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🕑 Added 2025-05-10 04:17:39 +0000 UTCWind in the Smoke
Chapter 192 - A Happy Harvest
That same day, they had to abandon their fishing plans due to reports of invasive species. They had been here for several days, so returning was the best option.
Days later, Dante, with a sturdy gardening shovel in hand, walked toward the garden behind his cabin.
The air was filled with the fresh scent of the earth, mixed with the slightly cool aroma of the water.
Every inch of the garden was covered with layers of radish leaves, the emerald green leaves interwoven with each other, like a lush green ocean.
Under the shade of the green leaves, the rounded tips of the red radishes were barely visible above the soil, like scattered red pearls among them.
Walking toward a cluster of lush leaves, Dante was about to start working when he suddenly heard a soft “meow” near his ear.
“Ah, I almost forgot about you, little one!” Dante said.
He looked down and saw Neblina, the kitten, peeking out from between the zippers of his jacket, sniffing the air with her little nose.
“You should go to your owner, not stay with me.” Dante couldn’t help but laugh as he rubbed Neblina's little furry head with his fingertips before gently placing her on the edge of the garden.
As soon as Neblina touched the ground, she became active. Her small claws tentatively brushed against a swaying radish leaf, then quickly retracted, like a mischievous child playing with a new toy.
The elasticity of the leaves made it so enjoyable that she shook them several times in a row, swishing her tail and seeming extremely excited.
Dante was watching with great interest when he suddenly heard a loud “Gah!”
He looked up and saw the crow that had been visiting him since he became interested in the garden, descending from the sky and landing gracefully not far from the garden. It tilted its head and looked at the new kitten with curiosity.
Apparently, Neblina also noticed the uninvited guest. She stopped her claws and stared at the crow with her emerald eyes.
The cat and the crow stared at each other, and there seemed to be a flicker of tension in the air.
The crow didn’t care and took a few slow steps toward Neblina.
It tilted its head and emitted a low caw, as if greeting her in a friendly manner.
But Neblina didn’t like it at all. Her fur immediately bristled, her back arched, her tail fluffed up, and a low “meow” came from her mouth.
This was the first time Neblina had seen such a large bird, and it was obvious from her little head that she hadn’t figured out whether the other was a friend or an enemy.
“Hey, stop fighting, you two.” Dante stood off to the side with his hands on his hips, holding a shovel in one hand, like a referee watching the fun.
“Neblina, this silly crow has been on the ranch longer than any other pet. Remember, we’re all family here. No fighting allowed.”
But the kitten didn’t understand what he was saying and thought Dante was encouraging her. She took two steps forward and waved her little paws at the crow, trying to scare it away.
But the crow dodged with a slight hop, even flying around Neblina, turning and giving a “Ga” sound, as if to provoke her: “Come on, try again.”
“Enough already, you old crow, stop bullying the baby!” Dante shook his head, grabbed a carrot leaf, and threw it at the crow.
With quick reflexes, the crow grabbed the radish leaf with precision, then flapped its wings and flew to the scarecrow’s shoulder, as if claiming the high ground.
Neblina took the opportunity to jump to the spot where the crow had just been and stomped the ground triumphantly, as if declaring victory.
Seeing that the two animals had stopped fighting, Dante calmly lowered his body and easily inserted the shovel he was holding into the soft soil.
The morning sprinkler had left the soil moist and loose, allowing the shovel to move easily through it. With a lever and a lift, a plump red radish was pulled out, intact.
In the morning light, the radish’s skin was clear and red, as if it had been painted with enamel.
Its fine roots were tangled in the moist earth, and the green leaves at the top were clustered, full of vitality.
Dante cleaned the dirt off the surface of the radish with his fingertips and examined it carefully.
The fruits were uniform in size, with no cracks, no signs of disease or insect damage, and had a classic round shape.
He used the measurement tool on his phone to measure the diameter: 4 centimeters, absolutely top-notch.
He weighed it in his hand and it was about 50 grams.
Dante recalled that the farmer at Morgan’s ranch had explained to him that the diameter of these red-skinned radishes, “Cherry Beauty,” usually ranged from 2.5 cm to 4 cm.
Only under conditions of very high soil fertility and proper planting spacing could high-quality fruits of nearly four centimeters be obtained.
Considering that he hadn’t thinned the seedlings during planting, he couldn’t help but admire the power of money to achieve such quality.
Dante placed the red radish in a wooden box.
After placing the radishes in the basket, Dante turned and dug up the next one.
Each time he dug, he repeated the same steps: using the shovel to easily loosen the soil around the radish roots and then pulling the entire plant out by its roots.
The whole process was efficient and ensured the integrity of the radish. However, some groups of leaves often hid patches of radishes, and to fully harvest these densely grown plants, he had to completely loosen the surrounding soil.
As he continued working, he simply grabbed the leaves by the stems and pulled them up.
Little by little, Dante discovered that the yield of radishes from this garden far exceeded his expectations.
In theory, under good planting conditions, the yield of red radishes should be around 2 to 3 kilograms per square meter.
To check, he went back to the house, found a scale, and weighed the radishes extracted from the one-square-meter patch of soil in the basket.
Nearly one hundred red-skinned radishes weighed a total of 3.935 kilograms! Dante glanced at the remaining 19 square meters and suddenly felt a little numb.
If he continued working at this pace, just harvesting these radishes would be enough to wear him out.
This was more than enough to ensure he would never get bored, after all, there were many things that only he could do.
