Farming: More than driving a tractor

From Jillian over at From the Tractor Seat:

A farmer’s work is never done. Even when the grass is dead, the crops are harvested and it’s unbearably cold outside (I’m from North Florida so anything below 60° is unbearably cold) there is still plenty to do.

Jared under a flat bed trailer packing wheel bearings with grease.

Welcome to the shop. This is where most of our exciting winter farming activities take place. The boys work on equipment, fix things that are long overdue for a repair and generally freeze their little hinies off.

For those unfamiliar with it: hiney: one’s rump, gluteus maximus or behind. Not to be confused with a hinny.

Aside from exercising their mechanical brains and devising fixes that can get pretty creative, farm families like ours also care for livestock during the winter months.

The cows munching on peanut hay.

This includes feeding, vaccinating and making sure they stay where they should be.

Because no one wants to hit a cow in the middle of the night as they’re driving home; fence maintenance is important!

On another note, Jared and I were talking with some folks from school the other day and one of them said, “I would love to be a farmer, heck all you have to do is drive a tractor from one end of the field to the other, all day long.”

Jared and I had to very different responses. He got mad and I shook my head.

This incident reminded me of the importance of education and communication. This kid was not a city slicker, nor was he uneducated, but somehow he had missed the point that it takes a lot of science, sweat and intestinal fortitude to make a farm work.

So as you enjoy your winter months remember the farmers who in their “slow time” are planning the crop year, interpreting soil tests, prepping the ground, fixing equipment, working with livestock, investigating new equipment and doing a lot of financial planning. It’s more than riding a tractor. It’s a business with a lot invested and a lot at stake.