How is your haying going

[Sagebrush]

About 3/4ths done here. Have about 200 acres of grass and 150 acres of second cutting alfalfa left to cut. Yields have been good and not so good averaging around 1 ton per acre..

 

[Mudhen]

We had bad luck with our hay this year. I think we are going to just run cattle. We have a guy here we buy our hay from at a good price it is about the same as it cost to do it ourself.

 

[Faster horses]

If you are in that kind of scenerio, mudhen, I say GO FOR IT!! Why have the headache and the equipment for haying when you can buy it so easily. You could probably run a few more cows on the ground you were haying to partly offset the cost. Most of the reason buying hay doesn't work so well is because of the transportation costs and you don't have that!

I think you are thinking correctly!

 

[Silver]

Won't quit showering here, so started bagging hay. Tried to put an oversized bale through it and pulled the hitch off the son of gun. Can't seem to get things going. :?

Hi Silver! I have never heard of 'bagging hay' and was wondering if you would please explain how one does it and what the advantages/disadvantages are? Thanks!

Hi Jeannie, as for what it does, Mike explained it pretty well. We have a little machine that pulls a tube of plastic over a row of bales. Brand name is tube-o-lator or some such. The machine was cheap and simple (no moving parts), but the bags are expensive. Works out to close to $5.00 cdn per bale. We use it mainly so we don't have to worry about losing our hay in the swath to rain. It makes great feed as long as the elk don't come along and tear the bags.... :? If that happens all is lost. Maybe Ill take some pics and post them when I get a chance.

 

[Jeannie]

Thanks Mike and Silver! If it wouldn't be too much trouble, I would really like to see pictures of this Silver. I don't see how a plastic bag over a row of bales could keep them from molding, unless it's vacumn packed. Grass does not have the moisture that alfalfa does, but it still has some. Also, how do you transport them without tearing the bag? They can't stay in the field or they will kill the new growth.

 

[Silver]

Took these pics a couple of hours ago.. sun was in my eyes so sorry about the quality. As you can see they are bagged in place, and as I said before this is the poor mans way of doing things.... but it works and makes fine silage.

 

[Faster horses]

Nice pic's. Love your country.

Is it always that green this time of year?

 

[Silver]

Thanks, and yes, at this time of year it's allways this green. It just doesn't last long. :?
When it's green, it's really green. When it's not.... it's white.

 

[Jeannie]

Thank you Silver, and the quality was good! Learn something new everyday, I like that!