Potato or Rose: Global Warming and Urban Agriculture, Yokohama Style, Shiba Seaside Village of Belssings 柴シーサイド恵みの里

 

First, what’s there in Shiba Seaside Village of Blessings? The place is an amalgam of local farming fields, roughly 3/4 of the area, and public allotments, 1/4. The Village spreads over the ridge of a steep hill whose east slope is housing area of Shiba Town tumbling down to the Tokyo Bay. The other three directions are still forests geographically continuing from Shomyoji Citizen Forest 称名寺市民の森 (; my post for December 4, 2015). The project for Land Improvement District sorted out previously scattered small patches of veggie fields in a forest and widened the cultivable land on the ridge.

The map shown at the admin office

The forest to the east

The professionally cultivated farmlands receive funding from Yokohama Green Tax to organize regular public events. Some are weekly, and the others are seasonal. Every weekend, Saturday and Sunday morning (8:00-) except New Year’s holidays, they hold a farmers’ market in the open space of admin building. I tell you it’s a popular market so that almost all the products are sold out before noon. Seasonally, they have 3 events for farming experience, all from 9:00-14:00 (to register at the admin office: the contact address is at the end of this post). They are

🥔Potato Harvesting

From mid-May to mid-June, except Monday, or until potato is there.

1000 yen per portion


Taro Harvesting

Every Saturday from early-November to mid-December, or until taro is there.

1000 yen per portion (2 clumps … I think it’s a bargain!)


🍊Tangerine Harvesting

From mid-October to the end of November (for Unshuh variety), and the first two weeks of December (for Hayaka variety which is SWEET), or until the fruits are there.

All you can eat in the orchard (with time limit), and you can bring your harvest home.

Elementary school kids + : 1200 yen

3-5 years old: 500 yen

0-2 years old: free

In early October,
tangerines were waiting for the harvest time.

It seems to me one of the farmers are thinking banana
 ... serious?

The Admin Office

The remaining 1/4 of the Village is the allotment gardens managed by JA Yokohama. There are 510 allotments and the cost for renting varies around 10000 yen per year according to the section. The contract duration is 5 years and renewable. In addition to agreeing these basics, the conditions for application are (1) you have to be registered as a resident for the City of Yokohama, (2) one section per family, i.e. you and your spouse must share the same allotment. The renters can build a shed if they like for their tools. In the admin office building, there are shower rooms and rockers for allotmenteers. I met one lady there nurturing her sweet potato. She said “You know, this year was hard for tomato, but I’m fairly content with my bell peppers. The problem is, I love to plant veggies, but my husband wants to have roses. It’s a family problem!” Sure. As of November 30, 2025, there are 46 vacant sections among 510 allotments. If you think to try your veggie in Yokohama, please make a contact with the admin office shown at the end of this post.

Allotment section for Shiba Seaside Village

The water problem of the Village is somehow controlled. By the project, they built a pump house which collects the rainwater and uses groundwater vein. Surely such technological setting was not possible for subsistence farming before the project. Still, especially with the heatwave of this year, everybody had to accommodate with available water. For allotmenteers, the faucet for their section was opened for about 2-3 hours each day during this summer. They had to adjust their daily schedule for tending their plants. That lady told me the JA considerably allocated the water-time mainly for early evenings so that the risk of heatstroke for people was lessened. Still, she said “Well, you know, we’re seriously thinking the veggies we can nurture in summer these couple of years. I’m strongly opposed to my husband’s plan for roses, a heavy drinker.” Er, well. Here is another problem Global Warming can bring to a family table …

The pumping station for the Village

Even so, Shiba Village is a peaceful place. The sections are spreading over (artificially perhaps) mild slope of a hill going down to the sea. The vista is spectacular. One of the personnel for JA Yokohama told me, when he thinks hitting a wall in his work, he always visits here and takes deep breaths in the veggie patches surrounded by forests and sea. What’s in store next for Shiba Village with the new era of Global Warming? No one knows for sure. But at least we locals of Yokohama are thinking whether rose or potato, while harvesting tangerines. 😉

To the Tokyo Bay

The access to Shiba Seaside Village of Blessings is mainly by car. The direction is shown here. With public transportation, the easiest would be from Umino-koen Shibaguchi Station 海の公園柴口 of Kanazawa Seaside Line. You get off the monorail service at the Station and walk a bit to Shiba Fishing Port. Cross the street at Shiba Fishing Port Traffic Light and go straight to the direction of the hill, passing Bakery Bremen and Tairaya Supermarket. Cross another traffic light in front of the Tairaya to the direction of the hill, and start climbing steep slope, higher and higher. Suddenly, you realize you reach the ridge, and the Village is spreading before you. In the middle of the farming field, there is a building which is the admin office.

Umino-koen Shibaguchi Station

The bakery. We go up to the top of the hill over there.

The contact for Shiba Seaside Village of Blessings 柴シーサイド恵みの里 is,

Administration Office, JA Yokohama Shiba Farm
Phone: 045-785-6844
Fax：045-788-8588