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Hay equipment (update)

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scottie

12-21-1999 15:13:57




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Thanks for all the replys!! We were thinking about not baleing the hay. The herd might be up to ten by spring. What all is involved in the planting? You have to prepar the soil (cultivate, disc and so on)?? What type of seeder is used? Dont think we want to go halves with somebody, but it might be a good idea to have someone seed it and stuff to get started. We are not going to get anythink bigger then 50hp. But we dont need a big baler. Once again we will be planting 7 to 10 acres.
Thanks.
Scottie

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Dan Chambers

12-28-1999 11:09:44




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 Re: hay equipment (update) in reply to scottie, 12-21-1999 15:13:57  
Scottie, I don't think my reply got posted but go for the hay thing. I have 6 acres I hay and love it. I have an 8N ford overhauled new engine,electrical,tires,paint,etc courtesy of my brother-in-law for $3500, but a good running 8Nwill go for $2500 up. Also have a IH #46 twine baler that works great(that was free) but again about $2-400 depending on condition,a Ford 501 sickle bar mower that was $375 and an old Case side delivery ground driven rake for $150. I have some done minor cleaning and adjusting but for about $4000 dollars I am making hay and loving every minute of it. Now I fertilize my field and produce about 1000 bales per year. I need about 500 to feed my horses and I sell the rest for $2-2.50 per bale and make about a $1000 per year. I'm in my third year so next year I'll have all my equipment paid for. I also use the tractor for and untold number of other duties. My 8N has enough horse power to run the baler. Go for it Scottie Good Luck Dan

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marvin

12-23-1999 22:14:27




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 Re: hay equipment (update) in reply to scottie, 12-21-1999 15:13:57  
Scottie;
Putting up baled hay makes life easier since it makes handling the hay easier. Your trade off here is between cost and efficiency and how you like to play. If you want to go play with a baler and put up hay that way, go ahead, it just will not be the cost effective thing for you to do unless you can get the equipment real cheap, but then you may spend the rest of the money on repairs. If all that you want to do is keep teh grass cut and the animals fed and do it the most cost effective way, then it is best to handle the hay loose.
The neighbor cut his 80 acres with a farmall cub (8 to 10 Hp), rake it with an old dump rake and then pushed it into the barn with an old buck rake that he built an put on the front of the cub. The farmall cub had a 5 ft sickle bar mower that worked reasonable well. You should be able to cut the 7 to 10 acres in a couple of hours or so. Then after 3 days or so you can rake into rows with a dump rake or side deliver rake. The buck raake that the neighbor used was build out of poles that were about 12 ft long and were built into what looked like a picked fence that layed on the ground in front of the tractor. Attached to the end of the poles nearest the tractor were more poles fashioned into a picket fence. These were about six foot high. Both of these sets of poles were then attached to the front blade on the tractor so that the tractor could push the rake along the ground. The poles that layed on the ground were pointed at the far end. The tractor then pushed the rake out into the field and down the rows of raked hay collecting the hay onto the poles until the rake was full. You could push a lot of hay this way and move into the barn. The neighbor push his up a ramp and into the loft. The boys then moved the hay around in the loft to stack it on the sidesto make room for more hay. There are many ways to handle loose hay, this is just one method. Another method is to load the hay onto a trailer or wagon with a pitch fork and a lot of muscle. Using this method you need to learn how to build the load so it doesn't fall off. Another methjod is to use a hay loader that will pull the hay off the ground and put it onto the trailer. Works good but still need to know how to build a load and break your back. I have used all of these methods for putting up loose hay and prefer the buck rake. Bales are the best way to go and I would prefer a round baler if I could get one, but it is just a matter of cost.
Good Luck and let us know what you decide to do and then how well it worked for you.

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Hay Marvin...

12-28-1999 10:41:59




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 Re: Re: hay equipment (update) in reply to marvin, 12-23-1999 22:14:27  
Did you mean a couple of days or so when you said "should be able to cut 7 to 10 acres in a couple hours or so"? Or was you just toying with him?
Ain't nothing like getting broke in right. LOL Fred from the Mung Factory



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Burrhead

12-22-1999 16:51:49




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 Re: hay equipment (update) in reply to scottie, 12-21-1999 15:13:57  
I believe before I would worry about the hay business I would build a 12X18 ft 3 sided building and save the grass from the lawn service.
Let the grass cure, put it in the building. Put a cow panel between the hay and the animals on the 4th side of the building. They can eat it through the panel, just keep moving the panel back as needed.
You will be getting paid to put up the hay and the animals will get some pretty good stuff.
The heaviest eqiupment you will need is a pitch fork and claw hammer.

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Hay Burrhead...

12-28-1999 11:26:54




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 Re: Re: hay equipment (update) in reply to Burrhead, 12-22-1999 16:51:49  
beinst you seem to be the king of the loose hay experts, (I voted you that title after readin all the posts), I got a couple more questions fer ya.
Why did they give me that little three tined fork when we put up loose hay? And why did they keep sayin "don't stick him with that"? And why did they say "you watch fer that crazy driver when you pull that hayfork rope across the road"? And wud the two tined fork out there on my barbeque grill be okay to handle that grass clippin hay?
I thought if a feller went to Electrolux and bought 10,000 sweeper bags, you cud bag it fer 'em, just like in the stores. Only equipment needed is sweeper and 10 acre extension cord Fred from the Mung Factory

STS WE CARE

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Burrhead

12-28-1999 17:40:15




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 Re: Re: Re: hay equipment (update) in reply to Hay Burrhead..., 12-28-1999 11:26:54  
I think the solar Hoover would be better.



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Scottie

12-22-1999 17:43:50




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 Re: Re: hay equipment (update) in reply to Burrhead, 12-22-1999 16:51:49  
Are you saying to put the mowed grass in for the animals? Dont think i understood it quite well. We have plenty of room for hay, we have a 3 story barn, machine shed, so storage for the hay would not be a problem. Are you saying to grow the hay and not bale it? I have heard that that is a good idea. Then we dont need a baler.
Thanks,
Scottie

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LCH/IN

01-14-2000 12:15:20




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 Re: Re: Re: hay equipment (update) in reply to Scottie, 12-22-1999 17:43:50  
I haven't found ANY good way to feed grass clippings. They too easily mold, ect. You say let them cure, but in the first hours of curing they start to mold. Best advise, stay away from mowed or short cut grasses for feed.



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Burrhead

12-22-1999 19:00:21




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 Re: Re: Re: hay equipment (update) in reply to Scottie, 12-22-1999 17:43:50  
Yep either way, cut what you have on your place, cure it and put it up. Or what you have as clipped grass from the lawn service, cure it and save it too.
Before haybalers were popular, people put hay up in shocks or stacks. This was alot of waste because of the weather and animals getting to it. Some folks put it up in the barn loft for weather protection and fed it out in hay racks built in the barn stalls. You just fork it over into the chute from the loft and the animals ate it from below in the stalls, or off to one side of the barn.
I would'nt think you'll have enough grass to worry about baleing from 7 acres with animals roaming and grazing it anyway. I would think the most you'll have to do is bushhog the pasture now and again to clean it up and to let the tender grass come back.
You already have a barn and a lawn service. You're probly throwing enough good grass away now to feed 10 animals already.
You just have'nt got the experience or knowledge to harvest it for animal use yet. That's not a bad thing, because you can get both.
If theres any old timers around you, go ask a local old timer how he used to put up his hay.
Most small towns have a dead pecker bench where the ancients hang out. Maybe at the feed store or hardware store or the likes. You did'nt always have to have big tractors and equipment and I would'nt buy them for that amount of acreage now.

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george s.

12-23-1999 09:17:49




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 Re: Re: Re: Re: hay equipment (update) in reply to Burrhead, 12-22-1999 19:00:21  
He might be better off putting the grass clippings up as grass silage,for cows anyway.By the time he gets to unload the truck at the end of the day,that stuff will probably be hotter than a two dollar pistol! Just a thought.



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Burrhead

12-23-1999 11:13:02




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 Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: hay equipment (update) in reply to george s., 12-23-1999 09:17:49  
Yep silage would work. I was talking about curing it before he stacks it, but you're right, grass will go through heat on the truck. I never fed silage to horses tho, and he has a couple of donkeys.
He might could build a rack to spread the grass out on the pick up or trailer to cure. It should cure pretty quick, with it cut short from a lawn.
For all my life I like to play and experiment, so I may play with this situation some when the grass greens up around here. If I don't run out of rumatiz medicine.

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Scottie

12-23-1999 11:45:04




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 Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: hay equipment (update) in reply to Burrhead, 12-23-1999 11:13:02  
sounds neat. So i need to bag the clippings spread it out on trailer or truck? then feed it to the animals? Sounds neat. any kind of grass? instead of hay i enough?
Thanks,
Scottie



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Burrhead

12-23-1999 12:19:26




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 Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: hay equipment (update) in reply to Scottie, 12-23-1999 11:45:04  
Yep any kinda grass. All hay is basically just cured grass.
Ya don't want to put it up too green, but you don't want to dry it out til its just straw either.
I don't remember the web address, but the university of North Carolina, and Texas A&M University have very informative websites. You might want to go talk to your county agent about what works good in your area. He should have pamplets there to give you with a world of haying info, and might have first hand experience on the length of time needed to cure hay in your climate.
The process that george and I are talking about will be a pretty good bit of work, but will be very minimal on cash outlay. You're already having to dispose of the clippings in some manner now, so it should not be too much trouble.
Most folks fertilize their lawns pretty good and keep them trash free so you should be able to get a good clean high protein hay or silage from the clippings.

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Scottie

12-23-1999 13:50:34




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 Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: hay equipment (update) in reply to Burrhead, 12-23-1999 12:19:26  
Hi,
I am learing quite a bit. I really appreciate all of this info. So let just make sure i understand this. Mow the grass, spread the clippings out so that they can dry. Then just feed them to the animals? That sounds pretty easy. I get plenty of grass clippings. can we do the same with hay. That would probly be best for us then we dont have to get a baler, we can just fork it into the truck.
Thanks,
Scottie

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Burrhead

12-23-1999 16:40:13




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 Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: hay equipment (update) in reply to Scottie, 12-23-1999 13:50:34  
Yep. just dry it, put it up and it is hay. It will make good hay for the winter when you're out of grass and it did'nt cost much to do, just some elbow grease, and a little time.



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MrG:Shore does...

12-23-1999 14:09:38




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 Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: hay equipment (update) in reply to Scottie, 12-23-1999 13:50:34  
Back in the 60's when I was in high school, my Dad used to buy all this cattle from out in the Sandhills (NE) 'tween Thedford an' Mullen. I spent several summers out there stacking hay for one of the ranchers that Dad bought cattle from.

He used a couple reversed Ford-N as sweeps and pushed hay to an overhead cable slide stacker with wire and chain cage. Bein' the new guy, guess who got the pitchfork and the "privelege" of workin in the stacker! An God help you if a stack you built went over! It had to be restacked...an that was adirier job than stackin' it in the first place.

They stacks had to be built right 'cusz they were many times wrapped with a couple cables and dragged long distances across the hills in the winter get the hay from where it was stacked to where it was to be fed! Gadget

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Burrhead

12-23-1999 16:37:14




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 Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: hay equipment (update) in reply to MrG:Shore does..., 12-23-1999 14:09:38  
Makes these old wore out balers look better all the time don't it.



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MrG:

12-23-1999 21:44:58




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 Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: hay equipment (update) in reply to Burrhead, 12-23-1999 16:37:14  
Yep Burr, but all that talk about handling loose grass reminded me of handling loose prairie hay.

Want some excitement in yer life? Be workin' the stack and have the sweep deliver a snake to the stacker along with the hay! Bull snake, rattler, don't matter...they're all the same to me when they comes over the top of the stacker an falls from the sky...It's unnatural, I tell ya! Snakes ain't supposed to fly, but just watch ME! You'd think I could!!!!

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Doug

12-22-1999 11:26:39




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 Re: hay equipment (update) in reply to scottie, 12-21-1999 15:13:57  
I suggest you invest in some temporary electric fencing and do some intensive rotational grazing 8-9 months of the year (depending on location). For the other months either buy hay or use tim(ny) suggestion and put it up loose.

Buy the book "Salad Bar Beef" by Joel Salatin. He does this for his beef cattle. It has great pictures and examples.

Good Luck and remember to think outside the box.

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Burrhead

12-21-1999 16:39:38




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 Re: hay equipment (update) in reply to scottie, 12-21-1999 15:13:57  
You got all these fine folks here a fist fighting over how for ya ta bale, and now you aint baleing??? Git a rope boys.



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MrG:Maybe..

12-21-1999 16:48:38




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 Re: Re: hay equipment (update) in reply to Burrhead, 12-21-1999 16:39:38  
with all this (bad) experience and a shot o' good common sense, we done talked him outa it! ;-) G



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hay

12-22-1999 03:37:31




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 Re: Re: Re: hay equipment (update) in reply to MrG:Maybe.., 12-21-1999 16:48:38  
don't forget about a zillion dollars in machinery that you will NEVER be able to pay from from hay sales.



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Burrhead----UH-HUH

12-21-1999 19:21:10




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 Re: Re: Re: hay equipment (update) in reply to MrG:Maybe.., 12-21-1999 16:48:38  
He might have done like I did. I went and cut the fences and run off ever thing but mama, when she don't cook no more shes outta here too.



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