HARVEST OF THE OATS
Harvest on the plateau is a relatively new phenomenon. Pastures of time gone by were more ample and plentiful, with less animals and larger herds to each nomadic family. Hay was fed from the early autumn grasslands, yak nourished on highland pastures. Now, the planting and collection of oats for winter animal fodder is an integral part of life and a herder’s cycle in Ritoma.
The oat fields are in the valley that leads to the village, flatter areas among rolling hills that dot the landscape. The 200-family village population is spread over several hundred square miles and more recently, people began to grow their oats on their own winter pasture, or on both. The majority of the oats harvest is reserved for female sheep, who give birth in winter and need sustenance to strengthen them and survive spring, when they are most vulnerable. Oats, a vital winter supplement, are also fed to the dris, or female yaks, who give birth in the early spring and to horses, who are the most voracious of the three.
Oat planting begins in April when the earth begins to thaw, and the furrows are traced with a horse or yak-drawn plow, which takes 10 days. Tractors have appeared in the last ten years, but due to the unevenness of the terrain, they cannot be used everywhere. Families plow their fields in turn, with relatives, friends, and neighbours joining in. Before sowing the oats, the area is layered with sheep dung and horse manure, saved over the winter for that purpose.
Oat reaping begins in September when the animals have shifted to the autumn pasture. Two weeks are set for that purpose, each family bringing friends and relatives to help and helping them in turn. It is a time of joyful bustle and communal spirit; no one is paid for their labor; meals are cooked for all participants, and songs are sung. The oats are reaped with a scythe and then tied in bunches; three bunches stood up in tripod fashion to dry by sun and wind. The village then decrees a three to five-day period for gathering the dried oats, with leave given to any employees whose families need their help. Norlha, whose artisan workers come from local families, will join during those days. The bunches are loaded on three-wheelers or horse-drawn carts to be carried back to their respective households. In the past, they were loaded on yaks.
Every family must clear their oats from the fields by the end of this time, or risk losing their crop to the herds which, shifted from their autumn pasture, eagerly descend on the empty fields to feed on the oat roots and scattered grain.
Today, nomads can invest in more nourishing winter feed, such as beans, and they are now widely used along with oats, marking a significant shift in feeding practices. This adaptability and progress have helped the sheep better survive a difficult spring, showcasing the resilience of the nomadic community.
