Chapter 15: Early Spring Preparations (3)
TL: Hanguk
The wheels of the vehicle pressed down on the gravel spread at the farm entrance, making a dull sound.
Then it came to a stop beside the large-built man who had been walking ahead.
Screeech!
“Why are you walking?”
Jacob, who turned his head, frowned at the dust and spoke toward the open window.
“Dad said he urgently needed the car, so he just dropped me off at the entrance.”
“Get in!”
As Jacob got into the car, his head touched the ceiling, and he pushed his hips forward as he asked,
“So what’s going on? Chloe just told me to come right away.”
"Actually, I'm the one who called you."
“Brian, you called me?”
"Yeah. I thought we might need some physical labor."
“... Well, that I’m confident about.”
Jacob, who had once seemed like the vanguard of racism, became as gentle as a lamb after admitting his mistake even once, as if he were a completely different person. Of course, his build was not that of a lamb but of a bear.
At that moment, a playful voice came from the back seat.
“But why are you being so proactive about Chloe’s problem?”
Armando stuck his head forward. I pushed his head back and said,
“She asked for help. There’s no reason not to, is there?”
“Is that really the reason?”
“I told you it is.”
“Tsk... Sounds suspicious. Well, there’s no male student who doesn’t like Chloe. I’ll accept it. But Christina is off-limits.”
“You still can’t even talk to her properly...”
“I greeted her yesterday too.”
“You did. Hi, Christina~ The end.”
“She looked really busy, you know.”
“That she did. She’s the busiest kid at school.”
While we bickered and talked like that, we soon arrived at the storage shed where Chloe was waiting.
“Brian!”
Even from a distance, Chloe’s face as she waved her hand did not look good at all. Normally, her blonde hair would shine dazzlingly under the sunlight and she would be smiling, but now her face was filled with dark shadows. As I parked the car roughly and got out, Chloe swept her hair back and said,
“Small bugs are gathering all over the trees and leaves.”
“When did you find out?”
“Today. I was about to call you, but then I got a message from you right then.”
At that moment, Armando’s head popped forward again.
“You sent the message first?”
I pushed Armando’s head back and said,
“Show me.”
“Follow me.”
Chloe did not go far and led the group to the nearest tree standing close by. Even as she walked, she bit her nails anxiously.
“What if it’s already too late?”
“Let’s take a look first.”
The cherry trees Chloe restlessly led me to were shocking.
The trees, which should have been covered in white and pale pink buds blooming under the warm early March spring sunlight, were all withered into a sickly yellow color, and even from afar, abnormal black blotches were spread here and there.
When I approached a nearby tree and closely examined the leaves, sticky sap like droplets of honey had formed, and on each delicate leaf, tens of thousands of tiny aphids were densely attached, wriggling as if black dust had piled up.
"It's Cherry Aphids."
As soon as I identified them, Chloe frowned and asked back,
“Cherry Aphids?”
“How far have they spread?”
“I don’t know exactly. It feels like they suddenly spread everywhere... And of all places, most of the area I manage is infested with them. It seems the manager noticed while I was away from the farm for a few days but didn’t take care of it right away.”
I plucked a leaf and carefully pressed the aphids with my fingertips. The crushed aphids burst, leaving behind a dark, sticky sweet liquid. They had already multiplied in enormous numbers, so if left unattended, the entire tree could die.
I quickly examined the farm ground and the trees closely. I could immediately guess what had happened during the past winter. The young leaves and branches that had fallen beneath the trees were abnormally fragile and soft.
“Do you happen to know how much fertilizer the manager applied toward the end of winter?”
Chloe shook her head with a slightly bewildered expression.
“I’m not sure. I don’t handle fertilizer management myself...”
I knelt down and dug into the ground with my hands. The soil felt sticky and murky due to the excessive nitrogen fertilizer that had been applied. Residual fertilizer slipped slickly between my fingers.
“As expected. The manager applied too much nitrogen fertilizer. When there’s a lot of nitrogen fertilizer, protein synthesis and amino acid synthesis in the plant become more active, and the concentration of amino acids and sugars in the sap (Phloem sap)...”
“Huh?”
The three friends widened their eyes with question marks on their faces. Realizing that this was knowledge far beyond what they could understand, I quickly simplified my explanation.
“... When there’s too much nitrogen fertilizer, the number of young leaves increases explosively. That’s exactly the kind of food aphids love the most. You could say it’s like setting up a buffet for them. In short, the fertilizer was used incorrectly.”
Originally, an increase in sap nutrient concentration needs to be carefully managed. Aphids reproduce by sucking this sap, so nutrient-rich sap greatly increases the reproductive rate of aphids.
Moreover, excessive nitrogen promotes rapid leaf and shoot growth, but prevents the cell walls from being thickly reinforced, forming fragile tissues instead. When this happens, aphids can more easily penetrate the delicate tissues and suck the sap, making the leaves and new shoots even more vulnerable, creating a vicious cycle in which the damage accelerates.
Chloe’s face grew even paler. I lightly patted her shoulder so she would not blame herself.
“Don’t worry. There’s still a solution. The problem will be how the manager responds...”
Just then, the farm manager came running over in a hurry, with several people alongside him. Chloe checked the face of one of them, and her expression stiffened even more.
Soon, the farm manager who had approached spoke.
“We’ve identified what it is. It’s...”
“Cherry Aphids?”
When Chloe spoke first, the farm manager’s eyes widened.
“You already knew?”
“My friend told me.”
As she said that, Chloe pointed at me. The farm manager glanced briefly at my face, then looked back at Chloe and said,
“We need to control it immediately. If we don’t do it right now, this year’s harvest is as good as gone!”
But Chloe did not answer and instead turned her head to look at me. Since her eyes were clearly seeking an answer, I crossed my arms and spoke.
“If it were me, I’d say that’s a bit... If you’ve received eco-friendly certification, it would be revoked, and even if not, in the long run it would have a negative effect on the trees... And you know, right? That incident where neonicotinoids were used incorrectly and caused unnecessary trouble? Even if you use them, you have to use them properly.”
At those words, the farm manager immediately shouted angrily.
“What do you know to be spouting nonsense! What do you even know about cherry farming?”
But I did not get upset and simply shrugged.
“You asked for an opinion, so I answered. There’s no need to get worked up. Chloe is the one making the decision.”
Honestly, no matter what decision Chloe makes, it’s not something that would make me particularly upset. It’s just a bit of a shame that if Chloe loses, she won’t be able to get cherries at cost, but even that would not be a huge blow to Redwood Farm.
I figured it was far better to stay quiet than to get involved in someone else’s farm business and get cursed at for it.
However, Chloe seemed to trust her friend’s words far more than I had expected. For reasons I did not know.
“I think Brian’s agricultural knowledge can’t be ignored, so I need to think about it a little more.”
At Chloe’s words, the farm manager turned around with a dumbfounded expression. Then a man with a very wide, thickset build stepped forward.
“Who are you?”
As he asked rather roughly and I was about to answer, Chloe stepped in.
“Brian. My friend. We take classes together in the Agriscience Club.”
“So... you’re saying you won’t listen to the manager and will listen to your high school friend instead? Are you crazy?”
As the man scoffed and criticized her, Chloe crossed her arms and turned her head toward me.
“Brandon Harris. My older brother.”
“Ah...”
“He knows as little about farming as I do, so please understand.”
At that, Brandon let out a shriek like a pig being slaughtered.
“Shut up! You stupid bitch! If you knew how much all of this is worth, you’d follow Mr. Raymond’s opinion!”
“Shut up! Don’t insult me in front of my friend!”
“You deserve it! You managed things like this and expected me to say something nice? If Dad finds out, he’ll throw you out of the house immediately!”
“Don’t be ridiculous! The one getting thrown out will be you!”
Watching the two siblings fight was almost like seeing a medieval succession dispute.
“It’s vicious.”
Even Armando whispered while shuddering.
“Just do as you’re told!”
“I said no! It’s my decision!”
“Are you trying to ruin the farm?”
“Dad entrusted it to me! I’ll handle it myself!”
As the two of them refused to yield an inch and snapped at each other, I casually asked. I was genuinely just curious.
“If your farming fails, wouldn’t that actually be good for Brandon?”
At that, Chloe suddenly snapped to her senses and shouted at Brandon, who looked slightly flustered.
“Did you pull some kind of trick? Why are you so desperate to spray pesticides? Like Brian said, if I lose, all of this becomes yours!”
“You idiot! You won’t win anyway! It was always all mine!”
“Hmph! We’ll see about that.”
As she sneered at her brother, Brandon suddenly turned his gaze toward me and snapped,
“Then do you even have a solution? Do you actually have one before you talk?”
“It’s not like I don’t...”
“What is it? Say it!”
I scratched my head and then asked the farm manager, Mr. Raymond,
“But... why did you increase the amount of nitrogen fertilizer?”
“What? What are you talking about?”
“The amount of nitrogen fertilizer was higher than usual. Was there a reason for that?”
Seeing Raymond look flustered for a moment, Chloe seemed to sense something and immediately fired back.
“Sir! If there was a reason, then say it! Don’t make people suspicious for no reason.”
“W, what are you saying! Of course there was a reason. I only wanted the young lady to win... I never dreamed it would turn out like this.”
As Chloe was about to angrily say something, I grabbed her arm.
“If that’s the case, then well... that means even if Chloe loses this time, it’s not really her fault, right?”
Raymond and Brandon alike were struck dumb by the sudden conclusion. It was obvious they were both scrambling to figure out what answer would benefit them. But soon, Brandon asked with a face flushed as red as a cherry,
“That’s none of your concern, so just give us a solution!”
At his shout, I frowned and said to Chloe,
“Ah, I don’t feel like talking. It’s like I’ve become a servant or something.”
At my irritated response, Chloe shouted at Brandon,
“If you’re done here, get lost! I’ll take care of it myself. I’ll tell Dad everything too. And Mr. Raymond, honestly, I’m disappointed. If this was a possible outcome, you should have told me beforehand.”
“I, I...”
“That’s enough. Just go for now.”
When Brandon’s group finally disappeared into the distance, hurling curses at his sister, Chloe looked at me with a pitiful expression.
“Please, I’m begging you. You saw it, right? If I can’t beat that fat pig, I’ll probably die of anger.”
“......”
“If you just help me win, I’ll give you as much as you want at cost every year, not just this year.”
“That’s fine and all...”
At that moment, Armando cut in again.
“What the heck! So there really is something going on between you two!”
I pushed Armando’s face aside and looked at the cherry trees.
“There is a method, but...”
Chloe clasped her hands tightly, her eyes sparkling.
“What is it?”
“You’re going to have to suffer a bit.”
“Suffer?”
“Yeah. We need to bring in aphids’ natural enemies, Ladybugs and Lacewings, and release them. Are you good at catching bugs by hand? We’ll need to release a lot.”
“.......”
Chloe’s face turned ashen. She quickly turned around, but the mountain-like Jacob and Armando hurriedly took a few steps back and suddenly started talking while staring at the cherry trees that were dying before their eyes.
“Cherry trees are pretty. We should’ve grown cherry trees instead of rice.”
“Let me visit your farm sometime. What variety of rice do you grow?”
“......” *****
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