How important is a tedder?

SwingOak · Apr 29, 2014

I'm getting set up for haying on our small farm, and have recently acquired a bunch of old hay equipment - a NH 467 Haybine, a NH 257 rake, and a NH Super Hayliner s68 baler. Way back when when I was working on a hay farm as my summer job during high school, I seem to remember we only really used a tedder to kick out rows that had been rained on. On our own farm when I was growing up, we didn't have a tedder and we made decent hay. I have not made hay for more than 25 years, so I have a lot of re-learning to do.

So, do I really need a tedder, or can I get by without one? How and when are they best used? Thanks!

2458n · Apr 29, 2014

If you want to make hay in two days you need a tedder to get it spread out again so it will dry faster. If it lays in the windrow it will take at least a couple of days and you still need to turn it with a rake a couple of times, with more leaves lost.

hosspuller · Apr 30, 2014

A tedder can be the difference between hay rotting on a field or useful forage baled. With that in mind, a tedder is inexpensive indeed.

Happy Gilmore · Apr 30, 2014

We run a mower conditioner and swear by our tedder. Really cuts the drying time down, by how much I can't say for sure because we've always used the tedder.

SwingOak · Apr 30, 2014

Thanks guys!

I've seen a couple of different configurations of tedder - the "flluffer" type (Fluffer Tedders) with the horizontal bars, and the rotary basket type (Turbo Tedders). The only experience I have is with the basket type. Any thoughts?

Gary Fowler · Apr 30, 2014

we never used a tedder in our haying operation on the farm I grew up on. Cut it let it lay for about 2-3 days depending on the weather, thickness of the grass and daily dew rates, then rake it into windrow and bale. We used a crimper/conditioner for the Johnson grass and sudan sorghum hybrids to crush the stems so they would cure faster.

newbury · Apr 30, 2014

And it may depend on your average weather conditions during the haying season.
When I was haying, back in the day, we cut it, let it dry, baled it. During that time of year we could depend on about a week or so of dry weather with a spotty thundershower at best. Sometimes several weeks.

bcp · Apr 30, 2014

My long ago experience in the SW desert was that we had to wait for just the right time so it was damp enough to bale. Most baling was done at night.

Bruce

SwingOak · May 1, 2014

I've always thought that you needed four days of dry sunny weather to make hay. A tedder would let me make hay in two days? I'm making small squares for horses. So how would that work, timing wise? Mow in the morning of day one, tedder the following morning, then rake and bale the evening of the second day?

bigbull338 · May 1, 2014

weve baled hay for over 40yrs and never used a tedder.nor have we ever needed 1.so to me it would be never used or needed.

zionview · May 1, 2014

A tedder may help you out of a few jams if the weather doesn't cooperate, but it's not necessary to making good hay. We used ours only if we thought we'd get caught by rain. I've used fluffer types(John Deere #2), bar types(Pequea) and a couple gyros. They all work, but the gyros are a little rough on legumes: ted too soon and all they do is throw wet hay around, ted too dry and they'll knock the leaves off.

SwingOak · May 2, 2014

Yes, I seem to remember the only time we used a tedder was when we got rain and needed to kick the hay out, especially if it was rained on after it had been raked. It worked great for that and we saved a lot of hay that otherwise would have ended up baled to get it off the field and thrown in the ditch. I'm just making grass hay, not alfalfa.

I'm still curious about the work flow and timing when using a tedder to make hay in two days. Anyone?

tcreeley · May 2, 2014

Around here in central Maine, cut, tedder in the afternoon, next morning rake, rake again and bale - (square bales) in the mid afternoon. Pick it all up by nightfall. Rain is always around the corner.
As a kid in western Mass. we cut with a sickle bar mower and crimped. A couple of hours later we raked. By mid afternoon we raked again. We started baling by 4 and by 9 we had the bales in the barn. We'd do a field in one day. We generally got 3 cuttings. The 3rd cutting was never as good as the first 2.

Happy Gilmore · May 2, 2014

Might depend on climate and weather patterns, we've just always used them

schmism · May 2, 2014

Here in the central IL they are a must. Durring hay season your lucky if you can get 3 days without a shower. So being able to fluff and flip on day 2 is a must.

Note some of the basket types will also rake depending on the model.

SwingOak · May 3, 2014

nj gsp said:
Thanks guys! I've seen a couple of different configurations of tedder - the "flluffer" type (Fluffer Tedders) with the horizontal bars, and the rotary basket type (Turbo Tedders). The only experience I have is with the basket type. Any thoughts?

There are a few of the fluff type available used in my area, but none of the rotary basket type. I take that to mean one of two things - rotary basket tedders are better for one reason or another, so people hold onto them because they get used. Alternately it could mean the fluff type are more effective, so there are more of them out there and thus more available for resale. In either case, there are very few used ones on the market.

When is one better than the other? Or is it just two different ways of skinning the cat?

SwingOak · May 6, 2014

I think I've found the answer to my own question by doing a little experiment. I mowed some standing dead hay from last year with a flail mower, and raked it into a windrow about 100 feet long. This morning I tedded it by hand with a pitchfork. The difference between a fluffer tedder and a rotary one is pretty clear, and it's also clear that one is not a replacement for the other. My conclusion: For lifting, turning, and opening hay before it has been raked, either type would work, but the fluffer type is less aggressive. For opening hay that has been raked, or wet hay, the rotary type would be best as it will pull the windrow apart and pull out any dense ropes that might hold moisture in.

Now if I could only find a used rotary tedder for sale around here!

Supa Dexta · May 7, 2014

It's totally dependant on where you live, the weather patterns you get and the type of crop you're cutting. Some places get heavy dew at night, and then hot days, this draws moisture out of the ground as well, keeping any lower level hay damp. If you were to leave it in a windrow it may never dry before you lose it to rain or age.

You're best bet is to see what your neighbours do, and how good their hay is. The faster you can drop it a gather it up the better. The less you handle it the better also though. - And running equipment at the proper settings and speed to not cause leaf damage.

I'm in eastern Canada & I like to mow early morning, provided the dew is off, say 6 or 7am (or 9 if you have to wait it out). Get it tedded by lunch time, ted again the next day by 10 o 11 or so, rake by 1 or 2 and bale till you're done, or the dew sets in that evening and quit. - This is for heavy crops (what we aim for) if its a lighter field I can sometimes get away with only tedding once, and raking/fluffing it up will be enough to finish dry it.

Verticaltrx · May 9, 2014

nj gsp said:
Yes, I seem to remember the only time we used a tedder was when we got rain and needed to kick the hay out, especially if it was rained on after it had been raked. It worked great for that and we saved a lot of hay that otherwise would have ended up baled to get it off the field and thrown in the ditch. I'm just making grass hay, not alfalfa.

I'm still curious about the work flow and timing when using a tedder to make hay in two days. Anyone?

It's kind of a regional thing, if you are in a very dry climate where you have low humidity and days without rain a tedder probably is an unnecessary step. That said, for most places tedding will make the hay dry faster.

We have mowed one morning and baled the next evening before in ideal conditions (85-90*, low humidity, windy, mowed with mo-co). This is what we do:

Mow the hay starting around 11:00am-noon (so the brix content is up), as soon as the hay is mowed ted it. Either the next day or the day after we ted it again in the morning when the dew is still on, then rake and bale that afternoon. We either mow with a sickle bar, disc mower, or mower conditioner, depending on the situation. The quicker you can get the hay up the better, laying out in the sun for days will bleach out nutrients much like rain will (although to a much lesser degree). Rarely does our hay ever lay on the ground more than 3 days.