Fields Of Gold

This time of year always reminds me of the old Sting song "Fields of Gold".  For the simple reason that we are currently surrounded by them.  I haven't posted about our harvest for a while.  Mainly because I was finding the harvest process a bit hard and trying.   I always hit this point in harvest and then get over the metaphorical hump and on it goes.

We are at the point now where we have almost finished harvesting our barley crop and will move onto our wheat crop.  Hopefully we will finish mid December.  For those of you who came in late, we harvest with a machine we call a header.  To see a photo either click on the word header in the label section or click here.  The headers have been doing their job beautifully and we are getting there.  No more incidents with "wingy bits"

This year we are incredibly grateful to have a half decent crop to harvest.  Many farmers to the east of us had so little rain this year that they have either a very poor crop or none at all.

This harvest we have also baled up our barley straw and will sell it to piggeries.  They will use it for the pigs bedding. This is a good way for us to use what would otherwise be a waste product.

Last night The Farmchildren and I went to deliver The Farmer his dinner.  On the way we passed these bales, all stacked up and ready to go to cushion the pigs.

Bales of Barley Straw, My Shadow

My shadow is such a funny shape because I was wearing an apron.  It had been a busy day and I hadn't had time to change out of my clothes from my day job.  This meant I headed out to the paddock with my husband's dinner in a black top, black and white flared skirt and cute wedges with bows on the toes.  Oh, and an apron.  This was very Stepford of me.  I am OK with having Stepford Wife moments.  For two reasons: 1.  They are few and far between and 2. They are one rung up the ladder from moments of the fishwife variety at least.

Anyway, I digress.  Sorry.

There are lots of these little stacks of barley straw all over our paddocks. Here's some more.

More Barley Straw Bales

I like taking photos on The Farm using the evening light. It makes it all look so much more glamorous.  I am all for finding as much glamour in farming as I can.  The burning midday sun and the dust and flies just don't really cut it in the glamour stakes.

Anyway, I digress. Again. Sorry. Again.

We have been carting most of our harvested barley to the CBH storage facility in town.  This is just a big wheatbin with a weighbridge and stuff.  We have smaller storage type arrangements on The Farm.  Here is a photo of a truck being loaded from our on farm silos (big metal bins for grain storage)

Truck Being Loaded From Glamorous Sunset Type Silos

On the drive to deliver The Farmer his dinner I also saw these cars whilst peaking over the neighbours fence.  They are not ours, but I kind of like them, and so I took a photo.

Very Old Cars, With Sunset Added Glamour

We will keep working away at our harvest.  We still have the wheat to go.

Wheat Crop, Patiently Waiting to Be Harvested

Anyway, I started this post by referring to a Sting song.  I think I will finish with a Slim Dusty number.

Here is my photographic version of "Looking Forward, Looking Back".

Barley Straw Bales, From Car Window