No matter what kind of farm you have or work on, you probably use a few different farm sheds. Today’s farm buildings have roofs and walls made of corrugated steel and a frame made of wood or steel. Farm buildings of the past were made from anything you could find such as timber, stone, and cob. Bricks and concrete also helped complete the farm buildings of yesteryear. Thankfully today, things are different. Sheds are sturdier and can be used for all types of farming needs and equipment.
The most common of all sheds is your basic implement shed. They can be used to store farm equipment, vehicles, and tools. You may also find a killing shed where the animals are killed for meat. Some farmers will use sheds for hay barns, stables, and there smithy as well. A futtah is another type of shed that you may find on most farms. It is a raised building for storing food supplies. It’s raised up so that the rats cannot get to the food.
Industry Specific Sheds
If you are in the sheep farming business you probably have a woolshed. These are building that are used to shear the sheep. They will generally have four main areas. There is an area where the sheep stay overnight to ensure that they are dry enough for shearing. The shearing area itself, also called the shearing board, the wool room where the handlers will sort out the fleeces, and a storage area for the bales of wool are also found in a traditional woolshed. The design of one of these woolsheds is still almost the same as it was back in the 1860’s.
If you are in the cow/dairy farm business then you most probably have a milking shed. Over time these sheds have changed a lot. Originally the cows were all milked by hand in very simply constructed sheds. This eventually led to the sheds having running water and a concrete floor. When the milking machine was introduced it caused the sheds to have more rooms because of the motor, the vat, and the separator. In New Zealand they invented something called the herringbone shed. Cows line up on both sides of a pit and rotary platform. The cows are then milked on a revolving platform.
So, no matter what type of farm you have you are sure to have a shed on your property. There all many different types of farm sheds that can make your life a bit easier. And we all love that!
Stephen Craig is a part of an elite team of writers who have contributed to hundreds of blogs and news sites. Follow him @SCraigSEO.