In March

When Grandma went to school, she learned this song: In March the farmer hitches up his little horses. He tends his fields and meadows. He plows the soil, harrows and sows, and works from early morning till late. Grandma probably also remembers horses pulling a plow across the fields. The farmer guided the animals with a long rein. He walked in the furrow behind the plow. He had to make sure the plow stayed on track and the horses pulled straight ahead. It was hard work for both, and it took a long time to finish a field. Before plowing, manure was spread over the field. It came from the animals’ bedding and droppings in the stable over the winter and was collected in a pile. In spring, the manure was loaded onto a cart and taken to the field. There, the cart was unloaded and the manure spread evenly with pitchforks. It didn’t smell very nice. After plowing, the farmer hitched a horse to a harrow and evenly leveled the top layer of soil. Then he walked across the field and sowed the grain by hand. To cover the seeds with soil and stop birds from eating them straight away, the field had to be harrowed once more.

Farms haven’t been run the way they were in Grandma’s day for a long time. A lot has changed over the past few decades. Farmers are now generally called agricultural workers, horses have been replaced by large tractors, and small farms have shut down, leaving fewer and fewer farms. Those that remain are much larger than before. But farmers still work with nature and the seasons. Spring is still a busy time, with plenty of important work to do. Above all, fields must be prepared for sowing, and seeds must be sown and plants planted. Plants need sunlight, water and nutrients to grow. Farmers add these nutrients to the soil. Today, they use either slurry, manure, liquid manure or synthetic fertilizer. Slurry, manure and liquid manure come from animal urine and feces. Since many more animals are raised today than in the past, there is also more of this fertilizer. Farmers spread it using large tankers or manure spreaders. They may apply slurry only at certain times of the year. They must take care that none of it gets into waterways. To help crops grow well, the soil is loosened before sowing, usually by plowing. This helps distribute the fertilizer and buries plants that the farmer does not want growing there. Modern tractors plow several furrows at once, allowing farmers to work a large area in a short time. 

Cereal plants grow from seeds. When farmers grow cereals, they must sow the seeds and cover them with soil. The seeds then sprout, and the seedlings grow into stalks. Ears grow on the stalks, containing lots of new grains. In the past, seeds were sown by hand. Today, farmers use seed drills. In one operation, these machines place many seeds in several rows, at equal distances from one another, and cover them with soil. This keeps the seeds from drying out, protects them from birds and helps them start to germinate quickly. To help cereal crops grow well and produce high yields, farmers sometimes also fertilise the fields with artificial fertiliser. Other plants usually grow among the crops, but farmers often don’t want them there. They call them weeds. The crops can also be attacked by fungi, bacteria or animals that hinder their growth. Today, most farmers use chemical products that they spray on the fields. These products are called pesticides. They contain toxic substances that, for example, kill plants that shouldn’t be growing in the fields. These substances must not be allowed to enter groundwater, streams or rivers. Such products were unknown in the past. The most people could do was pull out weeds. Larger animals that caused damage were hunted, while smaller ones were collected by hand.

Meadows are also farmed differently today than they were in the past. When Grandma was little, farmers let the grass grow. In early summer, they cut it and made hay, which was then stored in the lofts of farmhouses. Today, meadows are mowed several times over the course of the year, sometimes as early as April, before the grass has even fully grown. The cut grass is left to dry only briefly. Then it is collected in large forage wagons and piled into a silage clamp. The clamp is sealed with large tarpaulins. The grass ferments in the clamp and can be used as feed for cattle after a few weeks.

Using pesticides in fields is a problem. Some wild plants near fields have their growth stunted or disappear altogether. This means they are no longer available as food for wild animals and insects. On the other hand, farmers depend on what grows in their fields and meadows for their livelihoods. Some farmers practice organic farming. They are sometimes simply called organic farmers. They try to get by without pesticides and artificial fertilizers. They grow plants that improve the soil, for example by taking nitrogen from the air. Or they rotate crops more often because different plants have different soil requirements. They keep only as many animals as they can feed with their own produce. The animals should be kept in conditions suited to their needs. Some farmers are also going back to more traditional methods, from before there were artificial fertilizers, chemical treatments and so many machines. Organic farmers often harvest less than other farmers, however. So they have to charge more for their products if they want to earn about as much as their colleagues. Sometimes they sell their products in farm shops.

In the past, a farm was home to several kinds of domestic animals. Horses were used as work animals, and dogs guarded the farm. Cows provided milk, sheep provided wool, ducks provided feathers, and cattle provided hides. People also ate the meat of slaughtered pigs. Back then, farmers first provided for themselves and their families, producing everything they needed to live. Today, farmers provide food for many other people. Most have specialized. That means some farms mainly grow grain or potatoes. Others mainly produce milk or raise pigs or poultry. In the past, a farm had only a few animals of different kinds. Today, many animals are kept in large barns that they never leave during their short lives. Cows are expected to produce lots of milk and have many calves. Pigs, chickens and turkeys are expected to put on weight quickly so they can be slaughtered. Hens are expected to lay lots of eggs. That is why farmers often keep many animals of the same kind. This is called intensive livestock farming. Whereas farms once had barns for cows, pigs, horses and chickens, today more and more large livestock facilities are being built, often far from the farmer’s home. To afford them, farmers need to make money. The only way to do that is to farm ever larger areas or keep ever more animals. As a result, some farmers give up their farms and move into other professions. So much has changed since Grandma learned the song about the farmer harnessing his little horses in March. And the changes continue …

Images: Hamsterkiste (9), Fritz Raafkes (3), Bundesarchiv (1), public domain (1)