Tuesday, June 25, 2013

Grey County Farming - The Hay Harvest

Farmland is a huge part of the landscape around here, and the changing pattern of crop seeding, growth, and harvest are one of the most obvious signs of the passing seasons every year.  I never tire of driving the country roads and noting what crops are being grown where, watching them mature, and then watching the harvest.


At the moment it's the hay harvest well underway, with farmers taking advantage of any warm dry days-in-a-row when they can mow the hay and let it dry.  Dairy farmers are usually first, as they want hay with a high protein content, while for beef cattle that's not quite so important - and Grey County here is the leading beef producer in Ontario.  So there will be a lot of hay cut later on in the summer too.


The big round hay bales scattered over rolling fields always seem to make great pictures to me, but you tend to forget how much work it is.  Admittedly, not nearly the physical labour of those old square bales, all tossed into the hay wagon and unloaded in the barn by hand, but still a lot of time mowing, raking, baling, then gathering the bales and taking them off to the barn, or wrapping them in white plastic - giant marshmallows lying along the fencerows.


I just threw this slightly different shot in just because I love the snaky motion of the fence along the edge of the field!  I'm linking this to 'Our World Tuesday'.

10 comments:

  1. There is so much tender love and care needed to tend a farm. It's quite remarkable all the work they do. Loved the shots here. Thanks for sharing!

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    1. Thanks; glad you could get out of the big city for a visit!

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  2. Those large hay bales always make me smile when I see them stacked in the fields, like a giant caterpillar :)
    ~Jo

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    1. Thanks for visiting. We were actually in Tenessee in April, stopping in the Great Smokies.

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    1. Wow, a visitor from Thailand! I think you win the award for the reader from furthest away. Hope you're having a great time there.

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  4. These photos are stunning. I learned a new word today, "fen". This looks like a great place to walk and take photos. Thanks for sharing.

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  5. Thanks for visiting, and glad you learned something new. Fens are fascinating places.

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  6. What a great place, indeed!
    I'm just getting caught up from Tuesday.
    Cheers from Cottage Country!

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  7. Nice to hear from you, and find your blog.

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