Now Vernon being the big brother that he was didn’t cut me too much slack. I was about twelve years old and he said if he had to work, I had to work. So when it came time to plow the corn he used the team of mares on the cultivator to plow the corn, and he hooked up the mule for me on a five shovel plow to plow. And thats what I did. the mule was smart enought to know how to do it. He’d go down one row and miss one row and turn and go back up the next. Our plowing was like making ovals. He would never step on a stalk of corn when he turned at the ends. He had enough room. I’d do that plowing and pretty near fall asleep plowing. But when I harnessed him I couldn’t reach the top of the mule to put it on so Vernon had to do that for me.
I guess it was good that Vernon taught me how to work that hard. I remember us getting into arguments out in the barn about who was stronger than the other one. We’d do chin ups, Dad would yell at us to do something worthwhile. We didn’t get tired doing them we just ran out of time.
Naomi Vetter says
I was wondering if that was to plow the corn up after it had been harvested, or was it to keep the weeds down. If it was to keep the weeds down, how many times a season did you all cultivate it? I remember a little bit about hoeing weeds between corn…but that may have been in the garden and not the fields. I agree with Danny. I want to also hear the coon hunting Labrador stories!!!! Come on, Mahlon!!!!!! Please???
Aunt Lolly says
I remember one spring, Daddy or Mahlon planted corn in the field up by Cousin Alvins, It rained and it rained all spring, there was hardly a day that went by that it didn’t rain after the corn was planted. The corn grew and came up good, and so did the crab grass. by the time it was dry enough to work the ground the weeds were taller then the corn. Dady fixed us each a hoe. Mine was a small one, and I guess Naomi’s was too. Dady made them for us. Mother,Dady, Mahlon,(he used the plow and old bert) Cleo, Myself, Naomi, I don’t remember if Lloyd was helping, He couldn’t have been very old. We hoed the weeds out of those ten or more acres of corn and saved it. That was so hard. I’ll never forget that. When it was all done.(It probably took more then a week to do all of it) Daddy took us to town to a movie and bought us ice cream cones at the Central Dairy. that was a real treat. I’ve got to go lay down now, just thinking about all that work made me really tired. Mahlon and Cleo, Naomi, what do you remember about this?
cleo says
When it rain so much that spring or early summerer, we spent time in the house scraping and refinishing chairs. we also worked on our 4-H projects. I wonder if we planted the tobacco before or after the rain. Was this before we got the tractor or after? or after?
Naomi Vetter says
Now that you mentioned it, I do remember the shorter handled hoes. I wonder if they are still in the smokehouse. The highlights of my life as a child are the few times we got to go to Central Dairy. The cones were 10-cents and I remember we were allowed to have as much as we wanted…but of course, one cone would fill up a little kid.
Christina says
Ah, Central Dairy! We try to take the kids there whenever we are in JC! As children we always went to Zesto’s…..I think that is because it was open later in the evening than Central Dairy.
Aunt Lolly says
I remember when the cones were just five cents, and they were larger then the dollar cones are now.
Aunt Lolly says
Cleo this was before we got the tractor. Mahlon was still at home. I was probably 9 or 10 years old and we got the tractor when I was 131/2. It was most likely after the rain that we planted the tobacco. That would be my guess.