Black Forest Farms - Agritourism, Holidays: Black Forest Specials

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The Black Forest is Unique!

The farm buildings The specific cattle The cuckoo clocks The people Nowadays

The Black Forest - a Unique Landscape

Without us farmers the Black Forest was still an impenetrable, pitch-dark forest in the middle of Europe. It was us farmers and the people working in the forest who formed the unique landscape. About a thousand years ago we started to clear the land in some valleys.

On this land we built our farms and raised our cattle, thus creating the lovely mixture of forest and pastures.
Times have changed. No longer can you see a brown bear or a wolf in the Black Forest. Our shepherds, however, tell us about traces of the lynx nowadays.

Our trees went all over the world. We rafted the mighty tree trunks down the Rhine to Amsterdam. There they were used for many sailing ships in the 16th to 18th century.

Yearly festival of rafting tree trunks.

You will find many other traditional festivals in the Black Forest area.

Black Forest Farm Buildings - An Outstanding Performance of Our Ancestors

The winter times could be very long and full of snow. So our ancestors put everything they needed under one roof: apartment for the farmer´s family, a little apartment for the farmer´s elderly, rooms for the milkmaids and farm-hands, the stable for cows and some pigs and an immense place for storing hay. Even the bron was next to the farm building or under its roof.

The cattle had to be fed by hay from about October until June. The steep roof enabled large storage room and it let the snow glide down, so its weight will not damage the roof.

Fire protection was another important point. There belongs a fire pond to every farm house. Why not use them for fishing or bathing nowadays?

The farms were built in a way that its inhabitants could almost completely live on their own. There was always a spring next to it. There was always some forest belonging to it, so the huge tile oven between kitchen and living-room could be fired. An own garden, a chapel, a baking house, a water-mill, and an outhouse for storing the rye and other utilities are still part of many farms nowadays.

Each big farm in the Black Forest had its typical bakehouse. Some farmers still use theirs today.

Black Forest Cattle - A Well-Adapted Breed raised by Black Forest farmers

This is the typical breed of Black Forest cattle. Small, light and ready to eat about almost every quality of grass. It can climb up steep mountains and still keep the turf undamaged.

Still, there is one disadvantage. These cows do not give ten thousand of liters of milk per year. Farmers have to produce for prices almost as low as the world market. So the Black Forest Farmers have to be very, very clever to earn enough money.

Famous Black Forest Cuckoo Clocks

The invention of imitating the cuckoo's call by the clever use of bellows was fantastic. Scientists still do not know who was the first inventor. Don´t care, be fascinated.

In the late 18th and early 19th century the clock industry developed rapidly in the Black Forest. With their inventive genius and cleverness and the necessity to earn additional income, the inhabitants of the region used the long winter months in making cuckoo clocks. Others had a full-time job in the clock industry.

The clock production was specialized. The profession of the "clock face painters" was born. The wood carvers made richly handcarved decorations from various woods. Today if you are lucky, you can still visit a "clock face painter" or a wood carver at work. Just ask your host from www.BlackForestFarms.de about it.

The clocks were sold by the clock peddlars in the summer months during long journeys throughout Europe. There was no railway, bike or car to use on the trip. Not yet.

Black Forest People: Well-Adapted to Changes - for Generations

Black Forest people had to be clever for generations:

500 years ago, the silver mines were no longer profitable (Columbus imported too much cheap silver). Black Forest people found a new source of income: rafting tree trunk for the many shipbuilding companies.
Glass, a very delicate and expensive article in the Middle Ages was produced by many tiny glass huts. This happened along creeks. Many farms and medows still whitness it by the name "Glashuette". But, of course, glas production was no longer profitable after a while.
About 200 years ago the rafting of lumber was no longer profitable due to the industrial revolution. A lot of energy was needed in the growing towns of the Rhine Valley: charcoal was good to sell. And it was comparatively lightweight. So rafting lumber was replaced by producing charcoal. And the cuckoo clocks were a great invention as you can read above.

120 years ago, the end of producing charcoal was due. The railroad brought cheap coal to the Rhine valley. Tourism came up slowly. The clocks remained important.
40 years ago much of the watch industry closed down due to cheap Asian products. The manpower and knowledge was used otherwise: a highly specialized mechanical industry increased.
30 years ago: The very last farms were electrified!!!

Guess, what will happen within the next 50 years?

Just come and see us and try to figure out yourself!!

Migration

Soon you can read why people from the Black Forest migrated in earlier centuries -
this is what we hope at last.

Nowadays many travellers admire:

the wonderful peaceful quality of the Black Forest
the marvellous views to the Alps during day-time and to the stars during night-time
the amount of activities (hiking, biking, skiing during winter, ...)
and yet the closeness of culture
the friendliness of its inhabitants
the fresh and healthy air of the Black Forest
the specialties and great restaurants: Black Forest ham and bacon, fresh trout, the cherry gateau and the cherry brandy, the tasty honey

Sometimes people from the Black Forest celebrate a party wearing their festival garment. Each valley or village has its own style. Usually married women, spinsters, and widows can be distinguished by the colors of their traditional costume.

Winter 2007