green.

26:28

The rice is growing well.

26:36

"August 22nd.

26:38

Our rice paddies grow rice but they're also a wonderland of insects.

26:43

Everyone returns to childhood when they visit one."

26:56

Got it!

26:58

Giant water bug.

27:04

Now that's something you won't find in a city!

27:10

Ferocious water bug.

27:14

It's carrying eggs.

27:17

I love this more than farming.

27:20

I'm pretty much farming
for the sake of these bugs.

27:39

By September, the fields have turned red.

27:43

The red-rice plants are in blossom.

27:50

Red rice is also known as 'ancient rice'.

27:54

It's a resilient variety that's resistant to pests and climate change.

27:58

It's done extremely well this year.

28:05

It's not often we get a
great harvest like this.

28:13

It's the ideal for our way of farming.

28:22

Kotaro's vision of farming involves little human intervention, with nature doing the heavy lifting.

28:36

October.

28:39

Typhoons have brought a lot of heavy rain.

28:47

Strong winds and large raindrops batter the rice plants.

28:58

Kotaro heads out, worried about the plants.

29:04

Rice at the edges has
fallen to the rain.

29:10

The stalks were too heavy.

29:19

Despite the weather, he spends the day visiting each rice field.

29:36

"October 23rd.

29:38

Our red rice made it through and stands heavy with the harvest.

29:43

Hana and Kaya are delighted."

29:55

I'm a bit taller.

30:01

Though the leaves are very big.

30:07

But I'm taller than the rice!

30:14

At long last, it's time to harvest the red rice.

30:19

This variety matures later and is harvested nearly a month after the regular rice.

30:29

The group who helped plant the rice has returned.

30:41

Tran from Vietnam is among them.

30:48

I've been doing this since
childhood. It's nostalgic.

30:59

Kids and crops are alike.
They grow on their own.

31:04

They manage themselves
with the help of nature.

31:12

It's wonderful to watch them grow
around all these people.

31:21

It makes me very happy.

31:37

The New Year arrives.

31:43

January 21st.

31:46

There's more snow than usual this year.

31:51

When we sent out our vegetables, there was over 10 centimeters on the ground.

31:57

We had to part the snow with our fingers to dig up carrots.

32:05

It's worth it to admire the snowy landscape.

32:17

An important winter task is collecting "gashappa"-the newsletter's name sake.

32:25

Gashappa are fallen leaves.

32:27

They'll be composted into soil.

32:37

These are the leaves
from last year.

32:43

After a year of composting.

32:51

They make a huge pile of the fallen leaves.

32:55

This will be left to compost on its own.

32:58

Eventually it will become nutrient-rich earth.

33:04

This soil is a treasure to any organic farmer.

33:23

Before starting on the rethatching, Kotaro has another job he must complete.

33:34

He uses a century-old technique to make a hotbed for growing seedlings in the cold.

33:45

Some of the fallen leaves collected earlier are spread inside a large frame in the greenhouse and watered.

33:56

Go, go!

34:00

Then they all tread it down.

34:02

This is called a 'trodden hotbed'.

34:09

-What's that?
-Rice bran. I'm adding it.

34:14

They sprinkle rice bran on the bed...

34:19

Oops, are you okay?

34:25

Old thatch from the roof is added and trodden down.

34:31

This lets the leaves and dried grass ferment, and begin to produce heat.

34:38

A hotbed that uses no electricity, just nature to stay warm.

35:01

After a week, the bed will maintain a temperature of over 30 degrees centigrade, even when frost forms outside.

35:14

It's almost time to rethatch the roof.

35:24

First, they have to prepare scaffolding for the team.

35:31

They're led by professional thatcher Mitarai.

35:37

A sturdy platform is completed.

35:50

The big day is finally here.

36:05

Mitarai always starts his jobs with a special warm-up.

36:21

Today, he and another professional will be hard at work, along with several neighbors who helped with the rice planting.

36:32

He starts by inserting slabs of cedar bark.

36:36

These will be the eaves of the roof.

36:49

Three short bundles, please.

37:05

The dirty surface thatch is lifted and the material underneath removed.

37:10

It's divided into damaged and reusable bundles.

37:16

As it's a partial replacement, new bundles are pushed underneath to raise the total thickness of the roof.

37:31

On the ground, the team cuts and bundles pampas grass, supporting the workers on the scaffolding.

37:41

The rice-planting group is helping out again.

37:49

And Kotaro has started pounding mochi.

37:57

I can do this quicker!

38:06

That's because his family is hosting the thatching team.

38:13

Maiko is cooking with freshly harvested vegetables.

38:24

We're out of regular rice
so there's just mochi.

38:31

That was so fast!

38:34

I guess.

38:37

Thank you.

38:51

A young woman who started learning about thatching has come.

39:00

Why did you take this job?

39:03

I started out as an artist
but was drawn to this material.

39:09

I wanted to work with it.

39:12

It's slow, but a few young people have been drawn into the profession by falling in love with thatch.

39:27

The work of replacing part of a roof is done by securing the dry grass with ropes...

39:31

it looks almost like sewing.

39:41

In Kansai they call it sewing.

39:45

Because we use these
ropes and wires.

39:51

A lot of regions think of it
as sewing.

39:58

A special tool is used to set the new material into place.

40:09

The painfully thin eaves are now bushy with fresh thatch.

40:16

It's been a week since the work began.

40:19

New logs are added to the scaffolding, increasing its height.

40:27

Kotaro also heads to the roof to help.

40:31

The old grass which can't be reused will be turned into fertilizer.

40:39

The children have come to help.

40:55

They load the old thatch onto a cart.

40:58

It will be plowed into the fields to create rich soil.

41:16

It's break time.

41:19

Oh, the children are playing up on the roof.

41:34

Sparkling bright
A beautiful spring sky Call to the distant forest!

41:53

The partial rethatching takes
over two weeks.

41:59

The team has reached the very top of the roof.

42:10

It's tough work.

42:15

I'm grateful to the Yamadas.

42:19

It's a real pleasure
to do this work.

42:37

The final day.

42:42

Maiko climbs up to the roof.

42:45

She's taking this last chance to try her hand at the work.

42:52

Use the weight of the shears.

42:57

Thank you.

43:03

Oh, it's really smooth.

43:20

It seems a shame to clip so much.

43:22

Right?

43:42

It looks so different from here.

43:44

It really does.
Beautiful lines.

43:52

It's not just done.
It's really beautifully done.

43:59

I've learned so much about
thatching from Mr. Mitarai's work.

44:08

It's a relationship with
a living, natural material.

44:16

Our ancestors were constantly
in touch with nature.

44:23

There's a lot to learn from them.

44:43

The rethatching is complete after 18 days.

44:54

Oh - are you climbing up again, Hana?

45:03

Thank you, Mr. Mitarai!

45:08

You're welcome!

45:14

Come back soon!

45:19

I will!

45:23

Hurray!

45:47

The family and their network of friends all worked together to bring the Yamada thatched roof back to life.

46:02

Today they're making handmade miso.

46:06

The usual group has gathered.

46:13

Oh wow!

46:16

I really like the stripes.

46:20

That's gorgeous.

46:23

Soy beans are soaked for two days
and cooked from 3:30 AM.

46:35

It's our third time
making miso here.

46:44

But never under
such a pretty roof!

46:49

Today, they're making 40 kilograms of miso.

47:02

Ground soy beans are mixed with
homemade koji mold and salt.

47:08

The Yamadas have found that farming reveals the pleasures of living alongside nature, and of spending time with family and friends.

47:31

This thatched roof shelters a lifestyle that's creating a nostalgic future for the family.

47:42

We wanted to become
local farmers.

47:48

Thinking about how
to sell our produce.

47:55

I was hoping
we'd make it a lifetime.

48:00

Never dreamed of so many friends
under our thatched roof.

48:06

Or that we'd have such
a wide network of people.

48:11

I think that's wonderful.

48:19

April.

48:21

A time of new beginnings.

48:23

And big sister Hana has just started elementary school.