A fresh crop of memories

Harvest time can be a time for reflection, whether you have happy memories of berry picking or spending your holidays tattie hoaking or simply love the spectacle of seeing the crops brought in from the fields.

Here are a few images from days gone by that are sure to stir some memories. The days of horse-powered farm equipment seem so near and yet so far and the contrast of those simple farm machines with today’s ultra-high tech tractors and combine harvesters is almost mind-blowing.

Today’s farmers have incredibly accurate weather forecasting on hand to help them choose the best time to bring their crops in and it is not unsual to see combines working late into the night with their floodlights illuminating the fields in order to make the most of a spell of dry weather. Crops are surveyed with drones and tractors and combine harvesters are driven with the aid of GPS technology.

It seems incredible that, just a generation or two ago, farmers would still welcome squads of workers to help harvest their crops by hand or with the help of horse-drawn equipment. The grain then had to be dried before being separated from the straw, where today’s machines manage all of these steps in one go. The new technology means much of the danger of farm work has been minimised but that farmers now spend long hours on their own behind the wheels of their tractors or the controls of the combine harvester.

While efficiency and working conditions have no doubt improved, some people look back fondly at the days of working in a team at harvest time.

Above, left: farming the old-fashioned way, when horse power did not pertain to an engine. Above: harvesting at Balmossie Farm, Broughty Ferry. Pictures: DCT.