Introduction

I dont think there is an argument for being a farmer.

There are only two reasons to farm: because you have
to, and because you love to. The ones who choose to farm
choose for love.
Wendell Berry, Hannah Coulter
The world we have known is vanishing. A new world is
hurtling toward us. The consumer culture, with all its
fake promises of unending technological fixes to every
human problem and need, is crumbling before our
eyes. More and more we are asked to face the reality
that the biosphere itself is a closed-loop system that
requires us to wean ourselves away from energy and
power sources that are non-regenerative. Meanwhile,
the powers-that-be continue to wage a campaign,
plying us with electronic gadgets and pharmaceuticals
in an attempt to keep us mesmerized as the multinational corporations fill their coffers extracting every
last drop of fossil fuel from the earths most fragile and
endangered ecosystems.
Memory and instinct are becoming important to
us once again. We hunger to restore diversity to our
personal worlds, and we sense the awakening of a
fertile desire for more direct contact with our immediate environment. To do this we need to regain the
intelligence required to build a human culture that
recognizes the sacredness of all lifethat experiences
the universe itself as a Living Being (what the ancient
Hebrews once referred to as a Living God). To do this
we need to regain the humility and compassion of a
people who know their place within a given landscape.
We need to build a society whose foundation stone in
every quarter is nothing more or less than the active
stewardship of living soil.
In all the major spiritual traditions of our world,
discernment has always been recognized as a crucial
quality for the seeker of truth. On an elemental level,

discernment is what we use to tell the true from the

false. Through the practice of discernment, wisdom
grows. The farmer, too, must practice discernment on
a daily basis; he or she must decide when to sow and
when to reap, which one to breed and which to cull.
The farmer also faces such choices as: Which tools to
employ? On what scale to farm? Just because farming
can be done with genetically modified organisms, satellites, robots, and harvesting machines that cost half a
million dollars doesnt mean it should be done that way.
Today there is a grassroots movement of people
in our society who are heeding the call to make their
living from the land. Increasing numbers of them are
also growing intrigued by the concept that many, if
not all, tasks requiring traction on the farm can be
economically and efficiently accomplished with live
animal power. The workhorse is being recognized as an
ally that can help us find our way back to a path that
leads to life.
When horses, mules, donkeys, or oxen are used in
agriculture they become instrumental in enriching the
soil because they are a primary source of fertilizer on
the farm. In the fields, they tread lightly and do not
cause the soil compaction that can result from the
wheels and weight of a tractor. The horses are essentially
solar-powered: They run on grass, hay, and oats, which
they can help us grow and harvest on the farm. By using
draft animals to power our farms, we help to minimize
our carbon footprint, and they deliver a living, clean,
sustainable, and regenerative energy.
Beyond the practical considerations of draft power,
entering into partnership with workhorses can also
lead us to deeper insight into what it means to be a
human being in relationship with the natural world. To
accomplish our farmwork successfully with horses, we
need to become a little bit horse, and the horse needs
to become a little bit human. Because both human
and horse are willing to try, somewhere in the vast gulf

Horse-Powered Farming for the 21st Century

that differentiates our species is a space where horse and
human can meet and begin to forge a relationship. In
many cases, a horse can even become a part of the farm
family. We tend to think of farming as the modifications we impose on a landscape to reap our harvests.
But there is a relational element that in a very real sense
also shapes the farmer. It is like a painter painting a
landscape: Somewhere between the interaction and
reflection, we are formed and informed.
When we share work and life with our equine partners, we are simultaneously grounded and elevated. To
be effective with draft animals, we need to leave the
automated whir of machines behind, slow ourselves
down to their pace, and attune ourselves to their
unique brand of consciousness. The quality of work
done with the horses also lends itself to a heightened
sensitivity to the subtle and dynamic qualities of our
immediate environment. Rather than placing protective earmuffs on our heads to shut out the roar and din
of the tractor, we are invited to open our senses more
fully to the experience of the here and now; in fact,
staying intimately present is a prerequisite to remaining
safe and effective in the tasks we accomplish with our
animals. Such attunement is essential to good farming.
As those of us with our ears to the ground well know,
animal traction technology is not a nostalgic glance
backward: Now is a time of exciting new developments
for live animal power. As the numbers of adherents
of this way of life grows, ecologically minded farmers
in their fields are developing efficient horse-drawn
systems, and equipment manufacturers in small shops
all across North America and Europe are coming forth
with new innovations in ground-drive technology
that have us poised on the cusp of another agricultural
revolutionwith working horses, mules, donkeys, and
oxen at the heart of it.

whether they are familiar with the previous book or

not. That first book was an overview of the many facets of running a small diversified farm with live horse
power. A basic introduction to horsemanship skills,
training, and equipment was presented. That text also
covered hay making, raising small grains, restorative
forestry, maple sugaring, and more. The core content
was devoted to market gardening with horses. This is
because, in the first instance, it is what I primarily do
with my horsesat Cedar Mountain Farm we manage
a 4-acre community supported agriculture (CSA) market garden with four Norwegian Fjord horses (and lots
of human power, too!). This book is focused entirely
on gaining a full understanding of the tools, methods,
and technical expertise you will need to successfully
manage a market garden with draft animal power.
It is my experience that many of the new and young
farmers just starting out are drawn toward market gardening as a result of exposure to the local/sustainable
food movement and also as a relatively lucrative way
to make a living farming on limited acreage with low
capital investment. Perhaps before going any farther,
we should define our terms. Market gardening refers
to the small-scale production of fruits, vegetables, and
flowers as cash crops, which are most often sold directly
to consumers through local venues such as farm stands,
farmers markets, CSAs, and restaurants. The diversity
of crops grown on a small area of land (typically from
under 1 acre to several acres) and often including some
greenhouse production, distinguishes it from other
types of farming. Unlike large industrial farms, which
practice monoculture and are highly mechanized,
market gardens are characterized by growing many
different crops and crop varieties on a smaller scale; as
a result more manual labor is required, and techniques
associated with gardening are employed.
Although in the long run I believe that the diversified
small farm (as outlined in my first book) holds out the
best promise for creating healthy soils and rebuilding a
complete local food system, I cant decry the attraction
of the new generation of farmers to market gardening.
If they are successful at this endeavor, they will have
gained the necessary basic skills to go on and develop
a more comprehensive farm organism that may include

About This Book

This book is intended to serve as a companion volume
to The New Horse-Powered Farm. And yet it stands on
its own as a work meant for advanced teamstersserious growers who are ready to delve into the technical
details of market gardening with draft animal power,
2

Introduction
grazing livestock, beekeeping and poultry, small grains
and forage crops, orchard and woodlot management,
and more. All this will come to pass as the need arises.
For the moment we should celebrate the surprising fact
that so many of our youth are once again giving farming
as a vocation serious consideration. When I penned the
first book, it was these new and young farmers that I
most wanted to reach in the hope that I might provide
some impulse to their efforts because they are our greatest hope for a restorative and regenerative agriculture
to help heal our beleaguered Mother Earth.
In this latest writing effort, I delve deeper into mapping out the equipment, systems, and methods available today for successful market gardening with draft
animal power. (Here system refers to the big picture
of an organization and how all the parts interrelate,
while method refers to the specific techniques used to
accomplish tasks relevant to each part of the system.)
As with the first book, in order to give the reader as
complete a picture as possible of state-of-the-art draft
animal farming, I have enlisted the help of contemporary draft-animal-powered farmers and equipment
manufacturers. This book features written and photographic contributions from more than 60 guest authors
who explain how they make their livelihoods raising
produce with draft animals. The text is formatted for
easy reading: The contributions are styled as headings
with the byline of the contributor appearing underneath. The first time you meet a contributor, theyll
have their farm name and location attached; with any
subsequent contribution, just their name will appear.
In the back of this book, youll find biographies of all
these contributors with more information on who they
are and what they do.
In many ways this book is like a snapshot in time of
contemporary draft-animal-powered farmingsimilar
to Alan Lomaxs recordings of Depression-era folk music
for the Smithsonian Institution. At the time, Lomaxs
recordings were seen primarily as a way to preserve the
pastbut as it turned out, those seminal songs became a
catalyst of change during the folk music revival of the late
1950s and early 60s, the reverberations of which are still
very much alive. And like that grassroots music of the
people, these stories told here by draft-animal-powered

farmers hold treasures of experience and knowledge

that we need now and may need even more tomorrow.
For this assemblage of seasoned voices is no mere historical archive; collectively these voices make up what I
believe is perhaps the most comprehensive and up-todate manual on raising produce with draft animals ever
put into print. (Although the primary focus of the text
is on equipment for draft horses and mules, you will
also find reports and profiles from ox drovers and donkey teamsters, and most of the equipment described is
applicable to all draft animals in general.)
However, this is not a step-by-step how-to manual
outlining one single system, but rather a manual that
presents a range of options and approaches to the
tasks of raising produce with live animal power. Each
teamsters story represents a patch in a quilt that is sewn
together with a narrative thread to guide the reader
through the whole fabric of the growing season, from
soil preparation to harvest.
So the book you are now holding in your hands
picks up where the first volume left off and digs farther into the nuts and bolts, identifying and using the
equipment that will allow you to operate a successful
draft-animal-powered market garden. The theme
of the Basic Tool Kit will help you understand the
function of each horse-drawn implement necessary
for market gardening. Picking up on the concept of
an Essential Equipment List used extensively in the
first book, we will examine the function and use of all
the implements typically employed on a contemporary
draft-animal-powered market garden and illustrate these
points with insightful Farm Profiles and Home-Built
Solutions provided by draft-animal-powered farmers
and equipment manufacturers from across the North
American continent and Europe. The progression of
chapters follows the seasonal progression of implements. We begin with several examples of contemporary draft-animal-powered produce farms; next comes
an examination of the versatile utility of forecarts, and
then an in-depth look at fertility management on the
farm. We continue through primary and secondary tillage, seeding and transplanting, then onto the multiple
options for cultivators, tool carriers, and multipurpose
implements. The book concludes with a chapter
3

Horse-Powered Farming for the 21st Century

examining harvest methods specific to draft animal
power and with a glance at food safety issues pertinent
to the contemporary draft-animal-powered grower.
Embedded within many chapters, you will find
technical harnessing and hitching details for the best
use of the implements described. Throughout the text
we will look at how to restore, operate, and modify
vintage equipment as well as profile all the exciting new
equipment now available. Along with the introductions to different categories of implements we will also
take glances back at the historical development of these
tools because I think important insights on the form,
function, and present usefulness of the implements can
be gained from an understanding of the long view of
the cultural forces that have gone into shaping them.
As in the first book, the emphasis here is on organic
and sustainable methods of farming, and on the ecologically friendly ground-driven and tow-behind models
of horse-drawn implements. The farmers who practice
sustainable agriculture using draft animal power are
seeking to go beyond farming without synthetic fertilizer and pesticides. Their methods are not simply about
what they dont do. Although many of them are organic,
they are not just following certification regulations that
proscribe certain materials and approve othersthey

are proactive guardians of ecosystems and builders of

topsoil who try to hold on to the big picture of their
small farms. This new generation of farmers has realized
that we dont need our young people to occupy Wall
Streetwe need them to reoccupy farmland. They
adhere to a broader political and ecological ethos that
includes intimate attention to wildlife, soil, education,
and community. For most of them, the financial bottom
line has never been and never will be their ultimate bottom line. Beyond organic and sustainable, the new farmers are creating an agriculture that is regenerative. And as
a truly renewable source of power on the farm, the draft
animal is their cornerstone and constant companion.

A Note on the Illustrations

The artwork that I have done to help illustrate this
book is an outgrowth of my passion for communicating
the utility and beauty of the contemporary working
horse. My pictures start with photos that I take myself.
I work from my own photos because I see this step as
an integral part of the picture-making process. The
drawings are done with ink and color pencil on acidfree archival-quality rag paper that has what artists like
to call a bit of tooth to it.