I think this title is a good example of Swiss humor. You will not find this in a perfume store. One of my first German teachers was from Heidelberg. I believe it was her who introduced the word "Misthaufen" to me. As my times in CH increased, I found her description of this entity evident on many occasions both in CH and in Germany. "Misthaufen" refers to a (hopefully large) pile of cow manure intermixed with hay that sits outside a farmer's barn. Some years ago, a law was made that it must sit on concrete I believe. Supposedly, the larger the pile, the more prosperous the farmer.
I am uncertain of this, but knowing the Swiss penchant for detail, I suspect that somewhere in the Swiss agricultural archives in Bern, there is some sort of quantification regarding Misthaufen. Staying on topic here, this leads to the above title. After the grass is cut, as previously described, the fields are left relatively bare. Two things then happen. First, all the barnyard cats are immediately evident in the fields in watchful poses and scrutinizing the ground. They feast on any field mouse that happens to venture out without the benefit of overlying grass protection. The second thing that takes place is "misting". "Mist" is manure from the Misthaufen. This is applied in two ways; the usual is mixed with water and sprayed from a truck apparatus similar to a street cleaning vehicle. Sometimes, there is a hose attached to the truck which allows for more precise placement of material along roads, driveways, or sidewalks. The second application process is placement on the mist out of a truck with a fan blade arrangement that flings a more solid manure onto the fields. My own description of this is "flinging" or "plopping". Two things are important here. This activity is closely related to a forecast for rain. Rain promotes good absorption of the manure and prevention of burning the newly mowed grass shoots. The other thing less common is that it is illegal for misting to take place onto snow. This applies to spring when a sudden snow can occur especially at higher altitudes. I expect this law was passed to curtail the likelihood of tourists being exposed to fields covered with brown and fragrant snow.
OK now, the topic approaches exhaustion. By now, one can imagine that "Eau du Schweiz" refers to the unique odor briefly enjoyed by all. I have know people who, without fail, can sniff and tell which farmer's product is out there. Cutting grass, misting, and following rains go together, so take a umbrella (for the rain).
18 May 2017
16 May 2017
Spring has Sprung Again!!
Yep, correct. Just today. No big surprise.
This morning and throughout the day, my grass got cut (not my grass but my farmer neighbors' pastures. Our house is surrounded on four sides by pastures of grass used for fodder for farmer's cows in the winter. The only exception is the one used for the sheep who are here in the summer ( a lot better to watch than goldfish, as they breed, birth, and grow). That one is out the kitchen window.
Today, from dawn to late dusk, the guys have been cutting the grass. I knew this meant our weather is going to be good for 2-3 days. farmers here are so much better than TV weather guys/girls. They are not pretty but accurate.
Cut grass lies in rain and produces gas. In the open that is no problem, but if it is put in a barn, the gas collects and explodes. Swiss tax people are not so kind to casualty losses, so you can be flat out of financial luck in that venue, when your barn blows up and burns. Grass is cut when a few days of sunshine will follow. The next day, it is flipped over by machine or by hand with rakes. This dries it out, so less gas forms.
The third day is when it gets interesting, and gender comes into play. Custom has it that the men cut the grass, both men and women flip it, and the women collect it with the men. In the old days, that was a hell of a lot of work. Now, mechanization helps. Mowers are driven to cut (some even have air-conditioning in the cabs. Flipping is done with tractor pulled machines, and lastly comes big collector machines. The collected grass is then trucked to the barn for silage to be used in the winter. The most advanced technique is a machine that collects the grass, wraps it in plastic covering and then ;eaves it in the pasture or allows it to be stored on the farm for later use. These huge ball-like shapes can be seen in most barn yards. One year, the breast cancer awareness groups got the farmers to use pink plastic to call awareness to the cancer.
On rare occasions one can still see a grass cutter using a scythe for edging jobs. Old fashioned but precise. Machines and robotics has come to town. Next blog will be on "Eau du Schweiz".
This morning and throughout the day, my grass got cut (not my grass but my farmer neighbors' pastures. Our house is surrounded on four sides by pastures of grass used for fodder for farmer's cows in the winter. The only exception is the one used for the sheep who are here in the summer ( a lot better to watch than goldfish, as they breed, birth, and grow). That one is out the kitchen window.
Today, from dawn to late dusk, the guys have been cutting the grass. I knew this meant our weather is going to be good for 2-3 days. farmers here are so much better than TV weather guys/girls. They are not pretty but accurate.
Cut grass lies in rain and produces gas. In the open that is no problem, but if it is put in a barn, the gas collects and explodes. Swiss tax people are not so kind to casualty losses, so you can be flat out of financial luck in that venue, when your barn blows up and burns. Grass is cut when a few days of sunshine will follow. The next day, it is flipped over by machine or by hand with rakes. This dries it out, so less gas forms.
The third day is when it gets interesting, and gender comes into play. Custom has it that the men cut the grass, both men and women flip it, and the women collect it with the men. In the old days, that was a hell of a lot of work. Now, mechanization helps. Mowers are driven to cut (some even have air-conditioning in the cabs. Flipping is done with tractor pulled machines, and lastly comes big collector machines. The collected grass is then trucked to the barn for silage to be used in the winter. The most advanced technique is a machine that collects the grass, wraps it in plastic covering and then ;eaves it in the pasture or allows it to be stored on the farm for later use. These huge ball-like shapes can be seen in most barn yards. One year, the breast cancer awareness groups got the farmers to use pink plastic to call awareness to the cancer.
On rare occasions one can still see a grass cutter using a scythe for edging jobs. Old fashioned but precise. Machines and robotics has come to town. Next blog will be on "Eau du Schweiz".
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