I grew up on my parents' farm, the "Kartheingut" in Tschars. There, I enjoyed life on the farm from a young age. My grandmother had sheep and cows, and the family still grew grain, while in the garden, there were old apple varieties like Champagner and Lederer. From stories, I remember how our apples were once sold to Russia via rail transport, and for one kilogram, we received about 1,000 lire.
After high school, I moved to Vienna, where I studied German philology. Farming seemed far away for me, and my parents successfully ran the farm according to the guidelines of so-called Integrated Fruit Growing. It wasn't until many years in Vienna that I started to feel homesick, and when the important question arose about the future of the farm, I didn’t hesitate for long. My father hadn’t expected me to take over the farm. I wanted to take this step, and my husband Peter also supported my decision to pursue farming full-time. When I took over the farm from my father in 2017, he was happy that the farming tradition could continue in the fourth generation. My motto was "all or nothing," and I decided from the very beginning to go with organic farming. I focused more on the red apple varieties, Royal Gala and Red Delicious. At the same time, I started vegetable cultivation to avoid being solely dependent on apples.
I love our delicious Val Venosta apple varieties, which ripen beautifully here in the most beautiful area of South Tyrol. Still, I wanted to create an additional pillar with vegetable farming. Since you can react more quickly to unexpected weather changes with vegetables than with apples, this pillar gives me a good sense of flexibility and security. As an agricultural business with "Bioland" certification, we at the "Kathreingut" also love diversity. My husband and I also grow persimmons, kiwis, plums, and pears. Our son Mattis is still of preschool age, but he already knows when the apples are ripe and how much work it takes to make that happen. While I had learned a lot about fruit growing as a child, my husband was a complete beginner with apples, but already very familiar with vegetable farming. That’s why we complement each other perfectly in this regard. My father has been able to let go well in the generational change and has given me complete freedom on the farm. He observes our work with curiosity and is always happy to offer advice. Only at the beginning did he have a few sleepless nights, but he always trusted me, and I’m glad that I haven’t disappointed his trust but have been able to establish myself well in the high art of organic farming. The apples we sell through our cooperative and the vegetables from our small vegetable farm sold directly from the farm bring us great joy.
www.kartheingut.it
