Home Forums Miscellaneous Topics Rural Living tell me about growing hay

I'm babysitting about 6 acres of hay field. In the past it was used to produce grass hay but the guy who was doing the cutting / baling has disappeared. The small-scale hay cutters in my area have all switched to growing hemp. The cow/horse folks want the hay, the landowners want to make hay, but there's nobody left interested in doing the work except on very large properties. I was thinking about trying to get a little bit of equipment together to try to do some myself .. without breaking the bank. I'm thinkin' the property will produce 2-3 tons a year, no more than that, so I need to work with what I've got.

For a tractor, I've got a Kioti CS2210, basically a 20HP diesel riding lawnmower. It's a beast in that role but it's not a major farm implement. PTOs middle and rear, 3 point hitch (category 1 at least, maybe 2, I forget). Only 1400 pounds.

So any thoughts on implements for that scale? Cutter? What is rake vs tedder? Do I need both? Baler?

I'm out of my depth here.

No, just no. There is no way that would ever pay for the equipment, let alone a return for labor and inputs.

Rent it out for graze.

It depends on how fancy you want to get with equipment. An old mower, and rake, and hire it baled.

If the fences are good enough, and you got a water source, horse people are fighting for pasturage in Siskiyou County. Nothing less than 60 dollars and I have heard of some close to town going for 120 dollars. Dry don't describe it this year, these people are going to be looking at buying 250 dollar horse hay this summer...winter? Who knows.

You’ll need at least 30 hp to run a square baler it’s good money in it if a man had time to do it

My rig 451 new Holland sickle mower I bought for $600 and a 55 new Holland rake for $200

Here ya go.

Just the right size!

If you buy an older baker and start having any issue, it will take
two crops for you to figure out the problem and solve it.

Easy math 3ton X $/ton=$/year.

Cost of a cutting implement + rake + baler ÷ $/year= never paid for once
you factor in fuel and repairs!

I doubt that you'll break even in any time doing this and buying equipment for it, there is a reason why a lot of small farms had to close their gates.
Balers are complicated machines to fix and old farm machinery in general can be a fantastic money pit, so I'd very much agree with the others on renting it out for graze.

I saw a small walk behind baler a few years ago,but you still need a sickle bar, rake of some sorts and something to pull it with. No way to make it pay.Even if you find some one to cut,rake,bale,usually you make a deal for 1/2 the hay ..

Horses are the worse thing to graze If it gets tall ,they won' teat the tough stuff, over graze one area to bare dirt and let another run touched. 6 acres, they will have it eaten down in two months.

Get a couple of yearling beef and put them on it.Then if you can,feed them thru the winter and finish them off for 2 months.Sell one and eat the other.

Thanks for the info. Seems like it confirms my suspicions.

I don't think we're in a lot better shape so far as grazing. The fence is only a little over waist high. In 2 places I can step over it .. carefully. The irrigation is all aluminum, main line down one side, hand-line with risers and impacts out into the field ... 90+ total impacts. We had pastured a horse in there for a short while and it busted up the irrigation lines stepping on them and running into the impacts breaking the fittings out of the pipe. ("Not happy campers.") We'd have to switch to some other sort of irrigation.

Between redoing the fence and changing the irrigation, I think pasturage is much like hay ... way more investment than return.

Jeez! That reminds me of those old AC round balers of my youth. Had to use a hay hook in each hand to pick up the bales. PITA to stack in a barn and would push the sides out if not careful. I handled a lot of square bales for $1.00 an hour while in high school. Luckily, not many farmers had round balers.

My advice on buying hay equipment is don't do it. Been there done that. Enjoyed it some of the time and hated it some too. Square balers are great when they work but sooner or later you will break something or the knotters will cause problems. It will break on a day when it is 98 degrees in the shade. Now I brush hog the hay field a couple of times a year and let the deer and other critters eat what they want.

Here you go.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pMK3O00Fyo0

Thanks. That's kinda interesting since I've only got 5 acres.

This is sounding a lot like a plot to make some poor, innocent high school kid miserable.

Now John, I'm thinking the young lads telling of showing their cold beer to the sweaty young men riding the last load of hay home to stack, as they pass the baler, and rack.

"Cruel, and unusial punishment"!