Our First Cut of Hay 2023
Our big hay baling project continues at my Bedford, New York farm.
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. When I moved here, I designated three separate areas as hayfields, so I could grow lots and lots of delicious, nutritious hay for my horses and donkeys. Last week, my outdoor grounds crew worked hard to cut, fluff, rake, and then bale the hay in all three areas. We're all so excited about this first cut. In all, we got 1557 bales of hay, our biggest amount yet!
Here are some photos.
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- The windrows of cut, tedded, and raked hay are ready to bale. All my hayfields are planted with a custom mixture of orchard grass, tall fescue, and timothy seeds – all great for producing good quality hay. This day was dry and perfect for baling.
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- A hay 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. I am fortunate to have all the necessary equipment to process the hay in my fields.
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- Inside a box behind the baler is where 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.
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- Here is the motor that helps to move and propel the bales into the wagon.
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- Chhiring pulls the baler with our trusted Kubota M4-071 tractor – a vehicle that is used every day here at the farm to do a multitude of tasks.
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- Chhiring starts the process midday when there is the least amount of moisture. The trailer fills up pretty quickly. Luckily, I have two hay trailers. Each one can hold about 150-bales. Chhiring drives up and down the windrows of all the hayfields which takes a good portion of the day.
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- The tractor rides to one side of the windrow while the baler passes directly over it to collect the hay. 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.
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- The hay is lifted by tines in the baler’s reel 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.
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- A baled “square” is seen traveling up the conveyor belt. 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.
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- Chhiring goes evenly and slowly over every row of cut, tedded hay. Behind the baler is the hay trailer or wagon, which is used to catch the bales once they are formed and tied.
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- The hay trailer has high walls on the left, right, and back sides, and a short wall on the front side to contain the bales which are stacked neatly from back to front. Once a trailer is full, it is driven to the hayloft above my stable.
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- Then each bale is placed on a hay elevator which sends it up to waiting hands in the hayloft. Baling hay is a team effort. 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.
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- Here, Juan is in the hayloft stacking the bales as they come up the hay elevator.
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- We collected so many bales, the overflow was brought to the run-in barn hayloft.
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- Now the fields are bare once again and ready to be aerated and seeded.
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- This is our Kubota Land Pride tow-behind spike aerator. We always aerate any field, pasture, or lawn space before seeding. The main reason for any aerating is to alleviate soil compaction. Compacted soils have too many solid particles in a certain volume or space, which prevents proper circulation of air, water, and nutrients. Aerating also improves drainage.
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- Here’s a closer look at the spikes of the aerator. These spikes perforate the soil at an adjustable depth as it moves through the field.
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- Heavy concrete weights are placed on the aerator weight tray for stabilization and maximum penetration in the soil.
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- Here, one can see the holes left behind by the aerating spikes.
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- This aerator makes slits in the ground as opposed to core plugs. Spike aerators punch holes in compacted soil, while plug aerators have hollow tines that penetrate into the compacted soil to collect plugs and remove them.
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- Next, Chhiring fills the spreader with seed. Our seed is from Hancock Farm & Seed Company, a 45-year old business that grows its own seed and ships directly from its Dade City, Florida facility.
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- Using good quality seed for hay is important for horses. It helps to provide proper fiber requirements and keeps their digestive systems healthy.
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- This is a 3-point spreader, which can be attached to a variety of tractors to spread seed or fertilizer. Chhiring starts by going around the field counter clockwise from the outer edge working inward. He also overlaps his passes, so he doesn’t miss any areas.
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- Looking closely at the ground, one can see the tiny seeds.
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- Hopefully the forecast is correct, and we’ll get some good rain in the coming days. Come September, we’ll be harvesting our second cut of good quality, nutritious hay for my horses.
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