Sowing

Sowing takes place from November to December, after appropriate soil preparation. In September, work began on plowing. In the month of October, the soil was fertilized; it is no coincidence that in the Campidanese language variant this month is defined as “mes' 'e ledàmini'” (lett.: 'month of manure month'). The time of planting (seeds and sim.) was accompanied by numerous propitiation rituals and forms of prediction related to the outcome of the agrarian year. To obtain abundant crops, it was customary in different areas of the island to start planting on the first Monday of the month, with the new Moon. As reported by the great Bavarian linguist Max Leopold Wagner, the farmer would take a coin and make a cross sign on it. Then he put it in his pocket and extracted it and drew positive or negative wishes about the harvest depending on whether the coin appeared on the front side or on the back.

As a rule, it was scattered, with the involvement of more than one person. Each farmer was equipped with a sling, from which he picked up from time to time a handful of wheat that was thrown across the ground, taking care that the seeds were well distributed. In the peasant families of Campidano it was common custom to prepare toy bread for children called “sa scattixedda”, shaped like the sporta used by the farmer for planting. The bread in question referred by shape and subsequent name to an object of material culture that prepared the child for the activities he would carry out once he grew up. Therefore, in this case, in addition to its nutritional and recreational function, bread also had an educational function.

Update

22/6/2024 - 15:40