Cultivation - discussion of the making of lazy beds from sea...

Original Track ID

SA1970.064

Original Tape ID

SA1970.064

Summary

Cultivation - discussion of the making of lazy beds from seaweed in Grimsay.

In Grimsay when the lazy beds were made, the first step was to cut the seaweed, which would be cut on the rocks on the shore. It would be tied into large bundles and pulled behind a boat. A tractor was used to pull it over the land, but in Lachlan MacLeod's younger days it would be put into creels and carried on horseback. They would also sometimes be carried on their own backs, and a few women would carry them also. Potatoes used to be grown in the area known as Pairc and seaweed would be carried there in creels on their backs as the distance was not far.

The lazybeds were prepared by measuring them out. A line five-foot broad would be drawn and the grass cut and turned with a spade. The seaweed would then be spread about half a foot from each edge. The lazybeds were about 2 feet wide. A cas-chrom, a special type of spade, would be used to build up the seaweed. The seaweed would be left for a while before building it up. The turf from the furrow would then be put on top, using just an ordinary spade. The soil would be about 6 inches deep, depending on how good the soil was. Holes were then made along the top with a special implement, the name of which Lachlan MacLeod could not remember, and the potatoes were planted in the holes. A part of a potato was put in each hole, and new plants would grow. They would be about 4 inches apart.

There were only two cas-chroms still in use in Grimsay. The one that Lachlan MacLeod was using belonged to a man named Ewan Campbell, and another was owned by a Malcolm MacAskill who lent it to him. The handle of the cas-chrom could still be repaired, but the blade was made in a smithy, and not many smiths would know how to make them. The point of the metal blade was called the 'cipe', the bottom of the handle was called the ‘bonn’ and the foot rest was known as the 'sgonnan'.

Item Location

Language

English

Genre

Information

Collection

SoSS

Source Type

Reel to reel

Audio Quality

Good