![Summerfallow](pics/summerfallow.jpg)
Farmers generally could not afford the larger machinery
so they had to rent it. Fifteen to sixteen men would come with the threshing
unit. The farmer's wife was responsible to feed all the working men.
If it rained the men would stay at the farmers house until the job was
completed. The wife had to feed the men the entire time they were working
on their homestead. A steam-powered thresher was used. The men pitched
the stooks (small collection of sheaves) into the separator. Once the
thresher was started the wheels would spin on a long rubber pulley.
The men would help the farmer with all of the threshing operations.
Once the threshing process was complete they would haul their crops
to the elevators in Weyburn or Brooking by wagon or sleigh. It was very
common for the elevator to be full already; the farmer would then have
to go to McTaggart or Yellow Grass to unload their grain. In 1938 a
new type of wheat, Thatcher, was developed that helped farmers a lot.
This new type of wheat was rust resistant. All the farmers had to put
up feed for their stock. To cut the hay they would use a mower equipped
with a sharp blade and a sickle. Once the cut down hay had dried for
a few days the bunches were pitched into haystacks.
![haystacks](pics/goodcrop.jpg)
![Farming breaking his land](pics/breaklnd.jpg)
Problems
Farmers
faced a lot of problems. The wheat that they had was very slow to mature.
The wheat wheat they had took a long time to mature so it was often
hit with frost and frozen before it was ripe. The crops were prone to
several different types of plant disease. Also, the crop could not withstand
hot, dry weather. Grasshoppers and army-worms caused a lot of damage
for several years. They would eat the crops and gardens and homesteaders
had no way to control them. Rust was a common problem, drying out the
crops it affected.
Wheat
rust is a parasitic fungus that would cause the
rust-infected leaves to die prematurely, causing a reduction in quality
and yield of grain. Some of these crops were such a poor quality that
they weren't good enough to use as chicken feed. The best thing to do
with these infected crops was to simply burn them. Russian thistle created
a huge problem for farmers; it spread rapidly and was hard to control.
Farmers did not have chemicals to treat affected crops. Mosquitoes and
flies were everywhere. To help keep the bugs away they would burn green
grass to create smoke. They also tried to use gunnysacks as screens
but these did not work as well.
Animals
Animals
were widely used during the early 1900s. For those that could afford
a few horses and a few head of cattle, farming was made a lot easier.
Animals were very expensive. One ox cost $100, horses cost anywhere
from $150-200 and mules would cost anywhere from $300-400.
Farmers
used horses a lot. They were used for working the soil, pulling farming
equipment, digging dugouts, moving dirt, moving houses and barns to
different locations, and they were used as the main mode of transportation.
Mules were also used on the farm. They preferred not to use mules because
they were
very
stubborn. Farmers used oxen as well, although not very many people could
afford them. They used the ox to help pull the machinery. Almost every
farmer had a cow. They used the cows for milk, butter, cream, and meat.
They preferred not to, but if they absolutely had to they would use
a cow to pull a wagon. With the advent of the gasoline engine small,
affordable tractors flooded the industry. Tractors could work all day.
Land used for feed and pasture could be seeded to grain.
Homes
When
the pioneers came they had nothing to make houses out of so they made
small sod shacks. These shacks were very simple, easy to keep clean,
cozy, and didn't leak. The shack could be decorated with wallpaper or
paint, and rugs or floors could be put in them if desired. When the
railway came lumber was brought in and houses were constructed of wood.
![Homesteader](pics/horse.jpg)
![Sod House](pics/sodhouse.jpg)
Water
It
took a homesteader days to dig a well. A certain process used while
digging a well was generally followed by all homesteaders. A hole would
be dug with a shovel until it reached a depth of eight or nine feet.
Once it reached this depth a 'windlass' was built to finish digging
the hole. A windlass was made up of a long rope wound onto a sleeve
with a hand crank at the end. The action of using a windlass was similar
to the use of a winch. One person would be at the bottom of the hole
filling the pail, while another person would be at the top of the hole
to empty the pail. This process was repeated until the hole was completed.