October 27, 2024
From time to time my fascination with horses pops back up. After creating a large collection of the wild horses in Europe, they sort of disappeared from my art stage. But when I see them in such a vintage setting in fall, the inspiration bubbles back up. These five, pulling an old-fashioned stalk chopper in use with the Amish, are a sight for sore eyes! You cannot help but admire the young lad who seems to direct them so effortlessly, one hand in his pocket against the colder temperatures, one on the leads. Of course, much depends on the most experienced horse of the lot. If he has the respect and position needed for the other four to follow his lead, ploughing the fields in fall is pure pleasure.
I usually prefer to see horses out in the wild, without any interference from humans, but I have to admit that seeing them at work in this setting does appeal to me. The Amish are known to take good care of their working animals and you can be sure that ego never comes into it. And if the horses were treated badly, they would simply not cooperate. With well over 1000 kg per animal, the human could jump high and low without making them move a limb! This is horsepower in its purest form!
Horse ploughing school…
Did you know that much of the ploughing results depends on the confidence of each horse? When teaching horses this profession, it starts with them being willing to pull. Most draft horses like these do not have a problem with that. But have them pull in (possibly) as straight a line as they can is another matter. The man who follows them, has to know how to handle the gear. A second horse added to the first, will often weave in and and out of the straight line, especially when the job is tough and they want to find an easier route. Or tries to run from the work. And when it gets tired or believes it cannot do the job, it ‘leans’ towards the first horse, sometimes pushing it out of line. Now imagine doing this with 5 horses! Each pulling with different strength which means the gear need individual adjustments. Every acre the horses get a rest. This is depending on how hard the surface is. The work of the human comes when getting them prepared to go out and taking the gear off when they are back home.
In the scene I painted the five horses are pulling a heavy stalk chopper through pretty muddy land. Not an easy job and that explains why there are five horses doing it! Once the stalks are chopped, they stay on the land to break down and make it easier to plant next spring.