Working Mules

—Dan Macon Photos by author

O ver two consecutive springs several years ago, we

experienced the birth of a mule on our place. The
offspring of a jack (or male donkey) and a mare (or female
horse), these gangly foals were at first so weak that they could not
even hold up the gigantic ears they inherited from their father.
Within 45 minutes, however, they were standing, nursing, and
exploring their world.
The response from our neighbors and friends to our mules
ranges from mild interest to amusement. Many of them have
never seen mules (let alone heard them—they make an almost
indescribable sound!). Some have ancestors who farmed with
mules, but none have considered this possibility as a modern
source of traction. Now that the mules are five and six years of
age, we have started to ride and drive them. We have even
started to farm and log with our mules, not from a sense of
mule farming requires will also help us maintain an operation
nostalgia, but rather for practical, environmental, and aesthetic
that will not grow beyond the size that we can manage efficiently
reasons.
and effectively as a family.
From a practical standpoint, mules are multipurpose
From an environmental standpoint, I appreciate the fact
animals. Ours can be ridden, driven, and packed into the
that mules do not require fossil fuel to operate. As hay- and
mountains. On our farm, they perform a variety of tasks,
grain-powered creatures, mules convert solar energy directly to
including tilling the soil, cultivating and harvesting our crops,
on-farm work. In the beginning, we’ve needed to rely on
and perhaps eventually carrying them to market (or directly to
conventionally produced feed for our mules, but we’ll ultimately
consumers). This year, we’ve started a firewood and custom
produce at least some of our own hay and grain. We also rely
sawmilling enterprise, using the oldest mule to skid logs to our
on our own pastures to meet a portion of our feed needs.
processing sites. Recreationally, we enjoy riding and driving
Devoting a portion of our operation to hay and grass production
them.
ensures that our farm will include beneficial crop rotations and a
While the amount of land that we can farm with two mules
diversity of products. Finally, unlike the by-product of a tractor
is limited compared to what we could farm with “modern”
(exhaust), the by-product of our power source will actually
technology (e.g. tractors), our capital costs will be far less. We’ve
benefit our farm. We turn manure into compost, revitalizing our
been able to get started with our modern mule-powered farming
soil and producing better crops in the process.
enterprise for less than $10,000. The scale of operation that
As oil prices continue to rise, we think that local sources of
“power” will become as important as local sources of food. Self-
sufficiency, both individually and within communities, will be
critical as the transport of food, fiber, and other staples becomes
more expensive. Communities that can move food products
from the farm to the table with a minimal amount of petroleum
will better withstand the uncertainty of declining oil supplies.
The interest that our customers have shown in “fossil fuel-free”
food and firewood suggests that this approach already has value
within our local marketplace.
Finally, working mules is aesthetically pleasing. Until we
started using mules, we’d always relied on internal combustion
engines. Unlike operating a tractor or a rototiller, working a
mule is quiet (for the most part). I can observe what’s happening
around me. I can see ground-nesting birds in time to avoid their
nests. I can actually hear myself think. One of the most

Farming Magazine– Fall 2007 [ 33 ]

 rewarding parts of farming for me is the smell of freshly turned
earth. With a tractor, this scent is mingled with exhaust. With
mules, it is mingled with the scent of sweat (my own and my
animals’), with the scent of leather, and with the scent of manure
(which I admit I kind of like).
I also derive deep satisfaction from accomplishing a task
with an animal that I trained. While working with another
living being can complicate farm tasks from time to time, I relish
the partnership that is required between the animals and me.
I’ve now driven our oldest mule enough to know when we’re
understanding each other (and when we’re not).
Ultimately, farming appeals to me because it is a
combination of art and science. The craft of farming with mules
Miller Farm Machinery
New and Used Farm Machinery
-Pallet Forks
-Bale Spears
-Buckets for Skid loaders
-2 & 4 Star Hay Tedders
[ 34 ] Farming Magazine– Fall 2007
is attractive to me for economic, environmental, and aesthetic
reasons. As President Harry Truman said, “A tractor will never
be as ... satisfactory as a mule. It makes noise, for one thing, and
noise interferes with a man’s thoughts. But plowing a field with
a mule is the most satisfying thing a man can do. And at the end
of the day, looking over what you’ve done, you can feel a real
sense of accomplishment, and that’s a very rare thing.”
Dan Macon and his family farm in the Sierra Nevada foothills in
northern California. They market grass-fed lamb, summer and fall
vegetables, firewood, and custom-milled lumber to local customers.
Vernon Miller
10311 Trail Bottom Rd. NW
Dundee, OH 44624
(330)852-4691