# Raking/Combining Windrows



## mstuck21 (Oct 4, 2019)

Hello everyone. I have a question in regards to raking hay ahead of the baler. For straight alfalfa I usually run this schedule if the weather cooperates:

Day 1 - Cut

Day 2 - Leave alone

Day 3 - Ted/Flip (Pequea 710)

Day 4 - Rake during the morning and bale that evening

I rake as the dew is coming off in late morning and bale as late that evening as I can to try to save as many leaves as possible but still get done. I have pushed my baling to the morning of Day 5 in heavy first cutting, but getting that long of a weather window doesn't always work out.

When I rake, I rake everything in single windrows (i.e. rake in circles, turning each individual swath over) to make sure everything keeps drying. However aside from first cutting, I generally need to rake 3 or 4 windrows together ahead of the baler that evening to make a large enough windrow for the baler (JD 336).

I don't like the idea of raking the hay for a second time, it really seems counterproductive to trying to save leaves. I have tried putting 3 to 4 windrows together right away in the morning once, but was left with a lot of uneven moisture. I currently have a JD 570 side delivery rake. I'm afraid that if I move my single windrow raking up a day, I will make too many ropes. I have a lot of interest in a small rotary rake, and I think that would allow me to rake earlier without roping but was just wanted to get a few opinions about what needs to change and how/when others combine windrows before baling.


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## 8350HiTech (Jul 26, 2013)

Rake three together first then hit it with the pequea?


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## Gearclash (Nov 25, 2010)

I second that. Rake on day 3, it gets the windrows off the wet dirt under the windrow, then hit the raked windrows with the Pequea on baling day to fluff them back up after they settle overnight. This might not always be the best strategy but I would consider it. You must have tiny windrows to begin with if you see the need to rake 3-4 on 1 to feed a 336. I'm not a fan of 3 on 1 unless somehow you are moving the middle windrow off its wet soil.


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## Trillium Farm (Dec 18, 2014)

What are you cutting with, Haybine; Discbine; Drum or sickle mower?

This matters as to when you may ted. The 710 is more of a fluffer than a tedder.


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## mstuck21 (Oct 4, 2019)

Thanks for the comments. I condition with a JD 1219. Has rubber rolls and 9 ft cut. Putting 3 together helps save a lot of passes with the baler and baling full windrows in second gear makes very consistent bales. I've tried faster gears and less hay but haven't had the same consistently in the end product.

I have a 4 basket Tedder but really like the fluffer in straight alfalfa bc it seems to be very easy on the leaves, helps to get air in the windrow and saves some color. I picked it up rather cheap too. I thought about fluffing the hay on Day 2 and using a small rotary rake on Day 3 and then putting windrows together the morning of baling not to loose all the leaves.


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## Gearclash (Nov 25, 2010)

We have had a fluffer tedder for several decades now. It is my experience that using it on day 2 of drying will be a waste of time, especially on alfalfa. They also are rather ineffective on a wide thin windrow.


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## Trillium Farm (Dec 18, 2014)

I would cut it-condition it and ted with your 4 basket tedder.

Let it sit for 1 or 2 days (depending on weather) then rake it with a rotary and let sit for 1 -2 days and then bale it. Your windrows must be thin if you need to rake them together, I'm not a fan a windrow moving especially after they have dried-up a bit, so if you must move the windrows I'd do it after the tedding when the alfalfa is still a bit moist. I prefer to keep the windrows where they are (within reason) and increase my ground speed to feed the baler, but this may not work in all places and with all situations.


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## Gearclash (Nov 25, 2010)

Trillium Farm said:


> I would cut it-condition it and ted with your 4 basket tedder.
> 
> Let it sit for 1 or 2 days (depending on weather) then rake it with a rotary and let sit for 1 -2 days and then bale it. Your windrows must be thin if you need to rake them together, I'm not a fan a windrow moving especially after they have dried-up a bit, so if you must move the windrows I'd do it after the tedding when the alfalfa is still a bit moist. *I prefer to keep the windrows where they are* (within reason) and increase my ground speed to feed the baler, but this may not work in all places and with all situations.


In this part of the world the soil is almost always wet on the surface at cutting, and not moving the windrow at some point tends to shoot your final dry down in the foot.

I am also not a big fan of teddering alfalfa unless the crop is very heavy. Alfalfa scattered all over is hard to rake. I've seen that often enough with light crop still in the swath. The 2019 hay season was a real bugger because of all the soil moisture and persistent humidity and we were forced to do some things we wouldn't normally do, and learned from them. One blunt reality about alfalfa is that no matter how many times you kick it around it will not achieve the final dry down if the humidity conditions are not right. Most often alfalfa will get down to 30% or a little less and "hang up" there.


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## Modirt (Nov 3, 2019)

To the OP, been years and years since I've done alfalfa, but back when I did......and this was about 150 miles west of you near KC, we consistently put up alfalfa by....

PIcking at least a 4 day weather window......goal was bright sun, temps in 85+ range, nice wind, and it helped if ground was fairly dry. First cutting was always dicey, but it worked out most years. 2nd and 3rd cuttings almost always found a dry weather window.

First cutting with OG or Brome + Alfalfa

Typical field size......10 acres......yielded about 120 - 60# bales per acre 1st cutting.

Day 1 - be cutting by 8AM and finished before noon (NH 479.....set to lightly crimp stems.....conditioner set to wide swath)

Day 2 - nothing

Day 3 - double rake. - NH 258 rake.....starting around 9 or 10 am as dew was about off. Rake every other windrow to the middle, then go back and double them up.....raking should be done by no later than 1 PM JD 336 baler (JD 3020) would be running by 1 PM and should be finished no later than 5 PM. I ran the 3020 in 3rd gear......about 12 - 14 flakes per bale. Crew would be hauling by 3 PM and as late as it took to finish that night.

That schedule almost always left us with green leafy hay dry enough to avoid any mold issues. Weather dependent of course, but it worked out like that 90% of the time. If I was still baling by 5 PM, humidity would go up.....moisture would start to climb as would bale weight. If what had been 60# bales got up to 70# +.....you could count on those going moldy.

2nd and 3rd cutting followed same schedule, but if we anticipated really hot dry weather, I'd make a narrow windrow with the conditioner vs. a swath. That was some nice stuff. When we fed that 3rd cutting with orchard grass stems, cows would nearly climb up in the truck to get at it. Had a sweet smell to it........was tempted a few times to eat it myself.


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