Field Work In Full Swing Not even the heaviest rain can weigh down our motivation!

We are just past the halfway point in June, and the fieldwork efforts are well underway. With practically daily visits to our beloved Wiesengut farm, it has begun to feel as though it were a second home. Whether performing species counts for flora, monitoring birds in the early morning hours just past the crack of dawn, flying drones and capturing the surface composition of the crop fields below, or simply grabbing up close photographs and recording the plant heights - there are enough activities to keep us busy for the full season.

The first official outing was several weeks back, and boy, it was an experience. Heavy and persistent rainfall coupled with an unrelenting lashing of wind across our rosy faces. For the naive of the group, it was an unforgettable experience - walking in shoes morphed to puddles and pants that felt more like the lower-half of a wet suit, the troop trudged through globs of mud that refused the part from the company of our shoes. Although the potato field was a comparative walk in the park, the real challenge arrived with the unmatched vetch-rye field. If ever a machete found its place beyond the realms of the jungle alongside urban society, this was the call. Of course, we did not have a machete - that would not have been conducive to our research aims of collecting data on the crop ecosystem dynamics and preparing for biodiversity inquisition. 

Since that first stormy day, the group has had considerable luck with both the weather and progress. Initial kinks have been worked out of the twists and turns, and a more streamlined approach has been established. While there are still many weeks of work ahead, it will be a satisfying journey to take with measurable reward waiting at the end of the summer.

Besides that, it is beautiful out there. Take a stroll sometime around the neighborhood, perhaps you'll see some of the team out and about - feel free to wave and say hi!

Bis dann!