Hay Help

[Jesse]

Hey everyone, I was hoping some of the expert hayers here could reaffirm some hay practices for me.

I help with hay when we do it here on the farm, but I just do the loading/unloading. I don't have any say in when the hay should be cut or how long it should dry. However, I don't think it's being done properly right now. We live in NY, which means high humidity (usually 50%) as well as a lot of rain.

So normally, wouldn't you cut all the fields at once when you know there's going to be decent weather and then let the hay sit for a minimum of 4 days with 2 turns? Right now, they cut a portion of the field at a time, and sometimes only let it dry for 3 days max, and may turn it more than once, which I've read depletes the quality of the hay with each turn. Is it also true that just because the hay may FEEL wet, doesn't mean it is since the stems retain a lot of moisture? What is the best practice for confirming the hay is dry enough? Usually when we're bailing hay, the bails start out tight and then after a while, they're really loose, so that tells me they're bailed wet and then dry. 

Thanks for any help!

[BA Deere]

Hi Jesse, it depends on a lot of things like if the hay is pure alfalfa or mix or grass. If it has red clover in it, it drys real slloowww. If it`s alfalfa if you twist a few stems and it`s moist, it`s too wet to keep as a rule. I have alf/orchard mix, cut with a sickle mower let sit 2 days on 3rd day rake in the morning with dew and bale in the afternoon. The sickle mower has it spread totally out and to rake in am./dew the windrow stays put and usally is good to go at 2 pm. with little leaf loss. Of course if it rains anywhere between those steps, it bollocks up for you.  I`m in north Iowa, by the way.

[Jesse]

Thanks for the reply. Our hay is just a mixture of random stuff in our fields. I think it's mostly grass, maybe some alfalfa, but we did not grow anything in particular. Do you recommend one of those devices that you stick in the cut hay to measure the wetness? It just seems that all of our bails end up getting loose. Also, if you know any good resources for doing hay online, let me know. I haven't really seen too much. 

[BA Deere]

If your hay mix is mostly grass, it should dry down very quickly. I`ve never used one of those moisture checkers on hay, I`m a bit of a hillbilly so I go on if it feels right . The best online source for putting up hay is Craig Milligan. He`s on the forum page, he would be happy to share his knowledge. Best of Luck to you, Jesse.