# What to pay land owner for field hay



## Gogetter (Jun 27, 2016)

Hello to all. What is rate to pay land owner for harvesting hay from his fields? A neighbor sold his dairy herd and I an interested in harvesting the hay. What should I offer him? The fields had only manure spread on them and are ideal to me. Flat and close by. Should I offer $ per acre or per bale? I make small squares 35/ 40 lbs and 4x4 soft core bales. Any thoughts?


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## stack em up (Mar 7, 2013)

Average cash rent per acre is the only way to do it.


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## PaulN (Mar 4, 2014)

It would be worth more than the going rate of bare cropland because it already has an established crop growing on it, and it has at least some fertility. A neighbor of mine just did that about 10 days ago. This was a grass/alfalfa mix, and he paid him $100/ton. I myself pay neighbors $15/bale for meadow hay, 4x5's.


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## Gogetter (Jun 27, 2016)

Thanks for the thoughts. Happy hay making fellas.


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## r82230 (Mar 1, 2016)

Are you going to put fertilizer on?

If so factor that into the price, if not factor that into the price. For a reference point, each ton of hay can remove 48-50 units of K and 8-10 units of Phos.

So you could figure like this:

2 ton of hay removed equates to 100 units of K (if using 0-0-60, 100 / 60 = 167# needed to replace what was removed), 20 units of Phos (if using 11-52-0, 20 / 52 = 38# needed to replace what was removed).

Big difference in pricing I do believe. 

Larry


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## 8350HiTech (Jul 26, 2013)

PaulN said:


> It would be worth more than the going rate of bare cropland because it already has an established crop growing on it, and it has at least some fertility. A neighbor of mine just did that about 10 days ago. This was a grass/alfalfa mix, and he paid him $100/ton. I myself pay neighbors $15/bale for meadow hay, 4x5's.


I disagree. It might be more desirable to the person trying to rent it but it doesn't actually change the cash rent value. Maybe it should and it might depend on the area but if an area with competition then it's a bid now and figure out your crop later situation. Without soil tests (or at least some familiarity with what prior crops there looked like) I wouldn't want to assume too much about fertility.


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## gradyjohn (Jul 17, 2012)

Gogetter said:


> Hello to all. What is rate to pay land owner for harvesting hay from his fields? A neighbor sold his dairy herd and I an interested in harvesting the hay. What should I offer him? The fields had only manure spread on them and are ideal to me. Flat and close by. Should I offer $ per acre or per bale? I make small squares 35/ 40 lbs and 4x4 soft core bales. Any thoughts?


Contact you county extension office They should have averages for your area.


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## Farmerbrown2 (Sep 25, 2018)

I say a lot depends on area competition for ground if there is competition. I know of some areas within 10 air miles of me land owners would just be glad if someone mowed their fields once a year..


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## stack em up (Mar 7, 2013)

Farmerbrown2 said:


> I say a lot depends on area competition for ground if there is competition. I know of some areas within 10 air miles of me land owners would just be glad if someone mowed their fields once a year..


In my eyes, it seems like a lot of money left laying on the table.


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## Tim/South (Dec 12, 2011)

Farmerbrown2 said:


> I say a lot depends on area competition for ground if there is competition. I know of some areas within 10 air miles of me land owners would just be glad if someone mowed their fields once a year..


I do not pay rent on any of my hay ground. I have improved every one and they look great. The landowners are thrilled.
We get calls every year for someone wanting us to cut their "hay". They just want someone to clean up junky weeds and not pay to have it shredded. Off topic I know.
There is no way I would pay rent by the bale on leased land in our area. I would pay per acre if I rented a producing field.
I have 2 different friends paying $5 per roll on established leased hay ground this year. Both say it is their last year doing that. Both have lost their rear after chemical fertilizing.


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## JD3430 (Jan 1, 2012)

If we're talking simple, vacant open fields, like I believe the OP is, some people pay me hundreds or even thousands to pull one of my 15' mowers over their fields for hours on end, and I'm happy to take their money and give them a nice looking field cut in return.

Then I introduce them to the concept of free mowing and I keep the hay.

They usually opt for the free mowing and I keep the hay 

I do have one woman who runs an HOA and pays me $1000 bucks for 6 hrs of mowing. Easy money. Check arrives next day. I might just forget about telling her about hay.


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## JD3430 (Jan 1, 2012)

Tim/South said:


> I do not pay rent on any of my hay ground. I have improved every one and they look great. The landowners are thrilled.
> We get calls every year for someone wanting us to cut their "hay". They just want someone to clean up junky weeds and not pay to have it shredded. Off topic I know.
> There is no way I would pay rent by the bale on leased land in our area. I would pay per acre if I rented a producing field.
> I have 2 different friends paying $5 per roll on established leased hay ground this year. Both say it is their last year doing that. Both have lost their rear after chemical fertilizing.


I did pay one time. What a stupid mistake. 
They should be paying me.


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## 8350HiTech (Jul 26, 2013)

Tim/South said:


> I do not pay rent on any of my hay ground. I have improved every one and they look great. The landowners are thrilled.
> We get calls every year for someone wanting us to cut their "hay". They just want someone to clean up junky weeds and not pay to have it shredded. Off topic I know.
> There is no way I would pay rent by the bale on leased land in our area. I would pay per acre if I rented a producing field.
> I have 2 different friends paying $5 per roll on established leased hay ground this year. Both say it is their last year doing that. Both have lost their rear after chemical fertilizing.


Only paying $5 and losing their rear? Ouch. Ouch. Something is very wrong there.


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## somedevildawg (Jun 20, 2011)

8350HiTech said:


> Only paying $5 and losing their rear? Ouch. Ouch. Something is very wrong there.


NPK/herbicides/insecticides/lime inputs....


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## 8350HiTech (Jul 26, 2013)

somedevildawg said:


> NPK/herbicides/insecticides/lime inputs....


Also within an hour of the best markets in Pennsylvania and surrounding states and within an hour of ground renting for at least six times (conservatively) more than the equivalent of $5 per bale. I mean it's great for anyone who can get it for free, why not do that, but the idea of losing their rear at what is probably $50/acre cash rent is completely out of whack for a good chunk of Pennsylvania.


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## JD3430 (Jan 1, 2012)

In my area, the mushroom industry throws rent prices on their ear.


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## stack em up (Mar 7, 2013)

somedevildawg said:


> NPK/herbicides/insecticides/lime inputs....


If you aren't at least getting your money back on inputs it's time to do something else. If it can't produce enough to cover the what it costs to get it to produce, its better left untouched. Pasture it.


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## slowzuki (Mar 8, 2011)

We farm quite a bit of mined out ground, the costs to fix the fertility are incredible. 2000 lbs an acre of potash would be a good start.

You want to hope you have a chicken house nearby.


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## somedevildawg (Jun 20, 2011)

8350HiTech said:


> Also within an hour of the best markets in Pennsylvania and surrounding states and within an hour of ground renting for at least six times (conservatively) more than the equivalent of $5 per bale. I mean it's great for anyone who can get it for free, why not do that, but the idea of losing their rear at what is probably $50/acre cash rent is completely out of whack for a good chunk of Pennsylvania.


He's in Alabama.....probably as poor a ground as we have in Georgia, and in the Deep South where bugs and drought reign supreme. We also can get 4-5 cuttings, so you could be around 16 bales pa or $80 per acre.....I can't make that work out to my advantage. $50 is average per acre cost. My average input on that same land is $300-400 pa.


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## somedevildawg (Jun 20, 2011)

I applied NPK yesterday, $94 pa, will be spraying for bugs today and probably 2-3 more times this year...poultry houses are a great way to build the land up, but they’ve figured out the pricing, it’s no longer cost effective....


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## Tim/South (Dec 12, 2011)

8350HiTech said:


> Only paying $5 and losing their rear? Ouch. Ouch. Something is very wrong there.


It depends on what a roll of hay sells for in an area and how many rolls per acre a Bahia/ mix grass hayfield produces. Those who have tried it here at $5 per roll have never done so a second year.


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## stack em up (Mar 7, 2013)

Tim/South said:


> It depends on what a roll of hay sells for in an area and how many rolls per acre a Bahia/ mix grass hayfield produces. Those who have tried it here at $5 per roll have never done so a second year.


That is just nuts. We have guys here renting road ditches to cut for hay, up to $100/mile. And now the landlords figure on that income.


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## PaulN (Mar 4, 2014)

Tim/South said:


> I do not pay rent on any of my hay ground. I have improved every one and they look great. The landowners are thrilled.
> We get calls every year for someone wanting us to cut their "hay". They just want someone to clean up junky weeds and not pay to have it shredded. Off topic I know.


Around here, if you tried to get hay ground rent free, you would be out of business before you even started. Even with these low corn & soybean prices, we still have people fighting over cropland!


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## Tim/South (Dec 12, 2011)

PaulN said:


> Around here, if you tried to get hay ground rent free, you would be out of business before you even started. Even with these low corn & soybean prices, we still have people fighting over cropland!


No crops grown around here anymore. Very few farmers. The last family that actually row cropped quit doing so 10 years ago.
Any ground will not take care of itself. Nature will reclaim it shortly.
Agriculture property taxes are cheap in our state, we are an agriculture based state. It is not like land owners need cash rent to pay taxes.


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## Modirt (Nov 3, 2019)

Was all set to write a long winded summary of my situation here, then realized my situation where I live doesn't apply to the OP. What goes on up at the farm 100 miles from here is closer, but even that gets whacky. What we would expect from a large hay field is different than what we are doing for a tenant that is supposed to come in and bale small fields to clean up the grass. That part is free to him and glad to see it go. And that is two different situations, same owner and tenant with land across the fence on the same farm. It gets whacky.

But in his case, figure what about 25% of the value of the hay crop is and either offer that amount to him in cash or hay, and you won't be far off.

If this is long term, will it be you or both of you sharing the expense of fertility? If you, I'd want to enter into a a situation along the lines of at least a one year notice....and maybe 2, so you don't pay to get the soil up to test, then get the rug yanked out from under you. What makes sense and what doesn't depends a great deal on the state of fertility, as what it produces and what you can get off it depends a great deal on the state of fertility.


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