Yesterday
you couldn’t be blamed for thinking we lived in the breadbasket of America,
instead of a small bedroom community with only one small farm left.
Saturday
was Plow Day, when teams from all over come to dig up the community garden for
the beginning of the season.
It’s a chance for people to show off their horses’
plowing skills as they steer them from one side of the big fields to the other.
Kind of like a farming version of a gathering of geeks. Instead of boasting
about megabytes and apps, they gather in their overalls to compare technique
and tack.
We
were admiring the way one team cut through the hard earth, and the driver
leaned down to call out, “This plow sat out in my field for ten years. Took it
in, cleaned it up, and now I leave everyone sick at competitions. Best plow I
ever had!”
Wonderful plow, all the more interesting for having been rescued! :-)
ReplyDeleteI'm thinking he has a John Deere moldboard plow, that turned the prairies. Love his attitude.
ReplyDeleteNow there's a woman who knows her plows!
DeleteI could have watched that plowing all day! Sure wish I could get a mule and a plow in my teeny tiny garden. Wonder if that would be easier on my back? I need to get started on the garden.
ReplyDeleteHow about a teensy plow for Rosie?
DeleteThis is so romantic and lovely. BUT no till is better for the earth as this deep plowing breaks up the healthy bacteria and encourages erosion of nutrients. Many gardeners are just disturbing the top few inches of soil to get rid of weeds and aerate the soil and even farmers are going to low till and no till.
ReplyDeleteI had no idea. By necessity (and laziness) I don't dig very deep in my garden. Every time you put any implement in our soil you hit a rock.
DeleteI bet that was fun to see. We used to have a neighbor in North Carolina who plowed his tomato field in the spring with his mule. We loved to hear Mr King talking to his old mule as he walked along behind the plow.
ReplyDeleteWe have let quite a lot of the wisdom of our forbears go haven't we? And they certainly built (homes and implements) to last.
ReplyDeleteIt's been a long time since I've seen any field plowing done by horses. I think sometimes a lot of the old ways were better, but very time consuming and these days would only work for a small family farm where the owners used the produce to feed themselves.
ReplyDeleteCommercial farming with its machinery and profits have taken over.
That's cool! I didn't know anyone still plowed with horses, even ceremonially.
ReplyDeletethe farmers use machinery around here and the neighbors use electric or gas tillers for their home gardens.
ReplyDeleteWhat an awesome sight and such a neat service. Such a small carbon foot print they leave. Soil turned, no fumes or fuel wasted and every now and then a little natural fertilizer added to the earth. We need to go back in time.
ReplyDelete