# Brush hogging. Out of my comfort zone.



## Lostin55 (Sep 21, 2013)

We had a prospective customer call who needed their hay field cut, baled, and stacked urgently. Right away if possible.

We have a company policy, and for good reason, to inspect any new customer field.

Well, it hasn't been cut since last year, hasn't been watered in four years, and I can't cut it with a clear conscience. The hay is grass, weeds, and remnant alfalfa. It is so far over ripe that I can imagine a mushroom wouldn't like it.

The option that I see is to brush hog the field.

I have a 7 foot JD and the tractor, and a hand that wants hours.

Here is the issue. I only use the brush hog to mow along field roads and a weed patch here or there. I have never hired it out and have no idea what to charge. I have read several threads on several forums..... hourly? By the acre? By the job? I have more questions than answers.

I will post a pic of the field.


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## Thorim (Jan 19, 2015)

What do they plan to do with the hay? Feed it? and if so what to?? . How many acres?


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## IHCman (Aug 27, 2011)

If you bushhog it, you'll still have all the trash to deal with next year. I'd cut, rake, and round bale it just to get it off the field to clean it up for next year. That hay can't be any worse than CRP hay. Cows will eat it.


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## JD3430 (Jan 1, 2012)

I get calls like that, too. 
if it has woody or stickers or toxic invasives in it, bush hog it.
If it's pretty clean, cow hay


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## Lostin55 (Sep 21, 2013)

15 acres. They own two goats. They are both foreign, and more or less new to the area.
Their primary concern is about snakes in the tall grass and not hay.


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## Lostin55 (Sep 21, 2013)

It isn't worth it for me to run equipment up there either, and I don't have a round baler. If it was a decent field it would be ok, it had been neglected.


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## JD3430 (Jan 1, 2012)

If your going to bid it, bid it high since there's a lot of "unknowns" in those fields. I'd charge by the job first time. If it goes well and you want to keep doing it, switch to hourly
I do about $30,000 of contract and call in bush hogging per year and I charge $90/hr for the 15' batwing.


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## Lostin55 (Sep 21, 2013)

I called and visited with them. I offered them several options. Some of those options I will make money on and some I won't. I hate to see them waste money with no chance of return.
I mentioned that we could swath it or Bush hog it. I also mentioned that they could rent it out for grazing and make a little return on it, rather than paying me. 
I offered free advice that was probably worth the purchase price. 
It isn't a good enough price of ground to make any money, in its current condition. I just gave them every option that I could think of to get the result that they wanted. At the end of the day, I will have offered them some solutions and maybe a plan forward, and I have done my good deed for the day.
Next week I am going to go visit with them in person as I had someone else go check the field and send me pictures. I won't make any money on the deal but sometimes money isn't the reason that I do things.


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## Thorim (Jan 19, 2015)

IHCman said:


> If you bushhog it, you'll still have all the trash to deal with next year. I'd cut, rake, and round bale it just to get it off the field to clean it up for next year. That hay can't be any worse than CRP hay. Cows will eat it.


I agree with IHCman about trying to get it off the field, if you can better in the long run imho. What ever you do at least your giving them some options. Even if you do large sq or even small squares better in a bail then helping continue the cycle junk hay


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## JD3430 (Jan 1, 2012)

IHCman said:


> If you bushhog it, you'll still have all the trash to deal with next year. I'd cut, rake, and round bale it just to get it off the field to clean it up for next year. That hay can't be any worse than CRP hay. Cows will eat it.


When I ran into that situation recently with what was a field neglected for about 7 years, I bush hogged it, then brought my rotary rake over and raked the trash into windrows. Used the loader bucket to push the windrows lengthwise to the lower edge of the field. 
I was concerned it would push the rake to hard, but it worked much better than I thought it would. 
That was last fall. I have since cut the field 3x with bush hog. I believe it will produce mushroom grade round bales next season.


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## Teslan (Aug 20, 2011)

Are those thistles in the picture? Need to at least bush hog those. If the rest is just grass could they wait until spring and just burn it? If it's a fairly good stand of grass that is keeping other or more weeds growing I don't know if I would recommend cutting at all? But then it is late in the season. Has the grass dropped its seeds yet? What are their plans going forward? Many times here it's better just to let the grasses grow in the spring and not do anything until fall. Because if you cut early in the year and don't get much or any moisture for the grass to come back you might just grow a crop of worse weeds and start a bad cycle of producing weed seeds.


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## Vol (Jul 5, 2009)

Lostin55 said:


> 15 acres. They own two goats. They are both foreign, and more or less new to the area.
> Their primary concern is about snakes in the tall grass and not hay.


Did you tell them Wyoming doesn't have Cobras and Kraits ??

I would definitely bale it as some have said to start clean.....then maybe get paid to haul them off or put in a washout somewhere.

Regards, Mike


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## Lostin55 (Sep 21, 2013)

Teslan said:


> Are those thistles in the picture? Need to at least bush hog those. If the rest is just grass could they wait until spring and just burn it? If it's a fairly good stand of grass that is keeping other or more weeds growing I don't know if I would recommend cutting at all? But then it is late in the season. Has the grass dropped its seeds yet? What are their plans going forward? Many times here it's better just to let the grasses grow in the spring and not do anything until fall. Because if you cut early in the year and don't get much or any moisture for the grass to come back you might just grow a crop of worse weeds and start a bad cycle of producing weed seeds.


There is a bunch of thistle, foxtail, knapweed etc. They have irrigation water via ditch and tarp, and not a single clue how to irrigate it.
They want to have a mowed field that looks nice and doesn't attract snakes. That is their worry, not mine. They mentioned the desire to plant alfalfa in the spring. The grass, and everything else, had dropped seed. I can only imagine the seed bank is going to give them fits for a little while.

They didn't like the numbers that I was throwing out regarding the cost of rolling it under and planting alfalfa, doing soil tests, and adding fertilizer. They were shocked, I would have to say. These are not services that I offer either, so I was clear about that with them.
They are resistant to the idea of renting it out as pasture, in part because a bit of the fence is down up by the house. They were unaware that electric fence could be used on that area economically. We spoke at length regarding the options.
Burning is not an option, but I considered it. There would be no controlling one there if it got started. Of course it would be the best, and cheapest option.
I almost feel sorry for these folks. They are nice people, and have absolutely zero ag knowledge or experience. If it was twenty miles closer..........


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## Vol (Jul 5, 2009)

Well if they are that fearful of snakes then I expect that they will stew about it a bit and then decide to do something in spite of costs. You will probably hear back. Did they see a little Prairie buzzer that got them alarmed ?

Regards, Mike


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## Teslan (Aug 20, 2011)

Lostin55 said:


> There is a bunch of thistle, foxtail, knapweed etc. They have irrigation water via ditch and tarp, and not a single clue how to irrigate it.
> They want to have a mowed field that looks nice and doesn't attract snakes. That is their worry, not mine. They mentioned the desire to plant alfalfa in the spring. The grass, and everything else, had dropped seed. I can only imagine the seed bank is going to give them fits for a little while.
> 
> They didn't like the numbers that I was throwing out regarding the cost of rolling it under and planting alfalfa, doing soil tests, and adding fertilizer. They were shocked, I would have to say. These are not services that I offer either, so I was clear about that with them.
> ...


Well at least they want to do something with it. We had some people years ago buy 30 acres across the road from my parents. Thought they were going to build a house and have a "ranch" They let the weeds grow crazy. Finally they decided it wasn't for them and my dad bought it from them. Weeds as high as the tractor cab. Still dealing with that seed bank today. 22 years later.


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## Lostin55 (Sep 21, 2013)

Vol said:


> Well if they are that fearful of snakes then I expect that they will stew about it a bit and then decide to do something in spite of costs. You will probably hear back. Did they see a little Prairie buzzer that got them alarmed ?
> 
> Regards, Mike


Not that I am aware of. They mentioned snakes in every conversation we have had with them. My wife said that he is Russian, and I know that she has a PA phone number. I am not sure where she is originally from. There really shouldn't be many snakes right where they are. Maybe an occasional rattler but even those should be few and far between. I get the impression that they have lived somewhere that it was a substantial issue.


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## somedevildawg (Jun 20, 2011)

They may have been transplants from down here somewhere.....do they talk kinda slow and use yall a lot? Tell em snakes are good rodent control......
Good luck, sounds like you have the right aim.....maybe they will "see the light"


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## Three44s (May 21, 2016)

They need to get to know their snakes ........ the good ones from the not so good ones.

You gave them a dose of reality ....... the true cost of owning a patch of your own "paradise".

But as far as bush hogging goes, all that material will still be there and then what?

I think it would still behove someone to mow and haul it off.

Who does it is another matter.

Some guy with more time than sense with a $2500 haybine and a little cow herd!

These folks I get the sense will always be behind the $$$ curve and they are too far away for you to mess with on the ground...... IMO

Anyway, best of luck with them as they got a *lot* to learn!

Three 44s


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## Lostin55 (Sep 21, 2013)

As promised, I went up and visited with them. They wanted all of it cut, over the ditch banks, along the drive way, everything. There was a rapidly expanding stand of aspen trees in the field. There were limbs throughout the edges of the "field". I wouldn't touch it with my swather. I offered to cut it with the brush hog, which was my gut instinct in the first place. 
I bid the job and they accepted. I thought I would lose my rear on the deal if I wasn't careful. I hauled the equipment up and got started until one of my hands was available to take over. She knocked it out that day before 3 in the afternoon. 
The flat rate bid price ended up right at $70/hr not counting transportation. Factoring that and my time it was more like $55/hr. Not to bad I guess.
Now, about those snakes..... They exist. They were there, plural. My hand jumped off the tractor to move a large branch and part of that branch moved, as did she. She said that she ran over several snakes that day. The water snakes mostly got away and the rattlers, not so much.


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## Vol (Jul 5, 2009)

Lostin55 said:


> As promised, I went up and visited with them. They wanted all of it cut, over the ditch banks, along the drive way, everything. There was a rapidly expanding stand of aspen trees in the field. There were limbs throughout the edges of the "field". I wouldn't touch it with my swather. I offered to cut it with the brush hog, which was my gut instinct in the first place.
> I bid the job and they accepted. I thought I would lose my rear on the deal if I wasn't careful. I hauled the equipment up and got started until one of my hands was available to take over. She knocked it out that day before 3 in the afternoon.
> The flat rate bid price ended up right at $70/hr not counting transportation. Factoring that and my time it was more like $55/hr. Not to bad I guess.
> Now, about those snakes..... They exist. They were there, plural. My hand jumped off the tractor to move a large branch and part of that branch moved, as did she. She said that she ran over several snakes that day. The water snakes mostly got away and the rattlers, not so much.


Well 55, did you add some for your wildlife control feature on your tractor?

Regards, Mike


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## JD3430 (Jan 1, 2012)

Lostin55,

Funny I was cutting a new "iffy" customers "field" today, too.

I wasnt 30 seconds into the fields edge and I hit 2 steel pipes!! I thought "here we go..."

After that it mostly went fine and I got about 20+ acres cut. I drove in reverse much or the time when in those areas where you suspect objects in the field.

Now I have a new customer (hopefully for life) and a field I can mostly trust with my tires and mower.


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## RockmartGA (Jun 29, 2011)

My advice to folks like this would be to find them a good, used tractor in the 50-60 hp range and a six foot bush hog. Even if they find someone to cut the hay off the main field, they still need to maintain the fringe areas.


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