smstonypoint
Super Member
- Joined
- Oct 13, 2009
- Messages
- 5,351
- Location
- SC (Upstate) & NC (Piedmont)
- Tractor
- NH TN 55, Kubota B2320 & RTV 900, Bad Boy Outlaw ZTR
I enjoy reading about farming in the "good old days." I recently stumbled upon this reminiscence of a gentleman who grew up on a tobacco farm in South Georgia: South Georgia Tobacco Patch. It makes for an interesting read.
I didn't grow up on a tobacco farm. What little I know about tobacco production comes from my reading and conversations with former students and friends/colleagues who grew up on tobacco farms. I did learn something about tobacco marketing from working on a research contract with colleagues who were tobacco marketing specialists. By the time of the project, most of the tobacco was marketed under contract, with the balance being sold via electronic Dutch auction. I regret having never attended tobacco sales under open outcry.
I found the author's conclusion particularly apt.
Growing up on a farm is a privilege. Few live as many rich diverse experiences that help you appreciate life. As a kid complaining about getting up before dawn to "take out" a barn of tobacco, I never dreamed I was learning discipline and responsibility. While sticky and sweaty, cropping up and down tobacco rows, perseverance never crossed my mind. When hanging sticks in the barn, I never realized that I was learning to be a team player. Developing do-it-yourself skills was the last thing on my mind, when I was helping build sleds. When just walking round the farm, "green space" didn't mean what it does now. Farming builds character, and farmers are tough and enduring creatures.
Having grown up on a dairy farm, I can substitute my chores for those listed by the author. The "life lessons" are the same.
Steve
I didn't grow up on a tobacco farm. What little I know about tobacco production comes from my reading and conversations with former students and friends/colleagues who grew up on tobacco farms. I did learn something about tobacco marketing from working on a research contract with colleagues who were tobacco marketing specialists. By the time of the project, most of the tobacco was marketed under contract, with the balance being sold via electronic Dutch auction. I regret having never attended tobacco sales under open outcry.
I found the author's conclusion particularly apt.
Growing up on a farm is a privilege. Few live as many rich diverse experiences that help you appreciate life. As a kid complaining about getting up before dawn to "take out" a barn of tobacco, I never dreamed I was learning discipline and responsibility. While sticky and sweaty, cropping up and down tobacco rows, perseverance never crossed my mind. When hanging sticks in the barn, I never realized that I was learning to be a team player. Developing do-it-yourself skills was the last thing on my mind, when I was helping build sleds. When just walking round the farm, "green space" didn't mean what it does now. Farming builds character, and farmers are tough and enduring creatures.
Having grown up on a dairy farm, I can substitute my chores for those listed by the author. The "life lessons" are the same.
Steve