Agri Vehicles Insurance from Greenlands

Author Topic: Making hay for the first time - any tips?  (Read 7960 times)

SallyintNorth

  • Joined Feb 2011
  • Cornwall
  • Rarely short of an opinion but I mean well
    • Trelay Cohousing Community
Re: Making hay for the first time - any tips?
« Reply #15 on: August 02, 2016, 10:13:33 pm »
BH is in now and says the MF35 would be better than the 85hp, provided your land is reasonably flat.

When you say bale grab... Can't quite visualise what would grab 20 small bales on a front loader..?  We have a bale carrier that fits on the 3-point linkage and scoops up heaps of 17 (bottom row 5 on their edges, 2nd row 4 flat on top of the 5, same orientation, 3rd row 4 at 90 degrees to 2nd row, 4th row as 2nd row, 5th row as 3rd row).  Any ways, yes the 85hp would do that job.  You have tested the grab on it?  Things don't always seem to work exactly as one might expect, don't always connect to a different tractor.... ::)
Don't listen to the money men - they know the price of everything and the value of nothing

Live in a cohousing community with small farm for our own use.  Dairy cows (rearing their own calves for beef), pigs, sheep for meat and fleece, ducks and hens for eggs, veg and fruit growing

NethertonSH

  • Joined May 2015
    • Netherton Smallholding
Re: Making hay for the first time - any tips?
« Reply #16 on: August 02, 2016, 10:47:17 pm »
Yes our land is pretty flat.

Yes that's basically what it is but it had a hydraulic ram which squeezes the bales. The person I got it from sent me some sketches of how to stack the bales which is pretty much as you described it.

I think this year will be a learning curve.

SallyintNorth

  • Joined Feb 2011
  • Cornwall
  • Rarely short of an opinion but I mean well
    • Trelay Cohousing Community
Re: Making hay for the first time - any tips?
« Reply #17 on: August 02, 2016, 10:56:58 pm »
So... Our bale carrier fits on the back..?  And yes, has squeezey sides. 

I would test it on the 85hp; our carrier didn't work on the larger, more modern tractor; couldn't get it low enough, even with the arm positions as low as they'd go and a longer top link.  The ground level spikes really need to be ground level, not a few inches above the ground ;).  We had a carrier modified so it would work with that tractor.  Another 4-wheel drive Massey was the same.
Don't listen to the money men - they know the price of everything and the value of nothing

Live in a cohousing community with small farm for our own use.  Dairy cows (rearing their own calves for beef), pigs, sheep for meat and fleece, ducks and hens for eggs, veg and fruit growing

NethertonSH

  • Joined May 2015
    • Netherton Smallholding
Re: Making hay for the first time - any tips?
« Reply #18 on: August 03, 2016, 03:44:45 pm »
Yes so it must go on the back ;D I really need to get out and try everything.

Thanks for all the comments! Very glad I came on and asked, you've saved me a lot of head scratching.

Going to go out tonight and put some straw through the baler :fc:

stufe35

  • Joined Jan 2013
Re: Making hay for the first time - any tips?
« Reply #19 on: August 03, 2016, 07:53:36 pm »
Have you mown yet ?  And if not do you know what you are doing with your mower ?

Those bale carriers are well suited to use on a mf35.

If it's a Taylor one...which are the most common,  they had special sized pins....has yours hot them ?

You should be able to bale with either tractor if you want to.  With the mf 35. You might just have to go a bit slower. 

Have you sorted the bale sledge....having groups of bales in one place saves masses of time and labour...and is really essential for a bale carrier.   Is it a flat eight sledge or just one that  gathers a few.

If you can try and trip the sledge at the same place across the field so even the groups of bales are all in one place.

Do you know how your hay Bob works and how to set it up ?

Questions questions !....has your baling trial been successful.

Have you got some shear bolts....?   If not you need to get some pronto.

Kinburn 1919

  • Joined Jul 2016
Re: Making hay for the first time - any tips?
« Reply #20 on: August 03, 2016, 08:37:27 pm »
regarding weather... its hit or miss.. I cut hay last Friday night and baled it Monday, but it was a light crop , and Monday was a exceptional day.. If its good weather I scatter it out asap, and turn it daily.. you can tell by the way it goes through the haybob how it is developing, on the day I decide to bale..if it is a dry bright morning I turn it at 10.. then look at it at 1.30 and if in doubt scatter it again.. then row up at 4.30 and bale.. I would also say that if hay is visibly wet on top don't turn/scatter it till its dry..good luck....last year wasn't great for hay making in Scotland... but we got a indian summer in September and made the best hay I have ever had..so sometimes it pays to wait

NethertonSH

  • Joined May 2015
    • Netherton Smallholding
Re: Making hay for the first time - any tips?
« Reply #21 on: August 06, 2016, 07:13:42 pm »
Finally managed out today to give things a try. Managed to turn one large bale of straw in to a bunch of nice little bales. All seemed to work well.

Bale carrier fitted on after some adjustments. Mower also went on and worked well after some adjustments. Haven't tried haybob but I'm sure it'll be fine.

Just need the weather now. Going to hold off until Monday to cut I think. Has anyone else went for it yet?

CarolineJ

  • Joined Dec 2015
  • North coast of Scotland
Re: Making hay for the first time - any tips?
« Reply #22 on: August 07, 2016, 08:18:18 am »
Looking good!  I cut a field too early a couple of weeks ago, which is still unturned on the ground, but we're apparently due at least a week of dry weather from next Friday onwards, so I shall try and cut the other one and get the whole lot turned and baled then.

NethertonSH

  • Joined May 2015
    • Netherton Smallholding
Re: Making hay for the first time - any tips?
« Reply #23 on: August 07, 2016, 09:26:43 am »
How long can you get away with leaving it before you bale it? Would it ruin the field of you cut it then never managed removed the grass?

I think I'll try and get a local contractor on standby to come and silage bale it in case it doesn't dry enough. It would be handy to have a square bale wrapper for turning it into haylage.

CarolineJ

  • Joined Dec 2015
  • North coast of Scotland
Re: Making hay for the first time - any tips?
« Reply #24 on: August 07, 2016, 09:47:21 am »
Dunno, I'm finding out!  It's been a couple of weeks now and the underneath is smelling rich, but it's still green, it hasn't rotted.  It's going to have had virtually all the nutrients washed out, but with two currently overweight horses it's probably going to be just what I need.  I've been told that as long as you don't start turning it, it can lie for quite some time.

If you never managed to remove the grass it could stop the new growth coming through.  We'll get these fields baled even if we have to just get a big baler in and then dump them in a corner to rot down.

 

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