Baling the Second Cut of Hay

September 23, 2021

My horses are already enjoying some of the newly baled hay.

Hay is a harvested plant that’s dried and cured after being cut in the field. In most cases, hay is cut during the late bud or early bloom stage to maximize its nutritional value. This week, my outdoor grounds crew cut, tedded, raked, and then baled the hay from one of my three fields. This second cut of the season is greener, more dense, and filled with lots of protein - my horses love it.

Enjoy these photos and the short video at the end.

: A baler is a piece of farm machinery used to compress a cut and raked crop into compact bales that are easy to handle, transport, and store.

: Here is Pasang guiding the baler as it is moved and positioned behind the tractor.

: The baler and tractor are connected by a simple trailer hitch pin and clip.

: Here is the motor that helps to move and propel the bales into the wagon.

: Large rolls of twine are positioned and tied to each other, so they can feed into the baler and secure the hay just before it shoots out into the trailer. There are three choices of materials to wrap bales – twine, net wrap, or plastic wrap. If properly baled and stored, hay can last a long time without degrading in quality.

: These are the twine strands that unravel and wrap as the bales move through the baling machine. A measuring device—normally a spiked wheel that is turned by the emerging bales—measures the amount of material that is being compressed and then knotters wrap the twine around the bale and tie it off.

: Once it is tied, it moves up this conveyor belt…

: …and then gets thrown into this trailer where Pasang and Phurba work together to grab the bales and stack them. Our wagon is covered to protect the bales from any unexpected rain and to offer shade to the crew stacking the bales as they are thrown.

: Chhiring drives the tractor and starts the process midday when there is the least amount of moisture. The tractor rides to one side of the windrow while the baler passes directly over it to collect the hay.

: Here is a closer look at a row of hay ready to bale. I have three separate areas for growing hay. They are all planted with a mixture of timothy, orchard grass, Kentucky bluegrass, ryegrass, and clovers – all great for producing good quality hay.

: Here is a bale of hay as it is lifted in the baler’s reel and moved up the conveyor belt.

: And then propelled into the wagon by a mechanical arm called a thrower or a kicker. The bales are manageable for one person to handle, about 45 to 60 pounds each.

: Domi walks behind the baler to rake up any hay that was not picked up by the machine.

: Chhiring drives the baler slowly over every windrow. All the hay is dry and passing through the machine smoothly. If the hay is properly dried, the baler will work continuously down each row. Hay that is too damp tends to clog up the baler.

: In less than an hour, the wagon is almost completely filled with bales of hay. Each bale is about 15 by 18 by 40 inches large. The number of flakes in the bale is determined by a setting in the baler. Many balers are set for 10 to 12 flakes per bale. I have two hay trailers. Each one can hold about 150-bales.

: Once the trailer is full, it is brought to the stable, where the hay is unloaded and stored in the hayloft.

: Here’s some of the hay already placed into a wheelbarrow for the horses. The second cut of hay has a finer texture and usually, a greener color and heavier leaves. It is more dense, the leaves are more tender and if cut at the right maturity, it is healthier with lots of protein.

: We use these galvanized wall mounted horse feeders in the stalls. They’re from RAMM Horse Fencing & Stalls, a 30-year old family-owned business located in Swanton, Ohio. The feeders hold up to two flakes of hay each.

: But here’s the true test – Dolma offers some of the newly cut hay to Banchunch, my Fell pony. The verdict: he and the other horses love it. It makes me so happy to know I can grow good, nutritious hay for my horses right here at my farm.