Hay Fever

[Norm]

We're right in the middle of hay season around here. We've been doing big rounds for a buddy that raises beefers and big squares for auction markets.



http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zWBSfw2Lo6s

Yields haven't been great due to  lack of rain but we'll get 4 cuttings this year because of the early spring.

How are the rest of you hay balers doing?

[red oaks lumber]

should start 2 crop the first of july, hoping to cut and bale 100 acres in 3 days. looks like a nice dry stretch of weather coming in.

[chevytaHOE5674]

Looks good.

Was going to start on our first and probably only cutting today but it decided to rain instead.... Maybe give it tomorrow to dry out and cut on monday.

I did cut a small field for a neighbor about 2 weeks ago and yields were about 1/2 of what they were last year.

[Corley5]

The crop looks poor here.  I'm watching the weather looking for a window this coming week to get started.  I only need a couple hundred 4X4 rounds this year.  Customers have been dropping out as their kids grow up and the horses are moved out  8)  I haven't looked to replace any of them and should be done with hay as crop in two seasons.  Three at the very most with amounts dropping each year  8)  I'm all into grapes now  ;D

[thecfarm]

Norm,the hay looks good,but those clouds don't. Most fields around here that are mowed have ruts in them in the low areas from all of the rain.

[Norm]

I wish they'd let some rain out Ray. We are badly dry here and need it, these produced sprinkles.

[chevytaHOE5674]

Got about 1/2-3/4" of rain last night, like 2-4 inches in the last two weeks. Fields have standing water in them so it will be a bit before we knock any hay down...

Before this last 2 weeks of rain we hadn't had any for almost a month. Always feast or famine.

[Woodwalker]

We are not fully out of drought conditions down here. We've had rain and crops are growing but by the numbers we are still just a tad on the dry side. We had a early spring and I've cut twice already and could cut again this week but I think the storm in the gulf is going to interfere with my plans.
It appeared that every Rye grass seed that had never germinated did so this past spring. Rye was very thick everywhere you looked. When we cut the Rye, the weeds sprouted. One of my lease pastures has Crotten coming up almost thick as the grass is. It was shredded early and cut again about three weeks ago.

[POSTON WIDEHEAD]

Norm, do ya'll bale many square bales or mainly just round?

What do round bales sell for out there?

What do square bales sell for? I'm talking about premium hay.

Thanks.

[Norm]

Most of our hay is put into big squares, they average 750-800lbs. The reason we did some big rounds was it was rained on and we knew the price would reflect that. Big rounds are easier and quicker.

Alfalfa is graded by RFV (relative feed value) and is priced accordingly. Big squares with a high number will bring $175-$200 per ton on the 1st cutting. Subsequent cuttings will go for a bit higher price. Big rounds will sell between $100-$150 per ton again depending on quality. Small squares will go for a premium to those prices.

These are auction prices and change as the season goes on. Weather not only in Iowa but things like droughts in Texas push the prices up even higher. A lot of hay fields have been put into corn and beans so we keep alfalfa in our rotation. Keeps us busy in the summer months until harvest in the fall.

[clww]

Most of the farms we drive by up in the valley started really making hay about 2-3 weeks ago in VA.

[LAZERDAN]

Here in se wi we just finished second crop today. The earliest I can  ever remember.  It's ungodly dry the corns all curling up.  we've got a couple of creeks that I have never seen dry up and thier down to a trickle,  but here we always seem to manage, not to many extreems in the midwest.  will  start spraying corn Monday.  never a dull moment                            Lazerdan

[chevytaHOE5674]

Forecast is looking good for a few days. Couple hundred acres of hay to knock down and bale this week... Sometimes I'm glad to only be able to get one cutting as this sure is a lot of work.  :D

[westyswoods]

Not a farmer, although all the crops around here are really taking a hit. Creek through our property is bone dry only second time in twenty three years. No rain in the forecast with high 90's for the end of this week.

Westy

[DoubleD]

Norm what is inside the tank on top of the baler? are you spraying it inside the bales?

[Norm]

That's a treatment that is sprayed on the hay just after entering the baler. It allows you to bale at a higher moisture content.

[scsmith42]

Norm, I got in an early cutting back in April on a new field.  After that, the weather did not cooperate until last week, when I cut and baled "most" of my other pastures.  I was able to put up 44 round bales before the baler broke (and the sky's opened up on the rest of the hay). 

Fortunately I was able to get the highest quality hay out of the field before the rain.  I'll have to re-ted the rest and bale it for cow hay once I find out what's wrong with the baler.

[Corley5]

I was going to mow this morning but had bad batteries in the 706 so I've got two new ones to install and should get some hay down yet today.  One forecast is calling for rain late Thursday into early Friday the others nothing through the Fourth.  Hoping to get done with it during this stretch  ;D 

[blackfoot griz]

I am probably two weeks before knocking down my 1st cutting of hay.

[MHineman]

  Most 1st cutting was done in the middle of May this year.  That's about 2 weeks ahead of schedule.  The problem is we had less than .25" rain the entire month of June. 

  It's time for a 2nd cutting.  It's getting cut, but there's not much hay to bale. 

  The 1st cut was good quality and a good quantity.  A month ago I thought hay would be cheap this year, but now it looks to be at record high prices.

  I just finished baling straw last Friday.  That's about 2 weeks ahead of schedule too.  Our wheat was shorter that typical and therefore only about 75% the usual amount of straw.

[red oaks lumber]

cut 42 acres this afternoon, real good looking stand of alfalfa.

[Corley5]

I got a start today.  I'd still be cutting but have a Farm Bureau meeting tonight.  Should be cutting hay 

[slider]

Norm we are starting our  second cutting this week,been very dry until now.Just got a new jd468 round baler nice machine also picked up a used anaerson wrapper which is something new to us.We put up around 60 acres of tift 85 and about a 1,000 rolls of peanut hay

[chevytaHOE5674]

Started cutting this afternoon but was having motor troubles in the haybine. I think it is the fuel pump so one will be here in the morning, also going to tear the carb down and clean it out, hopefully be back to mowing by tomorrow afternoon.

[LAZERDAN]

Went out and looked at the wheat this morning it may be ready by the 4th of July a month a head of normal.  It's aweful short            Lazerdan

[MHineman]

Went out and looked at the wheat this morning it may be ready by the 4th of July a month a head of normal.  It's aweful short            Lazerdan

Where is your wheat?

  It sounds like our wheat we harvested last week.

[Amelia Farms]

First year doing my own hay. I have had someone else do it the last couple of years, but I was always at the bottom of the list and my hay was way past prime before he could get to me. Bought a bunch of antique equipment over the winter and got it into working order and had pretty good rain. Got a little over 1000 small square bales off about 12 acres on the first cut. I may take a second cut on one small field tomorrow, but with 100+ degree days forecast for the weekend, I am really not motivated to be out picking up hay in that kind of heat. Just too old for that now.

I got a good deal of satisfaction when those first few pretty bales dropped out the back of the baler. (After a few that weren't quite so pretty)

[LAZERDAN]

We are in the Dairy State,  about 20 miles west of Milwaukee

[beenthere]

How many acres of wheat do you have coming ready?

[red oaks lumber]

all my hay is cut will start baling tommorrow. today baled up 7 acres of grass hay for my wife's animals (small squares)

[Norm]

I used to hate small squares until I met my buddy I farm with. He's got a stacker wagon and an attachment for his skid steer to load 12 at a time on trailers. It's almost impossible to find hired help to bale them now so my back appreciates it.

So Steve you don't have any animals you can't eat.... ;D

[LAZERDAN]

there is 60 acres on the home farm.  Don't really need the wheat but the straw is wonderful for bedding the baby calves                Lazerdan

[chevytaHOE5674]

With the predicted nice weather I went ahead and knocked down most of my hay and all of one of my neighbors yesterday (100 acres of my own and 30 or 40 of the neighbors). And as usual the forecast has changed to rain this weekend now that we have a lot of hay on the ground. Lucky it is supposed to be in the 90's for another day or two with a breeze which should dry it out, then get two tractors going baling it all up.

After this I have a few small fields to cut of my own then another couple on some neighbors land. Will be nice to be done with hay after that.

[Lud]

My Dad called me at work years ago , said the landowner had got a half dozen town kids to help he wouldn't trust them to ride and stack safely.  Told my boss I was having a Hay Fever reaction and had to leave.

Had my flannel shirt on and we'd done six trailers full for the landowner and the city kids to put up in the barn.  The oldest city kid pulled rank, saying I was working "too hard" and he would ride the trailer for the last load.

To show my appreciation I reached into my back pocket and pulled out my pouch of Beechnut and offered him a chew.  Had him layin' on the trailer before the second pass. That tought him!

Hard licquor, soft women, and a sweet chew.   words to live by......

[blackfoot griz]

Years ago, when I was in high school, a "city kid" told me that he would like to try his hand at bucking hay bales.
He shows up on time and away we go.

We ran a three man crew.  We pulled hay wagons behind the balor, 2 guys stacking one running the tractor/balor. We haden't baled 3 bales and this kids started getting puffed up and he started coughing. It got worse quickly.  I ran 1/4 mile or so to the nearest neighbor's place to borrow a phone to call 911 (this was well before cell phones). The ambulance showed up just in time.  The EMT's had to shove one of those plastic do hickeys down this poor kids throat so he could breathe.
The poor kid spent 3 days in the hospital...two minutes worth of work out of the lad and a big workers comp claim!

[Roxie]

The sweet smell of third cut hay is in the air here.  It's just unheard of to get third cut this early in the season, but we've had perfect weather. 

[Norm]

We finished up with the 2nd cutting last night after dark. Temps were in the mid 90's with no wind and high humidity so we all sweated our share and then some.  Surprisingly some fields did better than the first cutting even with little rain.

I slept in this morning and it sure felt good.

[Corley5]

  I got started baling last night.  After 19 round bales a bolt that holds one of the sprockets on one of the roller shafts broke allowing the sprocket to move out enough to throw the drive chains.  I've got everything lined back up just need to remove the broken bolt with a drill and EZ out and put one chain back together.  Hopefully the bolt comes out without too trouble.  It's threaded into the end of the shaft.  Easy to get at.  I don't see any reason as to why it broke.  Bearings etc are all fine.  There's no outward pressure on it :-\  It is metric and I don't have one so off to the parts store.  I also need to replace the knife in the haybine.  The bushing went out of the drive end.  No rain chance until Sunday and then it doesn't sound like a real good chance.

[Roxie]

Norm, only a farmer posts at 8AM that he slept in.  I hear ya!   :D :D

[chevytaHOE5674]

Baled some last night going to bale more this afternoon and the rest tomorrow.

But I just came in from outside and there was a message on the phone from another neighbor who is going through a divorce and she wants me to come cut her hay since her husband isn't around..... She has around 30 acres of really nice timothy/rye hay but I'm not sure I want to get into the situation with the divorce and all, and it would be nice not to have to put up any more hay until 2013. hmmmm

[Corley5]

Got my baler fixed this morning and rolled up what I had raked from yesterday.  It was too dry.  The bales started hard.  I'm going to rake what's left in a bit and bale it in the morning with the dew still on.  Forecasts are conflicting regarding rain chances on Sunday  :-\

[red oaks lumber]

just finished baling 100 acres today, long day but, no rain on any of it.

[chevytaHOE5674]

Just got in and cleaned UP from mowing... The neighbors field was just too nice to say no too. So I should finish up baling my own hay this weekend and then finish up with her land/my hay on Monday. Then unless somebody calls I will be done with hay until 2013.

[Norm]

I finished up baling a 12 acre field of alfalfa late yesterday. We've had no rain since we cut it 3 weeks ago but it still had some decent growth. Our new system is to cut as soon as we see any flowering going on weather permitting. One upside to a drought is hay goes pretty fast, I cut this late Saturday.



After the baler got done here it headed over to a neighbors place to do 80 acres of alfalfa, something unheard of since corn and beans have gone up in price so much.

[thecfarm]

Norm,looks like you have one of those balers that make the big bales. I saw one in PA a few years ago. I have not seen one here in Maine,yet. Seems like the round bales are the one the farmers use around here.

[Magicman]

Nice Truck.   

[chevytaHOE5674]

I baled a bunch of hay early last week and thought that was the end of my season. Then I was approached about a couple more fields so last weekend I knocked down 15 or so acres in 2 separate fields, raked this morning and after a quick bite to eat and grease/oil on the baler its off to get it rolled up.

[sandhills]

Nice Truck.   

Nice Hay     I'll be needing that this winter so don't let it get to far away  ;D.  Haying has been easy around here too unfortunately, sure don't go through much twine anyway, it had better start raining  :-\.

[Norm]

Here's a picture of my buddies new cutter.



We've not stored one bale this year so far. The last load went for $200 per ton so we decided to go ahead and get rid of it all.

[LAZERDAN]

Norm           What was the weight of the hay on the trailer ?  is it second crop or third crop.     Lazerdan

[Norm]

The bales average out at 780#s and I had 19 on it pictured above. I can put 24 on this trailer but only going on the backroads with it. This is the 3rd cutting.

[sandhills]

My hay got rained on last night, just enough to screw up baling for a few hours, not enough to help anything else out, hope the weather built into something better before it got your way Norm.

[Norm]

We got....wait for it..... a tenth of an inch, and that was with a dead bug in the gauge.  :D

[Don_Papenburg]

We got a little more than a half inch yesterday around 5:00 pm  .  Not bad for a month without rain. It should help out with my sweet corn .  We are in one of the few spots that had enough ground moisture to keep us from burning up .

[red oaks lumber]

norm
you got me beat,looked so promising but.... only got 1/2 tenth ;)

[chevytaHOE5674]

Hurried yesterday to get the last of my hay rolled up because they were calling for rain. We go almost enough rain to get the hood of the tractor wet as I was driving home.  :D

No rain here in a few weeks now and not looking promising for this coming week. Might have to put the big pump in the river and flood a pasture or two so that the cows have something good to eat in the coming weeks.

[tyb525]

Worst drought that anyone can remember in these parts, hay is almost nonexistant, those who do have it aren't selling unless it's for an arm and a leg. Last I heard grass hay square bale was at least $7 a bale, alfalfa was over $14.

[MHineman]

Might have to put the big pump in the river and flood a pasture or two so that the cows have something good to eat in the coming weeks.

We couldn't pump out of the creek if we wanted.

  The creeks are mostly dry.  The rivers are very low and look more like a small creek.  I've never seen the creeks dry up like this.

[chevytaHOE5674]

Our river flows into Lake Superior about 1/2 mile down from the farm. Sooo for our river to go dry Lake Superior would have to drop about 4 or 5 feet.