Has anyone started cutting hay yet?

tjkadar · May 30, 2005

We're waiting on rain. Its been a dry and cool Spring and the coastal simply hasn't had enough water to grow. At least its raining today and it looks like rain for the next two or three days. Hopefully, that will give us some growth so we can start cutting.

Ideally, we like to get our first cutting during the end of May, but more often then not its the first part of June. In a real good year, we can get four cuttings. This doesn't look like a real good year.

jwcinpk · May 30, 2005

Got my whole first cutting in. Just a shade over a thousand squares and 30 some rolls. Now I gotta get to everyone else that wants there hay cut. What a way to spend your vacation!

Robert_in_NY · May 30, 2005

What model swather did you get? There are not too many people running self propelled units around here as the fear is that if the motor goes in the swather you are down where as a pull behind you can just change tractors. That said, there are NH, Deere and Hesston units running on some of the big farms. One large dairy put a cutter on the front of a 9000 series Deere and also pulls another behind it similar to the Bi-Directional NH setup. There are a couple Claas Discus mowers running around as well as one Krone (this is a fun unit to play with). What I would love to do is try out the new Claas Cougar.

green4710 · May 30, 2005

I got a 2001 JD 4990 swather. Its got the rotary head on it. Im amazed at what you can shove in the front of this thing. Just wish it had an acerage counter on it. Know any companies that offer an aftermarket acerage counting system?

Robert_in_NY · May 30, 2005

I would imagine any of the GPS units designed for ag use would do what you want. I can't help you with any particular model or brands but I am sure your dealer would know of some.

Half the fun of cutting hay is watching how hungry these machines are. I just got my discbine out of storage yesterday and got her ready and tried it out. It was so hard to stop cutting once I got started but it wasn't a field to be baled and I only wanted to make sure everything was working well. Of course I then found a piece of metal that decided to puncture the TN's tire so now I am parked till tomorrow when I get it fixed and hopefully I will be cutting the first fields later this week.

Do you have any pics of your equipment?

green4710 · May 30, 2005

I'll get some pictures here soon. My tractor went into the paint shop this week, so that should be out soon.

Cabinholler · Jun 1, 2005

Robert in NY

Every farmer (that has hay fields) here in Central Kentucky is cutting, and baling hay at this time of year. With all the rain that we have had here this spring, round mixed grass hay bales are selling for a give away price of $10.00 to $12.00 a bale, and if you are lucky you might get $15.00 a bale, if it is real good hay.

Early hay cutting and hay baling comes off the same time as setting tobacco. That means that farmers in this state are on the run this time of the year.

Cabinholler

The water will never clear up, until you get the hogs out of the pond. (You got to find what the trouble is, and eliminate it).

Indydirtfarmer · Jun 1, 2005

( Robert in NY

Every farmer (that has hay fields) here in Central Kentucky is cutting, and baling hay at this time of year. With all the rain that we have had here this spring, round mixed grass hay bales are selling for a give away price of $10.00 to $12.00 a bale, and if you are lucky you might get $15.00 a bale, if it is real good hay.

Early hay cutting and hay baling comes off the same time as setting tobacco. That means that farmers in this state are on the run this time of the year.

Cabinholler

The water will never clear up, until you get the hogs out of the pond. (You got to find what the trouble is, and eliminate it). )

Just up the road a few miles from you, in NORTH central Kentucky, (near Louisville) It's been one of the driest springs I can ever remember. We're done with the first cutting. (Finished baling last night) Yields were poor at best. Last year, we needed pontoons on the baler. It just wouldn't STOP raining. This year, we've had TWO significant rains since the first of April. Normally, we get that many EACH WEEK....

We tend some ground near Lietchfield, Kentucky. Last weekend, we were down there. As we drove towards Grayson County, I noticed baled fields where the bales were getting closer together as we drove towards our destination. Looks like they got better quantity AND quality as we drove west.

Looks like we're in for some much needed rains over the next 3 or 4 days. The crops sure need it here.

Cabinholler · Jun 1, 2005

Indydirtfarmer

Sorry to hear that you didn't get much rain in your area this spring, and that the hay crop is thin. I live 30 miles Southwest of Lexington, KY, and we have had enough rain for a good hay crop. Although, at the present time, it is getting kind of dry, and we could use a rain.

Cabinholler

The water will never clear up, until you get the hogs out of the pond. (You got to find what the trouble is, and eliminate it).

burnetma · Jun 9, 2005

Robert,

Finally made some first cutting New York State hay. Doing it the HARD way, with antiques (NI 272 cut/ditioner, David Bradley Rake, MF 10 baler & David Bradley hay wagon). I got all of the equipment from my uncle and none of it was running. I rebuilt it all just in time to make hay. For the maiden voyage I dropped ~ 2 acres of broom grass hay just to see if I could make it all work. The cut/ditioner worked perfectly behind the JD and dried very quickly. The DB rake tracked very poorly on the side hills and actually jack knifed once, prompting my search for a 3 point rotary rake. The baler, which I had partially rebuilt and completely tuned, was my real concern. I never messed with a baler before let alone completely tuning the knotters which I got done at 2:00 PM on the day that I intended to start baling. I was completely amazed. It tied the second bale through! I made two adjustments to bale tension and never touched it again! It made nice perfectly square bales. /forums/images/graemlins/laugh.gif Everything was golden until I made it swallow a bit too much hay. She broke a shear pin and spun the slip clutch. The slip clutch must have been seized and when it slipped, it just whiped it out. /forums/images/graemlins/frown.gif I never monkeyed with it because I ran out of time and I was told that it had just been replaced a couple years prior to it going into its forrested vacation plot for 4 years. I should have known better.

Anyway, long story short... I made 135 bales of very nice hay off of 1.25 acres of land proving that where there is a will and no money for new equipment, there is a way. /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

Still would like a new JD 338 though... Father's day is coming.

sweettractors · Jun 10, 2005

round mixed grass hay bales are selling for a give away price of $10.00 to $12.00 a bale, 

We are in central Ky (Hart County) and we are selling some 1500 Lb round hay bales left from last fall for $10 each to make room for this years crop.--Ken Sweet

Sweet Farm Equipment LLC *Good Prices on New Disc Mowers, Rakes, Hay Tedders, Drum Mowers and Sickle Bar Mowers*
sweet@scrtc.com

HayDR · Jun 10, 2005

Feed last years hay that was stored outside to your cattle this winter and your cows and calves will NOT do as well without other feed supplementation. When 500 LBS calves are bring from $1.15 - 1.45 per pound, that would be very expensive hay when you sell your calves.

Robert_in_NY · Jun 11, 2005

You are lucky, I still can not chance it to cut any hay yet. They are calling for 30-50% chance of rain every day thru next saturday. As it is it only rains every third day or so but one rain will ruin my hay and I know as soon as I cut it I am doomed for some rain. However, I did get my new hay fields planted and finished the corn today so I am looking forward to some rain the next couple days then nice clear weather.

I do know what you mean about learning about equipment. I learned a lot last year and in a hurry. Was lucky that my hay wasn't ruined. Time to go, have fun.

green4710 · Jun 11, 2005

I swathed about 100 acres of grass last week. This was some thick stuff. Then it got rained on about 1.5 inches of rain total.

Oh boy, my rake is gonna have a *hay* day with this..... /forums/images/graemlins/shocked.gif

burnetma · Jun 14, 2005

Good weather is coming! Hang in there! Sooner or later you have to take a chance on getting some wet or the fields will go by completely.

I am down waiting on baler parts. I hate working with antiques. Can't wait to get a new/newer baler.

green4710 · Jun 16, 2005

Sorry it took me so long to get a picture up, anyway here is one of the swather. It finally quit raining here, so were cutting like crazy finally. Granted were 2 weeks behind... /forums/images/graemlins/ooo.gif

Robert_in_NY · Jul 18, 2005

Wow, it has been a while. I did finally get to cut some hay and have finished around 100 acres with only 45 more left of first cutting. I have been fortunate this year as I have a new lady friend who has her own TN and enjoys haying also. Her father helped me last year by sending his customers to me as he was giving up haying. So this year has been a lot easier then last year.

So far I have had a few set backs. First was with the baler as the knotters started acting up, fixed it and only lost a few hours. Next the pto went on my TN and I was lucky as it was only a snap ring inside the rear end that broke. Then the discbine had a problem with the mount (that holds the pto) ripping loose from the base.

We have not had much rain at all this year and there is very little hay standing. The yields around here are about half of a normal year which is good and bad. The good side is that I have every bale sold, the bad side is that I wish I had more to sell. Doesn't look like we are going to get much of a second cutting unless we get some rain soon and on a regular basis.

Hope things are going better for everyone else. I will try to get some pics of the TN's working.

Robert_in_NY · Jul 18, 2005

That is a nice machine. I had a chance to look the 4995 over at Empire Farm days and watch it work. It did a great job but was a little small compared to the Krone Big M that it was cutting next to but from what I hear you can buy a couple of the JD's for the price of the Big M /forums/images/graemlins/crazy.gif Hope things have been going better for you.

green4710 · Jul 21, 2005

This machine is awesome. I cut at 9.6 mph all the time, except in really thick grass that has fallen down, then I need to slow down some, 7.8, haha. What a dream to cut alfalfa with, 17 acres an hour easy. Only downfall is the dang payments!!! /forums/images/graemlins/mad.gif