Silvia, seed multiplier in the Hérault region of France

As the cool of the night slowly rises to meet the rising sun, the cymbal of cicadas is already deafening the small valley. The donkeys from the Lamalou farm are ready and won't wait for the Hérault heat to take hold of the air to claim their carriage. Stéphane and Silvia are also set up, one at the front with the animal, the other at the rear with the tool for a first harrowing pass in the heart of the chalky soil of the Cévennes foothills.

This year, farewell to tractors and tillers, Stéphane rediscovers the joy of animal traction that he practiced when he was an agro-ecology trainer at Ciepad (Carrefour International d'Echanges de Pratiques Appliquées au Développement). "Here, it's important to aerate the soil well, because with 6 floods in the last two years, the soil has become enormously compacted. "He smiles at the sight of our astonished faces as he attaches a disc harrow to the tool carrier of the association for the promotion of Modern Animal-Drawn Agricultural Machinery (PROMMATA). Apparently, the radishes and carrots who think they've found a "terre de cocagne", well tilled for their arrival, are not at the end of their surprises.

"When CIEPAD shut down 15 years ago, I found this 3-hectare plot of fallow land, classified as "Natura 2000", that no-one had ever used for market gardening. It's an area regularly submerged under the waters of the underground river, very chalky and with extreme climatic conditions, oscillating between -15 and 37°C. Not to mention the wild boar..." It's easy to understand why there are broken beds in the middle of the nepeta, the marvellous prairie mimosa and the evening primrose "Sundrops", which do them the honour of opening their petals at dusk. But our night watchmen don't seem to tire. Contact with nature is what I love," beams Silvia. When I was in Turin, I studied natural and environmental sciences for 5 years because I wanted to live and work in nature. "

Silvia arrived in France in 2006, and began by accompanying her partner on the market gardening side of things, before setting up her own business producing seeds for Kokopelli, following the CIVAM program for women's autonomy on the family farm. We work together, but we each have our own activity," explains Silvia. That way, we each use our own methods. "Stéphane then sets off to harvest the 80 peppers needed for the AMAP with his three wwoofers, while Silvia begins the tour. We then discover a veritable jungle of "Kriakolokia" gourds, with leaves bigger than our heads, and vines of "Romano" beans at the foot of which spreads a carpet of Armenian cucumbers. Silvia smiles as she leans against the ipomoea wall: "We're in the old chicken coop, where the soil is so prolific that the "Burgundy" grain amaranth that used to feed the chickens grows back in a carpet of red panicles. Elsewhere, we use lots of horse manure, compost, softwood shavings and thyme sprigs brought in by local pruners and an essential oil producer. With a PH above 8, we can't expect to see the crops flourish without helping them. "

So the grower has been working hard to set up a true permaculture system. Several basins have been dug near the greenhouses, collecting rainwater and allowing the presence of parasite-hungry fauna. Apple trees provide shade for small vegetable plots... over here, a few rows of peppers and eggplants are well protected from pollinators under their veils.Here and there, rows of peppers and aubergines, well protected from pollinators under their protective veil, and there, beautiful Maxima "Kaboscha" squash and Moschata "Musquée du Népal", set up on their compost mounds. In several places, surrounded by flowering hedges, we find "cohabiting" crops. Spring-harvested broad beans give way to Jerusalem artichokes; tomato seedlings thread their way between lettuces ready to be picked for Stéphane's AMAP. Here and there, little banks of herbs, a few sage and rosemary bushes at the entrance... "There aren't many varieties that can withstand excess limestone. We're looking for other sites in the surrounding area for more sensitive varieties. "

Silvia then took us 10 km from their home, to the heights of the piedmont, at the foot of a farmhouse dating back to the Middle Ages. This second plot is like a paradise. We'd have to disturb swarms of carabid beetles to admire the heart of the Gaillardia and blow on a thousand and one butterflies to get close to the Gazania. Watching Silvia, a cloth tied in her hair, gently crush each dry pod of Pink Pop Socks cosmos gives us a nostalgic rush for the cultures of yesteryear: "We continue to appreciate the utmost simplicity of life. "Indeed, Silvia and Stéphane have chosen a lifestyle as close to nature as possible. Having recently obtained planning permission, they have built an earth and straw house, use solar electricity and hot water, and recover rainwater for household consumption. "We welcome a lot of people who are planning to settle here. They appreciate finding here a foretaste of the living and working conditions of producers, sometimes a little rustic and difficult, and at the same time a very serene and fulfilling way of life. "

We then leave the donkeys to their clearing, the wwoofers to their swims in the Lamalou and the little Elior boy to his hard thinking about which three flowersI think we'll long remember one of Silvia's last sentences: "It's still great to create a totally self-sufficient farm. "