Haymaking time!

 
Growing up in northern Minnesota we get to experience all the seasons.  My favorite, SUMMER.  Maybe it’s because of the beautiful summer weather.  It might be childhood memories of freedom from school.  But, I think I know why summer is my personal favorite.  You see mom was a school teacher.  In the summer everything we did on our small dairy farm was family time!  If it was milking time we were all in the barn.  In between the switching of milkers we would visit, laugh joke, and listen to the radio.  When it was haying time we were all in the field.  Dad would mow hay with the H Farmall, and mom or I would rake with the B John Deere.  At baling mom would drive the tractor and dad and I would stack the fresh, green, square bales of hay!  In between loads of  hay we stop and take a drink of ice cold water from the cooler, nothing tasted better on a hot Minnesota SUMMER day.  
IN 2018, my family enjoyed a trip to Alaska.  We returned from Seattle on the AMTRAK.  As we cruised the countryside I enjoyed many views though Washington, Idaho, Montana, and North Dakota.  My favorite view was the farms.  But of course we went by many field of hay!!  It was haying season!!  Mostly round bales of course although there would occasionally be a field of small square bales.  I couldn’t help daydream a bit about growing up and haying with mom and dad.
Last week we went to Blackduck to spend a few days at the lake with my wife, Patty’s family.  I like to take the backroads south of Clearbrook and zig-zag my way over to Blackduck.  It is fun to look at some other farm country.  One of the fields I passed featured a 560 Farmall square baling hay.  The baler did not have an ejector but had a long chute that pushed the bales up and then they fell into a caged wagon.  I had seen pictures in magazines but had never seen a unit like that in action.  I had a deadline of getting to the lake or I may have stopped and checked it out closer.   It got me thinking…...maybe at second crop time I might have to take a leisurely drive on the backroads to Blackduck and check for a 560 Farmall with a square baler, pushing the bales way up into the wagon, and this time I will stop and check it out!!

1.  International Harvester made the 560 from ___________ - 1963.
2.   The price of a  new 560 in 1963 was  $___________.
3.   The 560 had a  ______  cylinder engine.
4.   Was the 560 offered in an LP version?
5.    The 560, as some previous models, had a TA.  What does TA stand for?
answers:   1.   1958   2.   $5500   3.   6 cylinder   4.   Yes, gas, diesel, and LP  5.  Torque amplifier.  The TA allowed on the move shifting- down in any gear.