Cutting Hay on October 17, 2009

fishpharmer · October 17, 2009, 09:56:26 PM

My neighbor and I both cut our respective fields today. It has been raining almost every day for the last month. We have a forecast of four or five days of sunny, dry weather.

I have never made hay this late in the year. How bout you fellas ?

Anyone else cutting hay or see any being cut?

HOOF-ER · October 17, 2009, 10:36:11 PM

Many times late in the year, dairies around here cut the alfalfa after a hard freeze. Sometimes it has been in Nov.

Dave Shepard · October 17, 2009, 11:54:01 PM

Pretty hard to get any drying weather here. A friend of ours made hay on 12/31/99 and 1/1/00. I guess he was the last one to cut in the last century, and the first to cut in the new one. :D At least in the Northeast.

fishpharmer · October 18, 2009, 12:10:03 AM

Yes, I am figuring at least two days dry time and maybe tedding it to boot.

I pray for no major breakdowns. Last year I punctured a baler tire. Cost 275 for a new 12 ply. That was tolerable, took two days to get it. >:( Ended up getting a little rain on that hay.

SwampDonkey · October 18, 2009, 06:22:10 AM

Unless it's silage, hay was never considered much good after mid July up here. It was always best in June. Of course now a days I don't see any good hay field like dad grew. All I see is fields of weeds: vetch, thistles, daisies, black eye Susan, asters and goldenrod. Stuff a cow will ignore like a disease when grazing.

stonebroke · October 18, 2009, 07:29:59 AM

one year I saw a farmer baling on Christmas eve. I think it was going for bedding. lots of people are still cuting hay for balage bales now.

Stonebroke

Woodwalker · October 18, 2009, 09:23:05 AM

I've been cutting for the last two days, got another small field to cut today. I'm usually finished by the end of September. We didn't have any rain this year, so this is only my second cutting. Normal years I'll make four cuttings.

fishpharmer · October 18, 2009, 09:54:23 AM

Four cuttings would be a good year for me. First cutting was good back in early June. No rain most of the summer so I was thinking that may be it. Then in September it started raining and never really quit. I got a second cutting on some of it early in October with a four day sunny forecast. Then it poured down the night before it would have been dry enough to bale. And five days later it was dry enough to bale.

The forecast if good til Thursday.

Woodwalker, do you ted or fluff your hay? I usually don't but can if necessary.

red oaks lumber · October 18, 2009, 11:01:26 AM

cut 70 acres on friday, baling today. not all the way dry but, we'll feed it out first. better than feeding snowballs this winter.

Roxie · October 18, 2009, 11:10:44 AM

We're getting a great fourth cutting here.

scsmith42 · October 18, 2009, 11:31:37 AM

I plan on making my third cutting in late November. The biggest challenge for me with a late cutting is drying (horse hay).

moonhill · October 18, 2009, 06:10:38 PM

I drove by some in various stages of drying today, it has been cool and cloudy and it just started to rain this evening when I got home. I am not sure what they are doing with it, cows, horses or mulch for the road ditches. DOT uses a lot of it seeding the ditches back in.

Tim

fishpharmer · October 18, 2009, 08:06:05 PM

My neighbor fluffed, raked and started baling this evening when I drove my tractor home from cutting a forty.

Hope his is dry enough looked like he had ten or so rolls on the ground.

Gary_C · October 19, 2009, 08:35:33 AM

When I had cows, I usually cut my last cutting of Alfalfa in mid October right after the first hard frost. You just had to cut it before the leaves fell off. Made some excellent feed. Many times it would not dry well and I had to bale it at high moisture levels. Was not a problem as long as it stayed cold and I fed it right away. You just did not want to walk behind a cow if they coughed. ;D

SwampDonkey · October 19, 2009, 05:44:55 PM

I seen someone for the first time do it late last year, and it ended up in the compost heap. ;D I have seen some put their grains into silage in August-Early September, but never seen anyone successful with hay late in the year.

fishpharmer · October 19, 2009, 06:52:09 PM

We don't have any alfalfa around here. Coastal Bermuda and some Bahia. Got 50 acres on the ground. Pray for no major breakdowns and no rain. It might be decent cow hay.

chevytaHOE5674 · October 19, 2009, 07:38:06 PM

We got our first and only cut in July. We rarely get more than 1 cut up here. Be hard to bale now with the snow and rain and frost.

Woodwalker · October 19, 2009, 10:02:08 PM

Quote from: fishpharmer on October 18, 2009, 09:54:23 AM
Woodwalker, do you ted or fluff your hay? I usually don't but can if necessary.

It depends on how thick the grass is and how much of a rush I'm in. I try not to ted unless it's not drying fast enough. I'm cutting Bermuda and Bahia for the most part. We had very little or no rain to do any good all summer. Finally started to get rain and some growth and nobody could get anything cut. Things went from way to dry to way to wet. We've had about five days without any rain and got a nice cool front in here with some more rain forecast for Wednesday. Me, along with everybody in the country has hay on the ground. Going to take off work and try to get it rolled and picked up in the next couple of days.

fishpharmer · October 19, 2009, 10:10:42 PM

Forecast is about the same for me. Guess since i am further east rain not forecast until Wednesday night. Hope to bale all day.

You rolling bales?

Woodwalker · October 19, 2009, 10:12:51 PM

Quote from: chevytaHOE5674 on October 19, 2009, 07:38:06 PM
We got our first and only cut in July. We rarely get more than 1 cut up here. Be hard to bale now with the snow and rain and frost.

Could you go ahead and roll some with ice on it, sprinkle on some protein, kinda make them cows a treat? Something like we use to call an ice cream drumstick???? (round here, an ice cream cone filled with vanilla, chocolate poured over it and minced nuts sprinkled on it)

Woodwalker · October 19, 2009, 10:19:15 PM

Yeah, 1 man operation, I roll 4'X5'. No brake downs I'll finish rolling tomorrow and move the hay Wednesday.
Last time I was up your way was a couple of years ago. Spent several days in Jackson, think it was a ice storm.

fishpharmer · October 19, 2009, 10:27:59 PM

Quote from: Woodwalker on October 19, 2009, 10:19:15 PM
Yeah, 1 man operation, I roll 4'X5'. No brake downs I'll finish rolling tomorrow and move the hay Wednesday.
Last time I was up your way was a couple of years ago. Spent several days in Jackson, think it was a ice storm.

I didn't know there was a two man operation ;D Don't mention breakdown

Next time your in Jackson, you gotta come see my lil dirt farm. Guess its not all dirt. Got a few puddles here and there too.

Woodwalker · October 19, 2009, 10:58:57 PM

I usually don't get to go on field trips unless something is tore up pretty bad, but maybe one of these days I'll get one of those things called a "vacation" and if I get up that way and I will look you up.
And yeah, spent a couple of hundred on some gears in the baler last week and another two hundred in cutter bar parts today