Harvest Time

My dad was one of the hardest working men that I've ever known.  A full time job as a rigger in the city, and full time farmer at home.  After "retirement" he farmed and took care of the land full time.  He worked from sun up to sun down.  My brother is following in his foot steps.  He has taken over the spot of hardest working men that I know.

It's harvest time on the farm.  He's starting with the soy beans.  The farmers in Minnesota had a tough start with a very cold and wet spring.  Then our cooler than normal summer with not much rain...followed by a few weeks of monsoon rains towards the end of summer.  Farming isn't for the faint of heart.  

But the crops got in, they grew, they ripened...and now it's time to harvest.  It may have started a little slow...

...but there are beans.  And there will be corn.

Dusty beans!  But beautiful beans filling the wagons.

So many things can go wrong with farming.  From depending completely on the weather, to insect problems, to markets going up and down, to equipment failure.  Something always needs fixing. Like I said, it's not for the faint of heart.  But seeing the harvest filling the wagons is a pretty special sight.

I think this one below should be called "Amber Waves of Grain".  I like the swirls in the grain that the auger makes when the combine is emptying it's load.

Filling wagons, isn't it a pretty sight?  It's such an important part of Autumn.

Dust!

The pretty little Farmall H is getting dusty!  It looks tiny next to the giant combine.

Combines are pretty amazing machines.

The beans go in the hopper, the chaff comes out the back.  Farmers have to be mechanics along with all of their other jobs.

The little H wasn't quite big enough to pull those full wagons back to the farm.  My brother had to go back to the farm to get a bigger one.

My grandpa had Farmalls.  My dad had Farmalls and International Harvestors.  My brother has Farmalls and IHs and now Case IH's.  Farmers brand loyalty runs deep.  Isn't it pretty?  Red is the only color of tractor that I like too.  Not that it matters.

During harvest time the only way to see my brother is to spend some time on the farm....same as harvest time when my dad was living.  Harvesting doesn't stop for visiting.  That's ok by me.  I love to be at the farm.  I went for a ride on the IH to help hook up those full wagons, and to spend time with my brother.

Rain was in the forecast, the wagons needed to go inside. My riding with saved my brother one small trip up and down the tractor to hook the wagons up. Not much help, but it gave me a chance to visit with him.

And that's what you do when you want to spend time with a hard working farmer during harvest time. Take time to thank a farmer, they deserve it.  They work hard to put food on all of our tables. Where would we be without them?

 Thanks for stopping by!