need to finish first cutting

[xcsp]

Hello I wish the rain would stop on northern ohio ,I need to cut my hayfield I have one field left to cut and they keep calling for rain every day , my field is timothy/alphalpha mix it has come to seed already ,will it hurt the hay quality if I cannot cut for another week or so ?????

I am new to this ,and have been told I need 5 days of no rain to bale ????
what do you think ?????

here is a pic of my first field I managed to bale that just hoping for better weather.

 

[chh]

If it has gone to seed, it is going to be too mature to be top quality. It should still be decent cow hay if you can get it cut. I wouldnt doubt you need a 5 day window, there is going to be so much soil moisture and humidity that it will slow drying considerably. Of course, people in your area would be a better judge of that than me.
Good luck.

 

[deereguy]

Do you have a tedder? A 2 or 4 basket tedder might speed up your process and may be able to bale in 3-4 days tops (depending on humidty, temp, etc.)
Your hay looks good in your pictures.

Good Luck with your hay!!!

 

[xcsp]

Deereguy I do have a 2-basket tedder , I used it on the hay in pictures it seemed to help with the drying , I need to get my other field done as fast as I can ,with this weather we are having nobody is getting their hay done.

 

[deereguy]

We were having trouble getting our bean field to dry out to plant, were getting about 4 days of dry weather then a few inches of rain, decided to cut hay- figured I could ted the heck out of it and get it to dry. Did that in early June- got our hay done (22 acres of grass hay), finally got beans in June 20- late but in. Glad we did- second cutting is a few weeks away.
You have been getting more rain and humidity than we have in west central Ohio.
What is your market for your hay? How many bales will you be making?

One guy told me as advice- don't rake it if you can't make it (bale it). Its ok if it gets rained on before its windrowed, better if it doesn't get wet at all.

 

[chetlenox]

XCSP,

Great pictures! I really enjoy the field-work pictures, especially from other areas of the country. The windrows in your third picture really look good.

If you don't mind me asking, how do you like your NH 565? It looks brand new! I'm relatively new to haying as well, and am in the market for a small square baler. I'd be interested in hearing your impressions.

Chet.

 

[RobJ]

Nice pics man. You probably have your answers on the cutting and all. I was wondering about the height you cut the grass, probably because it's different from down here, but they cut the coastal and bahaya down to the ground down here.

Thanks,
Rob

 

[xcsp]

Chet I am brand new to baling hay this is my first year trying , I am learning that it is not that easy , quessing weather etc.

The NH 565 is brand new this was my first using this baler , I really like it it works well because of my low horsepower tractor ,it requires 35 horsepower with the 565. It missed a few bales but they said that is normal until it gets broke in . the adjustments where easy to make , my first bale was 8 ft long then I made the adjustments to downsize bale and the weight of it.

So I am really happy with my new baler ,I purchased a used one last year and tried it and it was more trouble then what it was worth,with missing bales ,irregular shaped bales,etc. so with my new baler that is one less thing to worry about.

Greg

 

[ddivinia]

We ing?

One guy told me as advice- don't rake it if you can't make it (bale it). Its ok if it gets rained on before its windrowed, better if it doesn't get wet at all.

That is what I am told. It will dry out quicker for sure.

The winds were blowing like crazy when I was baling. As the hay dried, I ended up having my buddy raking right in front of the baler.

D.

 

[chetlenox]

Ha! The eight-foot bale comment made me laugh... mainly because it sounds like something I would do. I'm really glad you like your 565, and appreciate the comments about running it with a low HP tractor. I use a JD 4520 (53 hp engine, 45 hp at the PTO) that is a relatively small frame tractor, so I'll be in the same boat.

Thanks again! Send some of that rain down to Texas, we need it!

Chet.