Trial by Fire

There is an expression here about gardening--that if you're good at it, you have a cool hand. En esto momento, I am not sure what temperature my hands are. I admit that a LOT of what is going on here is experimentation. a prime example is the cacao.
Last July we planted 50 cacao saplings in a open area of the farm, fantasizing about our future chocolate business. We would process it ourselves! create new sensational flavors! make a small fortune on the side because of the popularity of our deliciously decadent new hobby! We even spent time at a bonafide chocolate farm, learning the ropes!
Here we are studying up at La Iguana Chocolate in Mastatal, Costa Rica




The cold hard truth (Tristan, Paige: lo siento) is that neither excitement nor ambition, not even LOVE OF CHOCOLATE could have substituted for Skill or Experience.





that's right, cacao saplings need shade. Oops? who would've thought? Fifty dry cacao carcasses later, I concede.
Hence, in December I started several new cacao babies in the backyard, where they luxury in ample shade and water. The kicker is, these guys don't look completely happy either.

My thought is, when you're farming trial-by-fire style, how cool can your hands be?