Re: need some advise on haying

Posted by JRSutton on July 06, 2014 at 06:19:52 from (98.110.209.42):

In Reply to: need some advise on haying posted by xcsp on July 05, 2014 at 14:09:30:

We usually shoot for baling on the 3rd day as a

general rule of thumb. (I'm in Mass.)

We usually cut early, ted immediately, ted mid day

the next day, then rake mid day on the third and

bale it.

Depending on conditions we'll sometimes throw in

another tedding session or two. Really depends on

how it's drying - wind speed - humidity - and also on how thick

the hay is. If it's a really late cutting and

very thick we'll hit it a little more often.

Around here, you really don't loose all that much

to the tedder as long as the hay isn't too dry.

If you're going to over-ted, it should be done on

the front end of things, when the hay's wet -

which is why you'd be over-tedding in the first

place... if that makes sense.

If it's too dry and you ted it, you'll "knock the

goodness out of it".

Flat hay isn't going to dry unless you've got

really ideal conditions. It can form a barrier,

like mulch. So sometimes it's worth beating up

the perfectly dry top layer to get the wet green

stuff below up into the sun.

In your case, on the fourth day - I'd rake early

and let it sit in the windrow for a few hours. (if

it's not so windy that it'll kill your windrows)

Watch the hay as you rake - if you see lots of

green, or the hay doesn't feel right, you know you

still have some drying to do.

If it's not ready, don't be afraid to drop the

rake and ted it. Rake and bale later in the day.

A few hours can make a big difference.

Of course- a lot depends on how much hay you're

talking about.

But assuming the extra gas and time won't kill you

and you're not in the hay business - always err on

the side of caution.

Your goal is a dry bale, not a blue ribbon for

efficiency.

A little extra gas and time now is a lot cheaper

than an empty barn in the winter!

This post was edited by JRSutton at 06:23:20 07/06/14.

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