Threshun time

Cody Williams grabs the pitchfork to help members of the Bureau Valley Antique Club to gather bundles of wheat on a wagon. Club members farmed with their antique machinery in one section of the wheat field, while farmer Chris Von Holten brought in the rest of the wheat field using his modern-day combine. The bundles of wheat will be used for old-time thrashing demonstrations at next weekend's Old Fashun Threshun Days southwest of Ohio. (BCR photo/Donna Barker)

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RURAL OHIO — Farming has never been easy, but, in some ways, it’s at least easier than it used to be.

On July 7, members of the Bureau Valley Antique Club met southeast of Walnut to bring in some wheat, with the help of an antique binder and tractor.

Club member Neal Drummer of LaMoille said the group worked in the field for about two hours and they harvested just a couple acres of wheat. Chris Von Holten, who farms the land, used his modern combine and took in the remaining 16 acres or so in about three hours, Drummer said.

Frank Strader of Walnut ran the 1960s John Deere tractor that pulled the 1940s  binder machine. The binder cuts the wheat and ties it into bundles, which were then tossed onto a nearby wagon and taken away for storage.

Drummer said it’s fun to farm the old-fashioned way, at least for a couple hours. The wheat bundles gathered by the club will be used for next weekend’s Ol’ Fashun Threshun Days on the Albrecht Grove southwest of Ohio.

During the annual Ol’ Threshun Days, members of the Bureau Valley Antique Club will demonstrate the wheat threshing process, which separates the grain from the straw, twice on Saturday and twice on Sunday. Modern-day farming equipment has merged the cutting, binding and threshing processes into one combine, Drummer said.

Among the other events at the Ol’ Fashun Threshun Days are a flea market and craft show, saw mill operation, petting zoo and a kid’s pedal tractor pull. The Bureau Valley Antique Club organizes and sponsors the annual event.

As a member of the Bureau Valley Antique Club, Drummer said a big part of his enjoyment from the Ol’ Fashun Threshun Days comes from being around people who remember the days when farming was done with the binders and threshers.

“When we use this antique farm equipment, it’s as though we are living history,” Drummer said. “It’s fun to share this experience with others who remember those days and it also gives us a lot of enjoyment to show the operation to people who have never seen it done before.”

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