They harvest ocean floor during CHESAPEAKE BEACH, MD. - While most land agriculture ends with the harvest before winter sets in, it’s quite a bit different for harvesting m aquaculture un derwater farming. The underwater harvesting of oysters only begins about November 1 and continues until March 15. And just like their counterparts on land, these “ocean farmers” begin their day during pre-dawn hours. Instead of climbing onto a tractor self-propelled combine, these sailor/farmers use a V bottom sloop, the skipjack, traditional workboat of the oyster dredger. One of these is the “Dee of St. Mary’s, a 56-footer working the Maryland western shoreline of the Chesapeake Bay. The six-man crew has completed its pre-dawn work, which starts around 4 a.m., readying the boat for a day of oyster dredging “drudgm for arsters ” The crew calls this graceful craft a “drudge boat,” which doesn’t describe the way the vessel with its tall single mast, huge mainsail, small jib sail and long needle bow hugs the water and skims lightly over the Bay. Francis Goddard, 48, of Pmey Point, Md., built the Dee by “rack of eye,” or without written plans, in the fine old tradition of skipjack builders. He followed the formula watermen have handed down through generations The boom is the length of the boat, the mast is the length of the boat plus the beam, and the bowsprit is the length of the beam. While still in port, the Dee’s cabin provides an island of warmth and light m the cold, clear darkness. The cook is preparing hotcakes, slab bacon, fried eggs and coffee lots of coffee. A diesel-powered yawl pushes the skipjack out of the harbor as dawn breaks By the time it reaches “Old Rock,” the oyster bed to be dredged, the sun is up Dredmg can be done only from sunup to sundown and on most days it takes that long to make the 150-bushel limit. Before dredging can begin, the yawl is hoisted to ride behind the stern; the skipjack must depend entirely on the wind Maryland conservation measures permit only sail-driven vessles to dredge the deep water for oysters, although watermen may use the yawl for dredging on two “push days” per week each Monday and Tuesday. The work begins immediately Captain Clyde Evans, a venerated 70-year-old waterman from the Eastern Shore with 53 years of following the water, handles the wheel and serves as the resident adviser. Skipper Jack Russell, 37, owner of the Dee, is a new breed of waterman The Advisory Com mission, and a college graduate, Russell, nonetheless, calls Captain Clyde the “sage”. Captain Clyde sold his own skipjack after the 1978-79 oyster dredging season with the intention of retiring, but Russell persuaded him to spend another winter on the water helping him get his start. And as Captain Clyde said. “When you’ve followed the water all your life and you’ve got it m your blood, it’s hard to give it up.” Captain Clyde gives the signal and the hydraulic dredges are lowered. Two men work one dredge on each side of the boat. The skipjack pulls the dredges across the oyster rock and Captain Clyde can tell by the wind and the pull of the dredges when it’s tune to bring them up. He yells “ho” and the dredges are hoisted Maue of rope and chain with middle of winter local classified MiS«w ADVDITISINC RATES □ Farm Equipment 16c P® r word □ Silos 4 Unloaders 2.00 minimum charge □ Buildings 4 Supplies Use This Handy Chart To mmlltt. UPf * JP9B DGram Equipment Figure Your Cost Hpi w t% * ' *L < *' /Pi □ Dairy Equipment Words I Issue 3 Issues a s jL f" 5 □ Livestock Equipments 12 or pF' ' *4; **" "I Supplies Less 200 480 » ' ' DCattle -3 208 499 -