This year in particular is a strange one because the European Union reevaluated all agricultural subsidies under the PAC (Politica Agricola Communitaria and in English Common Agriculture Policy). The new quotas were supposed to be distributed in August of 2005 and it was only by the end of November that each farm was informed of what they received. By that time a whole planting season had passed and then it rained (in fact the whole area flooded). So it's only now that we are beginning to prepare the land for October.
What we have been able to cultivate in about 20 acres is hay for our horses. We always put aside a piece of the land for that purpose because it's usually more economical for us to grow it on our land.
The pictures to the left are of this year's hay crop. I'm still learning about the machines that do all of this (a city girl trying to learn farming terms), and so I unfortunately can't share a detailed description of the process for the moment. I barely know the names of the machines in Italian, so you can imagine what I can tell you about them in English.
Essentially what happens (without using technical terms) is that the land gets broken up in March first with a large plow that loosens the earth and then again with a plow that has blades that are closer together, which further separate the earth. Then the seed is distributed over the land and about three months later the hay is ready to be cut. Once cut it must lie in the field to dry for about a week, hoping it doesn't rain. If it does rain and the hay is rolled up it will mold, and if it stays in the field too long it gets too dry and crumples. Like many things in life, timing is essential.
A later update will be more informed on this process. For the moment enjoy the pictures.