Tuesday, November 25, 2014

TJ Tuesday 1: An agricultural tool unknown to me


Photo courtesy of Thierry Jouanneteau

I call this blog "La France Profonde," or, approximately, the heartland of France. 

But  I don't get into the heartland nearly as much as my husband, whose job leads him to visit many of Aveyron's numerous farms. 

He has travelled over backroads that I will likely never cover, and he has taken photos of places and objects that I may never see.

And he knows the name for things  that I will never be able to identify -- like this agricultural implement, for which I can't find a word in French or in English.

"Wordless Wednesdays" are nice from time to time, but I also hope to introduce "TJ Tuesdays" to share some of my husband's photos. 

10 comments:

Deb said...

Looks like a push mower for really really big people :)

Betty Carlson said...

Debs, that is my kind of answer!

wcs said...

What's it called in French?

Betty Carlson said...

As I said, Walt, I don't know what it's called in French or English. I could ask Thierry, but that would be no fun! I'm hoping someone will come up with it...

Deb said...

Just checking back to see what it was :)

Betty Carlson said...

I am going to have to ask my husband and then get online to translate, I think. The comments are making me curious. I figured someone would immediately say, "hey of course it's a blah-blah-blah!"

Genie -- Paris and Beyond said...

Is it a seed-spreader/planter? It looks as if the gold bin at the top is designed to hold the seeds and the runners (disks) on the ground makes the furrows. The other moving parts in the middle would have made the holes in the seed bin open and close.

Let us know... now I am really curious.

Bises,
Genie

Betty Carlson said...

Genie and all,

OK, I had to ask my husband now! You are right, it is a seeder, or "semoir." In French. It is an old one made to be pulled by horses. TJ says that he can tell it was then adapted to be pulled by a tractor, but that is the sort of mechanical adjustment I'm afraid I can't see!

Genie -- Paris and Beyond said...

Merci beaucoup, Betty and TJ! Look up Jethro Tull (agriculturist, not the band). He had a connection with the Languedoc area, too.
https://www.asme.org/engineering-topics/articles/history-of-mechanical-engineering/jethro-tull

Now, we know both the function and the French name!

Betty Carlson said...

Thank you for the link -- surely the first time I have been on a mechanical engineering site. :) The article was clear and interesting though. I especially enjoyed the part about how the idea of the seed drill was not accepted at first, just like so many other innovations.