Monday 25 May 2009

that's My World. Make hay while the sun shines...





 
 
 
 
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The Netherlands is very flat and wet in the western part, where I live, so there is no arable farming here. We have a lot of grass in our polders, so it stands to reason, that the farmers breed cattle, mostly for dairy products.(A polder is low-lying land that has been reclaimed and is protected by dikes, especially in the Netherlands). All meadows in Holland are divided by narrow canals or ditches filled with water. In winter if there is ice you can go skating on them, in summer they keep the cattle in the fields. Here you see that hay is gathered for this cattle in winter.That enormous machine is needed to collect the hay.

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For more details you can click on the photos to enlarge them.

35 comments:

Dina said...

That's funny, I was just outside working with rake and pitchfork to make stacks of long dry grasses and reclaim some of my yard for civilization. Now I find your fun post about haymaking. Nice to look closely at the enlarged photos and wish I were there in the polder. The fresh cut hay must smell so good.
Beautiful equipment, New Holland and a shiny blue tractor.
Is that a double sided hay rake the one guy has? New to me. Good idea.
Do they make the big round bales or small square bales?
The cows and sheep will be happy, come winter.

Vicki Lane said...

The sweet smell of hay-making is one of the nicest smells there is. We have, in the past, made hay with a team of mules pulling the hay rake and ourselves forking the hay around a pole to make an old-time hay stack. Hard, hard work but oh! that lovely smell!

Carol Murdock said...

Wil...the first real jobs my sons ever had was in"hay making season".
Helping to bale, haul and store the hay. One forgets they do this all over the world! I'm with Vicki,
it smells sooooo good!
Xoxo

The Weaver of Grass said...

Are they haymaking already reader wil? Our hay will not be ready for at least another month.
I love that last picture of cows grazing in a water meadow.

Patty said...

Interesting article. I trust you had a pleasant week-end. I keep thinking today is Sunday, but it's Memorial Day and so a lot of businesses are closed making it seem like a Sunday.

Anonymous said...

It is nice to see the grasslands, Wil. I like grass perhaps better than any thing else in the pasture.

James said...

Very nice. It looks like a great place.

Canarybird said...

I enjoyed looking at your photos Wil.
Thanks for linking them on My World.
Sharon.

Guy D said...

LOL too true about making hay. Great pics, looks like your having wonderful weather.

Have a great week.
Guy
Regina In Pictures

Sylvia K said...

Your lovely photos brought back memories of summers spent on my uncle's farm. I could almost feel the warm sun and smell the hay. Thanks for a lovely look back at my world and a today look at yours! Thanks as always, Wil!

Marja said...

Oh wonderful I lived in the polder close to the German border and close to the rijn I remember the farmers being busy with hay

Janie said...

It appears the cows and horses will have a nice haystack for the winter.
I do love the smell of fresh cut hay.

George said...

Your post brought back memories of making hay when I was growing up. The fields were much larger than your polders but the equipment (and work) is probably much the same.

Carver said...

These are beautiful shots. There is something very appealing to me about meadows. Your title was fun and appropriate.

Indrani said...

Lovely shots of the meadows. It seems so pleasant there.

Catherine said...

lovely green shots of your world..look like summer is approaching..

Photo Cache said...

Looks like a lovely day to be outdoors, whether out for working in the fields/land, or just walking out.

My entry is here:

www.ewok1993.wordpress.com

Etje said...

De polder is dan wel plat, maar toch een mooi landschap.
Het onweer van deze nacht viel nogal mee kwestie van regen, maar door de stevige wind is hier toch heel veel op te ruimen.

Hopelijk is het bij jullie ook meegevallen.

Groetjes

Jeanette said...

Gday Wil, Lovely Pics of your Meadows I love the one of the cws grazing . I like the fresh smell of hay when I go out on the highway a few minutes from home..

Marie Reed said...

That's always been a dream of mine... to ice skate on a canal in Holland! I've always found the idea of that so exhilarating!

Wolynski said...

One day they'll invent an Internet with scents, so you can transmit the smell of grass and hay. Absolutely gorgeous.

Arija said...

Lovely post Wil, I haven't seen wooden hay rakes since my childhood! Here is Australia it is all mechanised, cutting, raking and turning and then baling into square of round bales.
Somehow, although I could no longer physically work in the fields, I do miss the old fashioned haymakig without mechanical noise and larks singing high in the sky.

EG CameraGirl said...

Haying so soon? Our grass isn't tall enough to cut and bale yet. Lovely shots and explanation.

Arkansas Patti said...

What smells greater than fresh cut hay? Nothing.
I am also interested how it would look ice skating there in winter. Must be a wonderful scene.

Lanny said...

What beautiful land. Portrayed well in your photos and words.

I try to use the canals and beaver ponds as barriers for our sheep but we have one we call Bathsheepa, she is quite frequently found in my garden with a very wet fleece. The cows in the Netherlands must not have any water wings!

Amanda Guthrie said...

Beautiful photos, the last shot of the meadow is striking.. It was fun to read about your watery world.

Janice Thomson said...

Gosh beautiful photos and the hay looks very lush. Love the smell of fresh mowed hay...reminds me of my days as a young girl on the farm.

SandyCarlson said...

That looks like a warm and sunny, sweet-smelling place.

Inday said...

Good for this hayfarm because I love Frisian Milk. hehe The milk I drank when I was a young girl. I can still remember the jingle: "Dutch baby milk, pwham pwham pwham ...for beautiful children". Believe me Ma'am I can sing the notes perfectly. So please let us tell those busy farmers to farm more hay for my Frisian Cow's Milk: the milk for beautiful children. lol.

Ann, Chen Jie Xue 陈洁雪 said...

Do they seal your hay in big plastic bags? I saw some bales of hay in plastic sheeted bags in Cornwall park. may be it is too wet here.

Barbara Martin said...

The photos bring pleasant memories of my childhood vacations of visiting relatives who farmed the land. Thank you, Wil.

aino said...

Oh. There are cows in the meadow. I love cows. :)

Smart Mouth Broad said...

Your world looks a lot like where I was raised in Indiana minus the water. The land was very flat and lots of hay fields and pastures for cows. We also had lots of corn, soybean and tomato fields.

Rose said...

Oh, Wil, I enjoyed this so much. That last picture pulls at my heartstrings though. Makes me think of my childhood.

PATUCAWARRIOR said...

I see cows...
I make hay as well...
Awesome...