farming and conservation

Tote that straw, pitch that bale!

 

They're called bunches. A bale is much larger and heavier and would be very difficult to move with a pitchfork.
The bunches average about 18lbs which is heavy enough when you have to move five or six hundred of them.

 

On the video you can see that I'm stood on a cart on about six foot of straw and am passing (bullying) them down to Graham who is on another cart stacking the bunches. That's the easy bit. By the time the second cart gets full I'm having to lift the bunches to the full length of the fork above my head. The final course often has to be thrown up as I can't reach high enough to just place it on the stack. By the time it's full a cart can be almost 20' high. You need a decent head for heights and a good sense of balance as you are standing on loose straw bunches which do not give you a firm footing.
The guy feeding the sheaths to the drum has the same problem. He starts off higher than the drum but as he gets to the bottom of the stack he has to lift them up. He also has to lift more total weight because the straw still has the grain on it. There is normally more than one person feeding the drum though unless we are short handed.

 

Poor parody of Paul Robeson.

 

It’s hard work and I bet that the abdominals are creaking at the end of the day unless you collapse early.

 

Whoosh, that's the sound it made as it flew over my head.

 

It's good honest work though.
I love it.
Also, how many people get the chance to play with steam engines?

 

Yep. That’s the clincher. I remember having a ride on a steam roller when I was about six. It was fabulous!

 

Vintage tractors are fun too.
We get one of these old Field Marshalls come along to drive the drum sometimes.
You have to start them with an explosive cartridge.

 

Those blokes were having great fun.
Much like these from my home town.

 

Nice.
Good to see you have David Browns down there. That's what we run on the farm here. I thought you might only have American tractors.
David Brown tractors bought the struggling Aston Martin car company back in the 50s and that's what the DB stands for in the famous Aston Martin DB series of sports cars.
James Bond drives a tractor.

 

Had to consult my husband on this but the Mack Thermo range of trucks used to start like that.
His Father used to work at a flour mill and one transporter used to sneak in at night with an overloaded truck full of wheat. They’d offload the wheat and the driver would have a short sleep, before a “bang” in the middle of the night would announce his departure in the 70 ton Thermodyne truck!

 

70 tons!
That's a big truck.
40 tons is the limit on our roads.
I'll have to look one up.
Was that a multi-trailer road train?

 

42 tons is the limit on our roads.
Didn’t have any trailers. It was an open bin which was filled by the header in the paddock. Only did one trip per day.

 

He had to sneak around back roads at night so the Transport Regulations Board inspectors couldn’t catch him with the overloaded truck.

 

Some old planes used to start like that too.
There's that scene in The Flight of the Phoenix where they are down to the last cartridge, do or die, start now or we all die out here in the desert.

 

The best thing about government departments like that is that they generally only work Monday to Friday 9-5.
When I head of to a gig with my mobile kitchen I always try to drive at night as fully loaded it's pushing the 7.5 ton limit.

 

The TRB has been the bane of truck drivers existence.
Manning weigh bridges and checking log books. They could be out on the roads any time.
Unloved by taxi drivers too.

 

this is an interesting. Bloke. Farmers are learning to look after their land.


https://www.abc.net.au/news/2020-09-28/charlie-massy-regenerative-farming-movement/12438352?utm_source=abc_news&utm_medium=content_shared&utm_content=link&utm_campaign=abc_news

 

Large scale intensive farming gives farmers a bad name that many don't deserve.
Those who run smaller family owned farms tend to be compassionate about conservation in my experience.
Soil erosion in particular is a hot topic amongst them but also wildlife protection.
There's a balance to be made though as food production needs to be efficient if they are to feed a hungry world.
Consumers must accept their responsibility to the environment too. The demand for ever cheaper food, especially in the more developed world is fuelling the move to more intensive farming. We need to be prepared to pay more for better products and try to consume less meat if we are to move forward in a more sustainable way.

 

I didn't mean that to sound quite so patronising Sally. Hope you didn't take it that way.

 

no, you didnt sound patronising. I agree. in Australia soil has been treated as if it were an enemy to be beaten into submission with ploughing and superphosphate with no thought given to how fragile it is. Farmers are waking up to the problems farming methods have caused.

our supermarket sells misshapen fruit, at a reduced price in order to reduce wastage. the supermarkets have a lot of control and influence over growers. they believe that consumers wont buy anything but prime product in perfect condition. This is why we are sold tomatoes which look beautiful, are as solid as wood and have no flavour.

 

I just didn't want to come across as preaching to the choir. I'm sure you were already aware of the points I made.
I was addressing the board not you personally.

 

What a great little film.
I'm about half way through.