# Dry down temps



## RockyAcres (Jul 8, 2013)

Aside from the temperature, we've got a really nice forecast predicted for the next few days so I'm considering knocking down a few acres of a grass mix (mostly Timothy) field. Just wondering if anyone has any strong opinions against doing it since the high temp is predicted to be 71 degrees. Am I going to have a hard time getting it dry or will the wind and low humidity offset the low temps ? I'll be using a mower/conditioner and will probably ted at least once. I've never cut before June, but the grass looks good.


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## Teslan (Aug 20, 2011)

What do you consider low humidity? I know here it would take awhile to dry at just 71 degrees even with wind. Maybe a week or so, but then I don't ted.


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## Vol (Jul 5, 2009)

Are the skies predicted to be cloudless?

Regards, Mike


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## Fossil02818 (May 31, 2010)

Bright sunshine, 30-40% humidity and a brisk breeze might help get it dry with a tedder in 3-4 days. We've taken advantage of early windows in the past during similar conditions to what you describe. The key is to only cut as much as you're willing to lose. Place lots of small bets unless you're really confident or desperate! Also, you can't start growing second crop until the first cut is done.


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## RockyAcres (Jul 8, 2013)

Humidity should be 40-60% with a 10-12mph breeze. Mostly sunny with some AM clouds on Weds and Thurs, although now they've dropped their high temp predictions to 68.

You make a good point Fossil, being neither confident or desperate, there's really no reason to push it. Maybe I'll just open the field with a few laps as an experiment. I've never baled with a coat on before, so it may be a whole new experience!!


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## Teslan (Aug 20, 2011)

So 40-60% humidity is low for you? If it were that high here I would pull my hair out trying to make hay. Even if it were 90 degrees. .


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## hog987 (Apr 5, 2011)

RockyAcres said:


> Humidity should be 40-60% with a 10-12mph breeze. Mostly sunny with some AM clouds on Weds and Thurs, although now they've dropped their high temp predictions to 68.
> 
> That sounds like a lot of our summer days. We get hay dry here all the time. Before I got my cab tractor I baled a lot of hay with a coat on. When its cooler you would be surprised at how much the wind helps dry hay.
> 
> You make a good point Fossil, being neither confident or desperate, there's really no reason to push it. Maybe I'll just open the field with a few laps as an experiment. I've never baled with a coat on before, so it may be a whole new experience!!


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## 8350HiTech (Jul 26, 2013)

Teslan said:


> So 40-60% humidity is low for you? If it were that high here I would pull my hair out trying to make hay. Even if it were 90 degrees. .


No, you would just need to use a tedder and a rake


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## Flacer22 (Oct 31, 2009)

Right or wrong I'm pretty close to you and saw same thing u did. I dropped about half my hay today so guess we will see looks like no rain all way till Wednesday I plan to Ted couple of times.


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## RockyAcres (Jul 8, 2013)

Well... for those who are curious, hay will in fact dry in 50-60 degree weather. Took 4 days, tedding on the 2nd and 3rd days. Yield was pathetic (around 3/4 ton per acre) but at least I learned something.


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## CaseIH84 (Jun 16, 2013)

RockyAcres said:


> Well... for those who are curious, hay will in fact dry in 50-60 degree weather. Took 4 days, tedding on the 2nd and 3rd days. Yield was pathetic (around 3/4 ton per acre) but at least I learned something.


We have made hay on our farm for the last several years in May. I have mowed hay several times with a coat on. Temps don't scare us like humidity. If it is going to be dry with wind then we will cut. Try to make hay when it is ready and not for yield as much. We would have diffently cut this week if not so busy doing custom silage work.


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## Flacer22 (Oct 31, 2009)

RockyAcres said:


> Well... for those who are curious, hay will in fact dry in 50-60 degree weather. Took 4 days, tedding on the 2nd and 3rd days. Yield was pathetic (around 3/4 ton per acre) but at least I learned something.


As I mentioned I was right there with ya and I had same results about 3/4 ton an acre actually I think was too dry when I baled it and lost a little as baler wouldn't pick the fine short stems up. I tedded 2 times once day after as ground was pretty wet when I mowed and once following day as it was sunny. My small sqs were reading 6 to 11 percent at 65 lbs bales. Important part was that all the hay I made never saw my barn went right from field to cuatmers at darn near same price I sold hay out of barn in January!!


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## hay wilson in TX (Jan 28, 2009)

IF you will be using a tedder figure a fair rule of thumb is loosing 5% of dry matter every time you move the hay while on the ground. Ted two times = 10% loss in bales. then another 5% with each raking.

I have cut both with a conventional mower and a Mower conditioner. The conventional mower was left out flat for 2 days and then raked. The MoCo hay was dropped in a windrow. The hay dropped in a windrow was ready to bale at least one day later than the hay left out flat.

I took the windrow forming doors of my NH 411 Disk cutting with rubber Roller conditioning. That hay cured about the same time as the unconditioned hay cut with a 7 ft disk mower. Take the swath board off the disk mower and it was cured even quicker.

Drop the NH 411 hay in a wide ( 5 ft ) swath cured faster than the simple mower. Modified the NH 411 to kick out an 8 ft swath and the hay dries even faster.

Here I see a high humidity in the 80% range and a minimum humidity in the 40% down to 30% range.

our Academic friends tell us we can loose half or more of the hay's moisture the first day if spread out full width, IF the sun is shining. ON the HAY.

To save leaves I rake at first light of day.

To save leaves I bale as the humidity goes below 70% HUMIDITY measured next to the windrow.

We can still have the hay wet with dew with the humidity measured at eye level. We need to be able to read the humidity down next to the windrow.


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## southwind (Mar 25, 2012)

What are you using to measure humidity down at the windrow? The only tester I have is the New Holland Moisture tester you use with a 5 gal. bucket of hay.


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## hay wilson in TX (Jan 28, 2009)

Teslan said:


> So 40-60% humidity is low for you? If it were that high here I would pull my hair out trying to make hay. Even if it were 90 degrees. .


Pan Evaporation is the key to drying down hay.

Looking at a reasonable 2.3 T/A With a wide swath my chart suggest a total of 0.53 "of forecast pan evaporation but for a windrow expect the hay be be dried enough to bale after a total of 2.17" of accumulated Pan Evaporation.

To get this I used a demonstration graph from Cornell's Booklet Silage & Hay Preservative by Pitt.

Chapter 2 Preservation of HAY Figure 12 on page 26. Total pan evaporationn (TPE) required to dry alfalfa from 80% to 20% moisture content as dependent on crop; yielde and narrowing of the swath.

I had to change the TPE from metric to inches and eye ball in the expected percentage of cut for the swath width, I copied on a copier using graph paper their graph. Then I built a chart showing the expected yield, Forecast TPEs, and swath widths.

It all may not be super accurate but it is good enough considering.

Wisconsin's Dan Undersander used this same chart in a number of presentations, designed to demonstrate how much better a wide swath is than a narrow windrow.

Cornell will send you a copy of the Text for roughly $15.

Their chapter on curing hay is a treasure chest of planning factors.


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