Combining Beans

Here we are at the final step of harvesting the beans. We've pulled them, shaken the dirt off and put them in nice long windrows, and left them to dry for several days. Now it's time to actually harvest them. The special edible bean head that attaches to the combine lifts the beans up and pulls them into the machine, where the plants and the beans are separated. Everything except the bean is ejected out of the back of the combine. 

It's such an important job that close supervision is needed from our sheepdog, Brinkley. She's watching for any wildlife that may be flushed out of the field during harvest.

Here's a short video showing the actual harvesting process. 

More on the cleaning process soon.