The first frost signals the advent of the harvest season.
That spells W-O-R-K! Tony and Gip test the machinery before harvest
begins in earnest. For the first 4 seasons, we used a simple but innovative
process to separate and gather the seed. It was not a
commercial-grade process, however; so we decided in winter of 2001 to buy a
"real" seed separator machine. We placed the order in March and
anxiously awaited its arrival. Finally, after waiting for a special part
to be made just for our Zinnias, we received the STS WM2-SV Vacuum Separator
from SeedTech Systems and U.S. Global Resources out of Seattle,
Washington. It was a HUGE financial decision for a small family farming
operation. But I am sure the new tractor and seed separator will allow us
to bid larger contracts with greater confidence.
"Taking
action may mean that we make more mistakes, and it also may mean that we have
more opportunities to learn."
-- Anne Wilson Schaefs
I made a new friend at U.S. Global Resources, the company
where we bought our seed machine. The Administrator there is named
Dorothy, and she's a delight to work with when trying to decide what's right for
your farming operation and pocket book. Below, I've copied Dorothy's
information for any of you who might wish to contact her about getting the right
tool for any agricultural job. They sell a host of products from
irrigation to greenhouses and commercial grade seed processors, as you'll see on
their website named below. You'll find Dorothy will give you excellent
service, often a rarity today, though everyone claims to do it. U.S.
Global Resources does. Now Dorothy's letter:
"And what is your
Duty? Whatever the day calls for."
-- Goethe
"Losing ourselves in
our work may be just that." --
Anne Wilson Schaefs
"Duty shall be a
by-product." -- Brenda Ueland
Tim Maciejewski, son Tony, Gip, and
Shelly get the new seed machine working summer of 2001!
"There is nothing wrong with duty. We
just should not let duty override our clear feelings and intuitions. Duty
cannot come before our internal clarity. When it does, it is a
tyrant. Duty needs to follow our clarity, not dictate our
actions." -- Anne Wilson Schaefs
Now for the
old processing story....see "contraption" below....
More tractor time for Gip. This is the old John Deere we used the
first 4 years at the Farm. We now have a New Holland sub-compact tractor
we call "Boomer." See below.
Old seed processing operation designed and built by
Allen Van Dyke for their business years ago. It uses a pair of old dryer
drums to tumble the flower heads and crush the heads to separate the seed from
the zinnia cones. Then the dryers full of seed and crushed chaff are
emptied onto this make-shift conveyor that moves the seed down the rack by
vibrations driven by a hand-held drill! A picnic table supports the
entire rack. Large fans placed strategically under the rack blows off the chaff
-- it gets everywhere, from your hair to your underwear! And all
over the barn! Son, Tony, devised a heavy cardboard "hood" which
we attached to a Shop Vac to take off the chaff with less dust and dirt blowing
around. Finally, the new seed separator arrived in time for 2001
harvest. We installed it in the basement of the farmhouse to allow us to
work inside during winter to process the harvest. With only 2 people
working, everything takes longer. The new machine will make the work less
and the resultant seed for packaging much cleaner. Since we don't use
commercial dryers, I believe our seed is more viable than other seed. Germ
rates are very high.
"Courage and openness go
hand in hand. Our courage helps us to take the risk to try the new.
When we are fearful, we only see one way -- our way."
--Anne
Wilson Schaefs
"Spirituality is
basically our relationship with reality."
-Chandra
Patel
Sub-compact tractor from New
Holland dealer in Fowlerville, MI. Lloyd Miller & Sons gave us a good
deal and great service.
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* from
the Farm!
From time to time, we will offer web-only specials and publish
short stories about the Farm Dogs or the grandkids, and inspirations from life on the Farm in mid-Michigan, the
American heartland. Seasonally, we will write to help Gardeners grow beautiful Zinnias,
learn how to make a stunning
bouquet, or how to collect precious seed when harvest is here. Let us know
if you would like to receive them.
We have moved our web to a new server and resized all photos for faster load
times. As we approach another winter, I hope
you visit us often to see our pretty pictures and read about the simple things
we love most here. Thanks for being a
customer! -Sharon Baller, President
"To see life's
passages through the eyes of your heart is to know that all is happening exactly
as it was meant to." -- Flavia Weedn
