At LLanwarne: British Ploughing Competition

If you want to know when farming went from being small holders with a patch if ground to large landowners, then this was the kit that changed everything.

From the horse plough came this steam driven 'push me, pull you' of a plough. This Anti balance plough from 1918, driven by two BB and BB1 class steam engines Ploughing engines of this era worked in pairs and would stand at either side of the field and pull the plough or cultivator to and fro between them and by cable. One engine being left handed and the other right handed. The ploughs about the centre axle and is steered by a ploughman ( in this case a ploughwoman, Sam Williams.)

Can you imagine the financial investment a landowner would have had to put into two steam engines and a plough or cultivator? An investment against his first crop, should it be good? Nothing has changed today. Investment in up to date kit is only for the bigger farmers or landowners who can realise a realistic return on their investment. The more farm, the less the risk against your Harvest against your crop.

It's a balancing act. It all is. And when, infections like schmallenberg are a daily lottery for some. TB is a another one for others. The changing jet stream of weather. A farmers plays a lottery every day of his life. Stress in farming didnt start in 1918, it started sooner then that....x