Agriculture on the Hotel Island of Rügen



The Island of Rügen

I had booked a two week holiday on the Island of Rügen which is Germany's largest island. My first week was to be spent at Rügen hotel and the second week at the Baltic Sea Apartments (Ostsee Ferienwohnung). holiday home Rügen I have stayed on the Island of Rügen many times and always stay at the same Hotel and Apartments. Rügen is a diverse island of genteel seaside resorts, quiet little fishing villages, mile long beaches, tree-lined avenues, wild-sea buckthorn hedges, 100 year old lighthouses, sparkling lakes and eerie beech woods. The Island attracts many German holiday makers as it is only a three hour drive from Berlin. There are plenty of things to do including water sports, or cycling along the paths to the flint fields near Mukran. Another way to get around the island is to jump on the Racing Roland steam train which is an easier way to see the main sights and seaside resorts.

RuegenThe south western part of the island, which is predominantly flat agricultural country, contrasts with the forest-covered rounded hills to the northeast. The agricultural land is mainly used for growing plants (cereals, fruits and vegetables) and grazing. A fairly big part of the agricultural land is meadows and salt meadows. The farms are quite small but have more land than bigger farms on the mainland. As I travelled around I noticed that on many of these farms there were quite a few animals such as goats, pigs and beef cattle. On some of the farm land there was more sheep and chickens. Some of the farms didn't have any animals at all having used most of the land to grow plants. I came across quite a few farms where it looked as if the land was being left baron but always in the distance was a tractor working in the fields. The farmers work very hard as this is their main source of income. A typical working day is from first daylight to dusk.