# Start baling this weekend if weather clears



## Alfalfa Farmer (Apr 16, 2008)

Hope to start baling if the weather will clear for about 4 days. Does not look good on tonight's forecast. But, I hope it changes tomorrow. ABybody else bale yet?


----------



## Indy Farmer (May 14, 2008)

No baling this past weekend or next around north of Indy.


----------



## downtownjr (Apr 8, 2008)

Jut cannot get enough decent weather in NC IN to bale. Long term gives a possible later this next week, maybe over Memorial Day. Hope so...looking at stemmy first cut hay real soon


----------



## downtownjr (Apr 8, 2008)

at least I think my brother will. I won't get home in time. Probably raking and baling by the time I unload my moving trucks







and get up to the his place.


----------



## Guest (May 23, 2008)

I finshed mowing today. I found out the forcast changed when I was finished. It isn't curing very fast as it has stayed cool. there was a nice breeze today to help out. I put new tines on my Kuhn rotary rake/tedder combo today and fixed a tire. I tedded the end rows only. Looks like I will rake Friday evening (if it doesn't rain) or Saturday morning and bale Sunday.

HHH


----------



## JD4755 (Apr 17, 2008)

Forecast changes when you cut hay?? NEVER!!







Oughta name it "Rainmaker hay harvesting" instead, do you have problems with wind blowing much? We almost always rake right in front of the baler, and only rake it and let it sit more than a day if we absolutely have to.. seems the wind always blows 50 mph, turns the alfalfa into sticks. Take some pictures of your operation if you can!


----------



## Guest (May 23, 2008)

I forgot my camera yesterday.mad:. I will take some pics today. We don't have too much of a wind problem in Indiana. At times we could use a little more. We have a dew on sometimes until 10:00 in the morning. Also we have had a lot of rain the last 2 weeks and the soil is still evaporating. When you lay your swath down it just holds the moisture in the ground which keeps the underside pretty miost. I have to flip it twice some times. 
I have only had one occasion last year where I raked ahead of the baler which was during last summers drought. It made beutiful hay!








Dry hay is a challenge in Indiana.

Radar is showing a weak line of rain coming in now. The sun is shining, with a dark bank of clouds in the west.







Maybe it will fizzle out.

HHH


----------



## JoshA (Apr 16, 2008)

Well I wish you guys luck, it rained Tuesday night, all Wednesday, and all Thursday. Which would have been absolutely perfect had I been caught up to where I ought to have been!!

Instead, I got rained out while leveling hay land (still have a few hundred acres left to level), and I hadn't gotten my barley (cereal silage) seeded yet!









Haying won't start in this area for about a month..... some dairies may get going in 2 weeks, in an attempt to get 2.5 cuts, but most guys still won't be in the field for 4-6 weeks. I hope to be in 3-4.


----------



## JD4755 (Apr 17, 2008)

Just got a phone call, the swathers start rolling monday or tuesday, gonna shoot for early dairy hay


----------



## Guest (May 24, 2008)

They had 1.5 inches west and south of me. At the home place we had some sprinkles and once it just barely covered the back deck. Where two of the fields are it might of had a touch more, but didn't see anything but a couple of drops in the rain guage. It amounted to heavy dew so it should be fine. But they did move Monday's rain nights rain up to Sunday night. I was hoping to sneak in Monday mid-day in to finish up.

Hi JoshA,

I guess I would always opt for rain as having no rain, but it can tighten a schedule up. Good luck with getting your barley planted and field leveled. You have some nice pics. I can't imagine hay fields the size of those in Canada and JD4755's in Colorado. I seen on FP you got a new 7030 series.Keep them coming.

Hi JD4755,

Keep your pics coming also. I like to see those Deere swathers running. 
Not to many SP swathers around these parts and when do you don't see Deeres.







Mostly NH and Hesstons.

Well I am heading out to start the raking. It is a small op so I have a rotary and JD bar rake. I will get some pics today.

HHH


----------



## Guest (May 27, 2008)

Part of first cut is finished. Rain has held off and we got all we had cut in the barn.







I had a tough time getting some to dry down.








I posted some pics in the Photo Catagory from today. I will post more later. Here is one of the fields. First cut of first year alfalfa/orchard grass mixed.


----------



## Guest (May 27, 2008)




----------



## daveandjess (May 27, 2008)

We got about 300 put up this Mem Day wkend in south central Indiana. I think we were the only brave souls to try it. Turned out fine though, getting the last in the barn late Sun before rains yesterday. Anyone else in southern Indiana with any luck?


----------



## JoshA (Apr 16, 2008)

HHH, I'm with you on the rain. Unfortunately the weather never co-operates with our first cut, dry-down in this area is anywhere from 3-7 days without rain!

For dry hay I like to widen my swath right out to 7' from the mower, then if the weather is looking good, I like to rake 2 rows together on the third day, then bale on the 4th or 5th day.

But since the weather rarely works in my favor, we've tried to make the switch to do our first cutting 100% silage, minus the grasses.

To be honest, I don't think I have any hay fields bigger than 80 acres, and most of them are much smaller patches....

Only 4 out of my total 14-15 (hay)fields this year are 80 acres, the rest are mostly in the 60, 40, 30 acre range.

Yes, got another green one. Neighbor's are wondering what happened to us. Used to run all blue, playfully razzing all our neighbors who run green, now it looks like we're going green.

Great pictures, I enjoyed them so much I looked at them both here AND on FP!







What did you use to cut with? Who are you marketing your bales to?



Hoosier Hay Man said:


> It is a small op so I have a rotary and JD bar rake.


Well for a so-called "small op", you have nice raking equipment!








I'd like to run a rotary, or a bar rake, but it's too costly. Instead I just run a cheapish wheel rake, and try not to use it much.


----------



## JoshA (Apr 16, 2008)

Welcome to the forum daveandjess, what shape/size bales did you do? Glad the weather co-operated with you.


----------



## Guest (May 28, 2008)

Hi JoshA,

I run an older Kuhn which I add some new parts to once in a while. I put all new tines on this year. It does a nice job of making a fluffy windrow. I would like to trade up to a new one soon. The Deere is an older one as well. It is mechanically good and has been repainted but I just don't like the fact it will rope the hay if it has some moisture in it and if you wait until it is dry enough it won't rope and you lose leaves. I would like to try a wheel rake sometime.

I will try to post some pics of mowing with the 489 Haybine. My brother posted some pics of it in the Photo forum. I set it at full width on the haybine as well.

Welcome to HayTalk daveandjess,

Glad to here you got it all in before the rain. I made 500 on Sunday and had to finish the last 150 on Monday. The moisture was starting to scare me a little so we parked the baler and took our chances we could get it done before the rain came in on Monday. We made it and did flip it again with the rake mid morning and baled it at 1:00. 
Post some pics when you get a chance. Beautiful country down there.

HHH


----------

