The First Cut of Hay 2024
Here at my Bedford, New York farm, the weather these last couple of weeks has been pleasantly warm, dry, sunny, with light breezes - perfect conditions for cutting, tedding, raking, and baling hay.
One of my objectives at my farm has always been to practice self-sufficiency. When I moved here, I designated three separate areas as hayfields, so I could grow lots and lots of delicious, nutritious hay for my horses and donkeys. I plant the fields with a quality custom seed blend and when it's ready, my outdoor grounds crew works hard to cut, fluff, rake, and then bale the hay.
Enjoy these photos of the first cut of the season.
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- This time every year, we hope for at least a week of good, dry weather, so we can get the first cut of hay from the fields. Timing is everything when cutting the hay crop.
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- This is our mower-conditioner. Mower-conditioners are a staple of large-scale haymaking. It cuts, crimps, and crushes the hay to promote faster and more even drying. It is the first step in the hay baling process.
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- The discs and blades are located behind the protective shield of the mower-conditioner.
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- This equipment also works to remove the waxy coat on the crop as it conditions, making the hay dry faster – this means less waiting time and less chance for poor weather to negatively impact the hay quality. When weather conditions are ideal, these machines allow farmers to cut wide and fast – the best formula for quality field productivity. As the mower-conditioner goes over the grass, it cuts it and then conditions it – all under the protective hood of the machine.
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- The best time is to start as soon as dew is off in the morning, which will maximize drying time. After it is cut, it is left to dry the rest of the day.
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- Next, the cut hay is ready for tedding, also known as fluffing. This is our hay tedder. A tedder spreads and fluffs the hay in a uniform swath. It uses a rotary motion to grab the hay with spinning tines and then cast it out the back of the machine. The tedder moves up and down the field taking all the greener hay from the bottom and turning it over to dry.
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- The hay turn colors from green to tan. On average, it takes about three days per field, depending on the size of the field and the weather, to complete the entire process of mowing, raking, and baling hay.
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- Then it is time to make the windrows, which are rows of hay raked up and shaped before being baled. Here is Phurba pulling the bar rake and making windrows from the tedded hay.
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- The bar rake, also known as a basket rake is hydraulically driven. This rake allows for consistent movement across the fields making well-shaped windrows.
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- Here, one can see the tines creating the almost box-shaped windrows.
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- Here is a windrow ready to bale. All the windrows are lined up straight next to each other with enough room in between for the baler to maneuver properly around the field.
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- A hay baler is a piece of farm machinery used to compress a cut and raked crop into compact bales that are easy to handle, transport, and store. I am fortunate to have all the necessary equipment to process the hay in my fields.
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- The process starts midday when there is the least amount of moisture. The trailer fills up pretty quickly. Luckily, I have two hay trailers. Each one can hold about 150-bales. Chhiring drives up and down the windrows of all the hayfields which takes a good portion of the afternoon.
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- The tractor rides to one side of the windrow while the baler passes directly over it to collect the hay. All the hay is dry and passing through the machine smoothly. If the hay is properly dried, the baler will work continuously down each row. Hay that is too damp tends to clog up the baler.
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- The hay is lifted by tines in the baler’s reel and then propelled into the wagon by a mechanical arm called a thrower or a kicker. The bales are manageable for one person to handle, about 45 to 60 pounds each.
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- A baled “square” is traveling up the conveyor belt. A measuring device—normally a spiked wheel that is turned by the emerging bales—measures the amount of material that is being compressed and then knotters wrap the twine around the bale and tie it off.
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- The hay trailer has high walls on the left, right, and back sides, and a short wall on the front side to contain the bales which are stacked neatly from back to front. Once a trailer is full, it is driven to the hayloft above my stable.
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- The crew sets up the hay elevator from the ground to the hay loft.
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- Then each bale is placed on the hay elevator which sends it up to waiting hands. Baling hay is a team effort. Each bale is about 15 by 18 by 40 inches large. The number of flakes in the bale is determined by a setting in the baler. Many balers are set for 10 to 12 flakes per bale.
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- Here is the view from the top end of the loft as the bales are sent up.
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- Juan is in the hayloft stacking the bales as they come up the hay elevator.
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- We collected so many bales, there’s just a narrow aisle in between the tall stacks.
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- But wait… here comes another wagon. It’s the last bit of baled hay, and our fourth wagon almost full. I am so pleased with how much hay we’re able to produce here at the farm.
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