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How much rain and how long can hay lay cut

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old

07-10-2006 08:34:06

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Before its not worth baleing?? Over at a friends farm we have hay down, not in windrows just cut with a sickle mower, but it is now raining. So how much rain and have many days can it lay and still be worth the time and $$ to bale it for feed??
Thanks. If the weatherman is right it will be thursday before we have anopther warm/hot dry day so that would probably put it at friday or saturday before it would be dry enough to bale, also we are useing a JD-14T square baler

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Chick

07-10-2006 22:35:38

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Re: How much rain and how long can hay lay cut in reply to old, 07-10-2006 08:34:06

This is going to be good. My hay has been rained on daily since last Saturday (9 days ago). I am going to either have to bale it, or windrow it and burnit, but it has to comeout of the field. I have tedded what I could, twice, and believe it or not, it doesn't look that bad. Of course, the hay where there is standing water, is hard to judge. It is bahia. It would have been baled the Saturday it started raining, if the rain had not come. Like I said though, one way or another, it has to come out of the field.

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Sid

07-10-2006 22:06:49

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Re: How much rain and how long can hay lay cut in reply to old, 07-10-2006 08:34:06

Two weeks is the longest I have experienced but I wouldn't argue with Jimmy about three maybe even longer.

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Luke S

07-10-2006 10:24:20

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Re: How much rain and how long can hay lay cut in reply to old, 07-10-2006 08:34:06

I had 10 acres of my best hay get an inch of rain one night the day after I cut it. The next afternoon I got out there with the tedder and it was about 80 or so degrees. Dried great and baled by about 4 in the afternoon. Best looking hay I made all year. Sold them in square's to horse people and they couldn't tell it had been rained on.

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mjbrown

07-10-2006 10:13:03

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Re: How much rain and how long can hay lay cut in reply to old, 07-10-2006 08:34:06

I often cut hay right before a front comes through setting the haybine to make windrows, let it rain as the front passes then tedd it out to start the drying. I think it gets me at least a half day ahead when the sun comes out. After two days the quality falls off fast. If its near ready to bale light shower on raked hay won't hurt too bad if you can get it the next day. More than that hurts it pretty bad. All that said, beef cows can winter over on some pretty sorry hay if they have to.
Hay always looks better in January than it did in June or July.
**If a brown cloud comes out of it when you tedd or rake , is when I decide it's not worth the work to bale it. Then I burn it in the windrow . The seeding seems to survive the fire.

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Jimmy King

07-10-2006 10:09:08

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Re: How much rain and how long can hay lay cut in reply to old, 07-10-2006 08:34:06

Old I have baled hay that was down for three weeks and they eat it and did good on it. If hay is ready to bale and it rains on it is much worse than green hay. When you turn it to dry it is where a lot of the damage comes from. I read once that Kansas State cut a field of Alfalfa, tested it then turned the center pivit on and run it for 4 days, then dried it baled and tested it and it lost .5% of protein. If what you are baling is fescue by this time of the year it has very little feed value anyway and it won't hurt it much.

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Errin OH

07-10-2006 09:18:29

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Re: How much rain and how long can hay lay cut in reply to old, 07-10-2006 08:34:06

Just depends, like Don said if green (fresh cut) and used for cattle feed, a day or two of rain will leave some value in it if you can get it up. Then again if you tryin to sell it a day at most.

I have had grass hay that was cut, rained on for the next two days, sat one day, tedded forth day, and baled on the fith day, make good hay. I did have a few spots that were still just a tad to wet, but for the most part made good hay (as in, green in color, good smell, no dust, no buyers balked, hay). Leaving it lay the first day after the rain will protect the bleaching processs the top will experance (better in windrow). More than three days it will begin to rot. Any rain after two of drying will likely reduce it to straw grass/sticks and useless. And if you have my kind of luck, it will rain every two days and turn black in the field..... ...

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Nebraska Cowman

07-10-2006 09:08:10

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Re: How much rain and how long can hay lay cut in reply to old, 07-10-2006 08:34:06

I have never thrown away feed yet. (and I've baled up cane in the late fall that was black as your hat and the new growth coming up through it. Probably been down a month or more)

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Errin OH

07-10-2006 09:21:38

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Re: How much rain and how long can hay lay cut in reply to Nebraska Cowman, 07-10-2006 09:08:10

I have done that with clover (my own feed). I couldn't beleive they ate it. Black and packed soild as a brick..... ....

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Don L C

07-10-2006 08:55:21

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Re: How much rain and how long can hay lay cut in reply to old, 07-10-2006 08:34:06

If the hay was still green when it started raining you will probably be OK.....get it raked in windrows and fluffed up off the ground as soon as possable.....let the air get through it.....let it dry ...turn it over before bailing.....
Should be good enough to feed...good luck..... Don

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Tim shultz

07-10-2006 08:45:51

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Re: How much rain and how long can hay lay cut in reply to old, 07-10-2006 08:34:06

it could handle a inch I think.. just so long as you get it off the ground as SOON AS IT QUITS RAINING! and also.. was it much dry? if you had just cut it and then it got rained on it won't realy hurt it at all.. but now if it was about like say 80% dry.. won't be worht much.. just my .01 worth..
Tim Shultz

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