-Vicky-

Draft horses are a fairly new addition to the farm, we are learning more from and with them everyday. Chuck brought the interest to Tuckaway Farm in 2008 by purchasing Vicky and Poppy, a team of Suffolk Punch horses. A rare breed of draft horse that has been bred exclusivly for farm work over the years.Here they’re hitched to the ground drive for-cart thats powering the manure spreader. Prepping the ground for the garlic planting last fall. They worked with us the summer of 2009 for raking and tedding the hay, discing and cultivating the fields, and bringing in fuel wood. Since haying last summer we have started to realize the potential and the enjoyment of gaining a good working relationship with these gentle giants to accomplish our farm work. The fall of 2009 brought another opportunity to the farm, when two fellow farmers who were working with horses, decided that their farming needed to take a break for a while and contacted us wondered if we were intersted in their team. So it was that the two beautiful Belgian mares, Queen and Queenie, came to be here.

Here’s David standing with Queen while harvesting hickory logs this winter for ox bows.

This winter we have been playing with all sorts of different hitching combinations between the four of these girls while harvesting pine sawlogs and fuel wood from pushing back field edges.

 

To top off the crew Annalisa and I have been working with Whisper who is an older Haflinger, a bit smaller than the draft horses he is actually considered a draft pony.  With him we have been bringing in fuel wood and learning so much from having the opportunity just to work along side him, as well as all the other big girls.