[dyedinthewool]

Hi All
I know you ALL visit this thread so anyone in West Wales thinking of cutting their hay field yet??
I've put this in the LAND MANAGEMENT thread aswell.
 
 

[Roxy]

We are in Derbyshire, and after constant rain the fields are muddy and waterlogged......last night was torrential rain, and again today.  We are promised some good weather, but the fields are so wet, it would be impossible to mow, and of course take some drying.

[Fleecewife]

We are at last getting some sun, but only between the rain showers and nothing better forecast here in South Central Scotland 

[Castle Farm]

A few have cut around here today and a few just doing a few rows around the outside to wrap as silage.

I am going to hang on for a while and hope the weather gets better. At least it's still growing and edable, as once it's down and cut your committed.

[Sylvia]

And if it takes much longer it'll all go to seed and be cr#p. Pray for a good fortnight of sun and dying wind

[dyedinthewool]

I've just been out to cut the chicken pen - grass is about 6" took three cuts to get it down and now it's yellow in the bottom and still wet.  So if the hay fields are 18-2' I hate to  think whats at ground level.  Sun shining and very hot out there and a good wind so that will help to dry things out.
Washing every thing that i can find to make the most of this sun. OH took his jumper off and that went in the wash - he said it was clean yesterday...

[Fronhaul]

The ground needs to be much drier imo before we can cut or the cutter will be sucking up mud and we will be baling it.

[lachlanandmarcus]

The ground needs to be much drier imo before we can cut or the cutter will be sucking up mud and we will be baling it.

this - having seen next door farmers dark brown patches in fields he has done (and his fields drain down onto ours.....) Im not considering it until next week at the earliest. Supposed to rain her Sunday anyway....
Im less worried about the seeds, just want stuff to fill bellies. Last two years we have made it in August and the stock loved it so for us thats ok. (but then we have more land to make hay on than we have buildings to hold hay so yield is not so crucial)

[FiB]

... well I was thinking of it - but think I will wait a few days for ground to dry a bit more and see if the suggested hot week becomes a bit more definite in the forcast .   Daft question alert - do you need a special machine to make small bale haylage?  We ended up makeing big bale haylage last year (contractor) when it looked like the weather would break before suitable dry.  I wondered if you could small bale a day earlier than hay and wrap by hand?   

[lachlanandmarcus]

You do need the machine to make wrapped haylage, IMO. :-(( tho you can get small haylage bale machines. However they are pricey - but if the weather carries on like this it might be economic!
By hand I dont think you could get the wrap tight enough.

[Fowgill Farm]

Can see my neighbour baling right now out of the sitting room window it was cut 3 days ago and then it pee'd down, dry yretserday afternoon so it was tossed then and then again this morning, he'll probably wrap it tomorrow afternoon. They do say make hay while the sun shines and it is for once alovely evening! High cloud interspersed with lots of blue.
Mandy

[Fleecewife]

Well my OH decided to cut, so that's what he's doing.  It will get rained on but that often happens here and as long as it's not an endless deluge we usually end up with something edible.  We can't wrap for haylage so it's hay or bust.  Fingers crossed that Sunday week is hot and dry as forecast - we're pinning our hopes on it.

[FiB]

 

[SallyintNorth]

x 2 

[colliewoman]

we cut the lot yesterday sssshhhhhhhhhh


I can hear the tedders going so you never know.....