[AT] Corn Picking and storage.

[Larry Goss]

Uh, yeah.  That description doesn't need any explanation, Herb.

Larry


----- Original Message -----
From: Herbert Metz <metz-h.b at mindspring.com>
Date: Saturday, January 30, 2010 14:50
Subject: Re: [AT] Corn Picking and storage.
To: Antique tractor email discussion group <at at lists.antique-tractor.com>

> 
> Many years ago on this forum someone told about a young 
> journalist being
> sent out to do a story about some farmer.  He stopped in 
> and they had
> started shelling corn out of a crib.  After while the 
> farmer got his
> circular push lawn mower out, and started it, and let it run at 
> at a fast
> idle (back in those days engines had throttles), and parked it about
> fifteen feet out of the way.  The young journalist was told 
> to just wait
> around when he asked why the lawn mower.  When the crib 
> became close to
> near empty, out came the critters, looking for shelter.  
> The journalist's story did not include all details.
> Herb
> 
> > [Original Message]
> > From: Paul Waugh <pwaugh at embarqmail.com>
> > To: Tractor <at at lists.antique-tractor.com>
> > Date: 1/30/2010 12:19:36 PM
> > Subject: [AT] Corn Picking and storage.
> >
> > This topic is starting to stir some memories.  The 
> snapping glove my
> father used, I still have.  I have tried it a couple of 
> times. The whole
> concept of going down through rows and getting beat around by 
> stalks and
> piling corn in the snow because it snowed way too early, is a 
> lot of work!!
> >
> > My uncle was a hog farmer, raising 300-400 head a year. And 
> doing it the
> hard way. A lot of work and TLC, he loved his hogs.  To do 
> this he needed
> corn, so he built a crib around 1953. Big for our area. 60 ft x 
> 60 ft x 20
> ft high.  It was divided into 3 sections. a 40 ft center, 
> with a 20 ft on
> each side, and of course, 60 ft long.  Each section had a 
> 'trough' in the
> center of the floor. This was 18 inches wide and 12 inches deep. 
> They were
> exposed to the outside. There was a lip to hold 2 x 4's to cover 
> the trough
> before filling with corn. This gave ventilation and is were we 
> would slide
> the 'drags' for the corn sheller.  It was a pretty neat set 
> up and 2 guys
> could shell a heck of a lot of corn or a Saturday morning. The 
> sheller was
> a MM, I have no idea of model, it was a pull type and pto 
> driven. He had 3
> section of drags, each 8-10ft long, they could be hooked 
> together to make
> one one drag.  Just pull a couple of boards off the through 
> and let the
> corn fall into the drag.
> >
> > In the falls of 1956 & 57 my uncle contracted to shell 
> 'government' corn.
> I have no idea what this was about, other than farmers stored 
> the corn in
> every available place he could find.  Some were nice and 
> used cribs. We
> would set up the drags along the outside and remove some bottom 
> slats to
> get the corn out .. very little shoveling.  Some was stored 
> in bins in
> upper part of barn, and was lot of shoveling.  The worse 
> was hog brood
> houses.  A couple of farmers just lifted the lid and filled 
> hog houses. 
> Any idea how hard it was to get that first corner open enough to 
> stand on
> the floor so you could shovel .... by then you were half done 
> with that
> house, and the next was waiting on you. We were at one place 4 days
> shoveling houses.
> >
> > It was always interesting, bees, mice, rats, oh my the rats, 
> birds nest,
> just about anything.  It was always fun on a warm fall 
> afternoon, when corn
> fell down and a wasp nest came with it .... they were pisssed to 
> say the
> least. We did a round wire crib that had so many rats in it, we 
> took turns
> walking around and smacking them in the head as they tried to 
> squirm out of
> the crib and corn  ... must have killed 20-30 rats that day.
> >
> > I will never feel 16 again, with the warm sun on my back, shoveling,
> sweating in 40 degree like it was summer .... I was one of the 
> lucky ones,
> I can shovel right, or left handed.
> >
> > Paul-46555
> > _______________________________________________
> > AT mailing list
> > http://www.antique-tractor.com/mailman/listinfo/at
> 
> 
> _______________________________________________
> AT mailing list
> http://www.antique-tractor.com/mailman/listinfo/at
>