The sickle was used to harvest the grain when it was ripe. The cradle later replaced the sickle to cut the grain. The threshing was done with a. flail.

After the “cradle” came the invention of the “reaper” which left the grain unbound; the women did a lot of the binding which was done by hand. Next came the binder; the tread mill was invented, two horses walked in a revolving platform made of planks on wheels, the front being

elevated so that the horses were always walking up hill.

Threshing was generally done on Saturday when the children were home to help it was a dusty old job on the loft and a cold generally followed.

The gasoline engine was used next; Mr. George Schurman had the first engine in New Annan about 1897. Later came the straw blower, grain baggers and now we have the self_propelled combines which thresh the grain in the field. The grain is hauled to the barn in bulk tanks by tractors which replace the horses

HAY

Hay operations have also improved since the days when hay was cut by a scythe and raked with a large wooden hand rake. , Mowing machines had reached some places on the Island in 1860’s. The first machine was 3. Manny followed by the Dodge. The Manny was a reaper with a removable platform and then used as a mower for cutting

hay.

A horse drawn rake was invented that raked one swath at a time. Next was the two wheel self dump rake which was capable of raking two swaths at once. The early farmers used to coil the hay; before taking it in it was spread out for a while and then loaded on horse draWn wagons and put on the loft with a hay fork and carrier which was

hoisted by means of a horse.

The side delivery rake leaves a nice windrow for a hay loader or a baler which is mostly used now days.

MANGEL SEED

Prince Giant White mangel seed, which at one time was a very important crop; as most farmers grew mangels for their stock, originated in New Annan over fifty years ago on the Moase homestead.

Three superior mangels were selected in the fall out of a field of mangels grown from Rennie’s seeds. These mangels were planted in the cellar; in the spring when fear of frost was over they were planted out

in the field and kept clean through the summer.

When the seed matured and turned brown the plants were gathered, placed in jute bags and hung out to dry. The seed was now rubbed off by hand, put over a riddle and hand picked on the table. This went on for sometime, each fall saving more plants picking out the best typed

mangels.

As the wind was hard on the heavy growth, the plants were staked using a stake for every three or four plants and at least three strands of binder twine wound in and out to hold them up.

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