Making hay is a summer activity. It is necessary to have Sun in profusion and no rain. We are talking about the days before mechanisation where the grass was cut, exclusively, with a Scythe. The work did not begin until the "morning dew" had gone cutting grass with a Scythe was back breaking work. The Scythe blade had to be honed at regular intervals with a "torpedo" shaped sand stone expertly spun in the air with a flick of the wrist to ensure an unused portion of the stone was offered to sharpen the blade. A swathe of cut crass as wide as the blade swing followed the mower, long and straight except when one the large boulders which seemed to be "planted" in the field by some malevolent hand were circumvented .  Mowing seemed to be a " grown man only activity" I, as a boy  was there for "keep away from the blade!" , "Bring me a cup of water good lad", "pick up that stone!" activity. Several times during the day the women of the house appeared with a tin flasks of warm, milky sweet tea which washed down the fresh buttered soda bread sandwiches containing cold bacon. Sometimes hard-boiled eggs were proffered,  I can still taste these "al fresco feasts" now. The field was mowed along its edges continuing until a small square was all that was left in the centre of the field. I can see my father standing there with a 12 bore double barrelled shot gun waiting to shoot the hare that he had forecasted would remain hidden until the very last cut of the scythe. Good job we were not relying on hare for tea- as I never saw a hare bolt! The cut Grass was now left to dry maybe two to three days dependent on the heat, lack of rain and quantity of Sun!

The next process involved the use of a long two pronged fork. This was used to shake the cut grass into a thin layer completely covering the field.   The cut grass not yet exposed to the sun was still green and the sweet smell of mown grass filled the nostrils, as with a delicate flick of the wrist one used the fork to shake out the, by now mainly yellowing grass.   This work was tough on the back and on the hands as the constant movement of wood through young hands , not used to such work,  left a trail of burst blisters. After a day or so in hot sun all the exposed grass had lost its greenery and had become a delicate yellow. Not as heavy as before, it was now quite dry as most of its moisture had evaporated. If the weather remained good the next day was taken up repeating the shaking out with the fork taking extra care to ensure that any green bits were thoroughly shaken and well exposed to the Sun's drying gaze

By now the grass had become hay and so light, if shaken, would blow away in the wind. When the hay was completely dry long wooden rakes were used to rake the hay into neat rows that looked like a line of continuous soft pillows running up and down the field. These rows were then gathered up using the fork or a combination of the rake and ones foot and built into small conical shaped "Cocks. " After the hay had settled a square of sacking was thrown over the "cocks" secured at each corner by a stone tied on with string to weigh down the cock and compress it. The hay was now considered "saved" The last Job, usually undertaken in late summer,  was to move the hay from the field where it was cut and saved to a location close to where the livestock would be over wintered. The hay would be transported on carts, piled precariously high. A special treat for me was to ride atop the load grasping the lashing ropes for "dear life!"

At the storage location large conical reeks or stacks were made, forking the hay upwards to, usually, two men who trampled round the cock structure compacting and building ever upwards. Later the stacks would be covered with sacking or tarpaulin or even "thatched" with reeds to ensure the centre of the cocks remained dry all through the forthcoming winter.