Big Green Combine

Every December we move the corn out of the bins to the grain elevator. Intermittently, the elevator sends out 5 trucks to haul the grain away. While waiting for another truck, we fill the grain cart. This makes emptying the bins go much faster. We are out in the cold all day, usually for 2 or 3 days. This year we only had the 2 larger bins full of corn. So it turned out to be a day and a half. William and I used to do this by ourselves. But it is so nice to have the kids helping out. They do get paid and a day off of school work.

Tell me what you think of the video in the comments.

At a photography class, a friend asked me, “What do farmers do in the winter?” An excellent question. I proceeded to give her a list of work and activities that are accomplished on our farm in the cold winter months. This must be a burning question for others who lack a farm acquaintance to ask. All farms are different. I can only speak for what happens on our grain and livestock farm.

One thing farmers do in the winter is go to farm shows. I’ll say right up front. I am not a looker. (Did I just say that?) I don’t like to look at farm equipment, just to look. Big yawner. Now if we are looking to buy, I’m there. When funds are to be exchanged, that turns my head. Farm Shows are held in convention halls to exhibit what’s great and new. We had not been to one in a while so, I tagged along.  This one was not a big show like the National Farm Machinery Show in Louisville. But it is big enough that it took 4 hours to wander around the halls. We did purchase brush clippers and a grappler. The clippers hook on to a loader tractor and cut off trees up to 9″ round at the ground. The grappler fits over the bucket of a loader and helps stack the wood. We always have brush to clear.

So to sum it up, we looked at tractors, atvs, trucks, trailers, cattle chutes and sundry equipment. We talked to a few friends we ran into. A few unexpected exhibits were jewelry and back massage people.

Keep checking back to see what a frigid farmer does all winter long.