Hay 2022

[tmschuller]

Hay- how is your field doing / yield so far? Did ours last week and if nothing else the heat sure dried it fast. Cut on Tuesday baled on Wednesday. Guy had an accumulator and about killed me bring to our barn. Could barely keep up
Yield was good and looking forward to 2nd cutting

 

[Magyars]

Our Farmer is coming this week...he cuts, conditions, bales and loads it in our loft, on the halves. We generally get around 300 bales. This year it's looking really good. If our wild berries and strawberry patch are any indication we should get a great yield.
I'll report back after the count.

 

[Mij]

Mowed and teded about 10 days ago got 4 large rnds. Per acre 4x5’s regrowth looking pretty good, orchard, timothy, and clover. All due to the spring rains and just right sun. The real problem is to come. The cost of fert. Almost afraid to look when the bill comes. I always fert after 1’st cutting.

 

[ditcherman]

Mowed and teded about 10 days ago got 4 large rnds. Per acre 4x5’s regrowth looking pretty good, orchard, timothy, and clover. All due to the spring rains and just right sun. The real problem is to come. The cost of fert. Almost afraid to look when the bill comes. I always fert after 1’st cutting.

Regrowth was good but we sure could use some rain now. Got an inch plus last week but that’s about gone with the heat, low humidity, and wind.
I will also say I don’t remember a summer with this low of humidity and the ability to make nice hay so easily, not dodging rains and hoping for drying days.

 

[Mij]

Regrowth was good but we sure could use some rain now. Got an inch plus last week but that’s about gone with the heat, low humidity, and wind.
I will also say I don’t remember a summer with this low of humidity and the ability to make nice hay so easily, not dodging rains and hoping for drying days.

No kidding, about 5 yrs. since it’s been this good. Had to ensile my first cut last year. Or loose it. Man that was a pain in the keester last winter. Still got plastic hanging in the fences. Thinking about putting up some small sqrs. on last cutting. Gona get shed of about 8 moma cows, should let me have some surplus.

We need rain now. Corn is starting to curl. They’ve got that new RR alfalfa now, thinking about that. Guess I’ll have to run it by the boss, let her do the math and see what she says. Well let’s all hope for some rain Wednesday I think.

 

[bwframe]

They just cut the fields around me this weekend. Seemed like it was later than normal? Ready to cut a couple/3 weeks ago maybe?

 

[ditcherman]

They just cut the fields around me this weekend. Seemed like it was later than normal? Ready to cut a couple/3 weeks ago maybe?

Might just depend on what else they have going on, if they’re also tending row crops that can get in the way. There’s been a wider than normal variation of how the crops went in around here, a lot of it has to do with labor.

 

[Magyars]

246 bales...

 

[tmschuller]

246 bales...
View attachment 208838

Looks great. The best weather I can remember to do hay in sometime
I have 150 bales waiting on me when I get back home. But.. I bought a hay elevator last year and what difference!

 

[cmann250]

Our first cutting is done, approximately 3500 squares and 200 rounds. The new (to us) JD 467 round baler has been great. The alfalfa is fit to mow again, but it’s been so dry there’s not much else out there. The 5 day forecast is a crap shoot.

I’m still kicking it with the old 4020.

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[Ingomike]

Our first cutting is done, approximately 3500 squares and 200 rounds. The new (to us) JD 467 round baler has been great. The alfalfa is fit to mow again, but it’s been so dry there’s not much else out there. The 5 day forecast is a crap shoot.

I’m still kicking it with the old 4020.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Nice outfit…

 

[Farmerjon]

83 1,000# bales off of about 20 acres. It is all under roof but only .08" of rain since, no regrowth let alone green color. Lawns are looking like August.

 

[BigRed]

I often find myself taking the back roads this time of year....enjoy seeing bales of hay....still brings back good memories of earlier days.

 

[Mij]

Our first cutting is done, approximately 3500 squares and 200 rounds. The new (to us) JD 467 round baler has been great. The alfalfa is fit to mow again, but it’s been so dry there’s not much else out there. The 5 day forecast is a crap shoot.

I’m still kicking it with the old 4020.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Can’t hardly beat the 4020, they keep going up n up on the used market. At least I think they do, my memory isn’t what it used to be.

 

[Mij]

I often find myself taking the back roads this time of year....enjoy seeing bales of hay....still brings back good memories of earlier days.

Yep, like 120 degrees no breeze hitting your head on the rafters. Wish I still had it in me.

I do make sure the young guy’s stacking in the barn take good breaks, the ones old enough I’ll offer a beer, younger ones get soft drinks. Good character building job. Getting harder to find that kind of young guy’s.

I do like it though. I feel good if I can get it mowed and raked.

 

[ditcherman]

I often find myself taking the back roads this time of year....enjoy seeing bales of hay....still brings back good memories of earlier days.

You could at least stop to help!

 

[ditcherman]

Yep, like 120 degrees no breeze hitting your head on the rafters. Wish I still had it in me.

I do make sure the young guy’s stacking in the barn take good breaks, the ones old enough I’ll offer a beer, younger ones get soft drinks. Good character building job. Getting harder to find that kind of young guy’s.

I do like it though. I feel good if I can get it mowed and raked.

The accumulator and flat storage make all the difference.
Full disclosure, the hay business is actually my son’s. He bought his first baler at 14. I thought he’d have a competitive advantage being in high school still, to get help easily. He quickly told me it was in the plan all along to get an accumulator, and it has served him better than labor for sure.

 

[Mij]

Agreed, we found a grabber on a bobcat more maneuverable in the barn over the long arm squeeze type on a tractor. But with either we can only get 4 or 5 high, after that it‘s all hand work. I’ve only put up rounds for the last two seasons, gonna put third cutting up in small squares this year. I try and keep something I can handle by hand in case of emergency, like 5 ft. drifts in front of the tractor barn. (It’s happened)

 

[tmschuller]

Agreed, we found a grabber on a bobcat more maneuverable in the barn over the long arm squeeze type on a tractor. But with either we can only get 4 or 5 high, after that it‘s all hand work. I’ve only put up rounds for the last two seasons, gonna put third cutting up in small squares this year. I try and keep something I can handle by hand in case of emergency, like 5 ft. drifts in front of the tractor barn. (It’s happened)

The guys who do ours just bought one.. it’s expensive out the gate but you don’t have to have guys on the wagon.
Labor savor for certain.