We have made some major changes to hay making this year. The farmer that I have been buying straw from told me last year that he also makes hay. Initially, I didn't think much about it as he only makes the giant square bales (they weight about 800 lbs) and I have no way to handle those. However, he told me he could bring the hay over along with his skid-steer and just put it in the barn for me. That sounded rather appealing.
After all the trouble we had last year, we opted not make dry hay at Farm Buddy's like we have the past few years. Her first cutting was all made into baleage and I decided to try the huge square bales.
I spent the weekend cleaning out the hay shed and getting ready.
He was able to stack the bales right into the barn with the skid-steer. Oh the joys of power equipment!
This is the first time ever that I have hay in the barn without having handled it myself. Quite a novelty.
I am very happy to have a barn full of hay, especially since I think it will be in short supply this year. Kipper is happy to have a new mattress.
oh that is nice. I wish I had someone here who would deliver.
ReplyDeleteWhat an uplifting sight, a barn full of hay and straw! Water, food, a good stack of firewood = no worries (just about). And this time you didn't have to break your back to fill up your barn! Perfect, congrats!!
ReplyDeleteOh, good for you! What is baleage?
ReplyDeleteBaleage is great! Those big, white round bales that you see, which look like marshmallows, are baleage. To make the baleage, the hay is mowed and usually round baled the same day. Then it is wrapped with plastic to make it into silage. It is great for the northeast because we rarely get the dry weather needed to make dry early-first-cutting hay. My cows LOVE baleage, and so do my sheep.
DeleteI'm still waiting for second cutting grass. Can't wait to hear how you like those humungous bales. They look pretty good!
ReplyDeleteHow do you deal with getting a flake of hay -- neatly, without waste -- off those giant 800 pound bales? Our bales here on the West coast are ~120 pounds and I typically tip them up on one end and stabilize them before cutting the strings and taking a flake off the top as I need them for daily feeding. But, 800 pounds sounds so cumbersome and impressive! Did you get the entire truck load or share it with FB or RB? So far my hay broker doesn't have this season's hay in the barn so I am getting nervous and very envious of your winter stash. Glad you are well stocked with hay and straw.
ReplyDeleteI have never used these bales before other than the straw I have been using. It is not bad with the straw as the bale holds together fairly well. They aren't stacked two high though. I'll have to let you know later on how they work out. I confess to some anxiety about it, but at least I have hay. The hay prices around here are already soaring and growers are hoarding to drive it up even more.
ReplyDeleteI kept all of this and am thinking about trying to get a few more bales if I can. I had intended to get more straw, but there is none to be had.:(
While our hay was made very late, we have plenty of hay this year. We get both large rounds and small squares. We struggle to get some straw also for bedding for the dogs... not easy but we usually find enough to get us through.
DeleteOtherwise we resort to wood shavings.