# Windrow formation--raking thoughts and goals



## reede (May 17, 2010)

What are y'all trying to accomplish when you are raking prior to baling? Apart from the obvious of putting hay in a configuration that is easier to get into the baler, what are you looking for? A tall, fluffy windrow? As wide or as narrow as possible?

I realize that this will be somewhat dependent on crop, equipment, and philosophy behind making the hay. Just thought I would get everybody's thoughts on what you really like to see when you are raking hay.

Reed


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## mlappin (Jun 25, 2009)

Make mine 4-4.5 feet wide for the round baler, if I can make em tall and fluffy as well so much the better.


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## Smoothy (Apr 26, 2015)

By us I try more for taller. I'd rather have wider for baling but we have heavy ground and the more on that ground usually more moisture. I get em as vertical as a can but I also like to see into the windrow even in heavy hay so I'm not trapping moisture. Sounds good here getting it done right all the time is another story!


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## Josh in WNY (Sep 7, 2010)

In our area, hay has to be laid in a wide swath to get it to dry down quick enough to bale for hay. Other than taking these wide swaths and getting them narrow enough to run into the baler's pickup, the windrow is also used to help get more hay up off the ground, fluffed and exposed to the wind in order to dry the last little bit of moisture out for baling. I also usually try to rake when the dew is just burning off so that the hay is still a little tough and doesn't leaf loss is kept to a minimum.

I'm actually going to try something a little different this year since I have been getting into doing more round bales than small squares. For the small squares, what I really wanted to see was a nice straight edge to one side of the windrow. I didn't really worry about the overall width or height. This straight edge allows me to put that edge on the outside of the pickup of the small square baler - which is something that is supposed to help with bale consistency and not have to worry about the other edge which is usually not straight. This doesn't always work, but it's what I try for.

Now that I'm looking at doing more round bales than small squares, I'm thinking I'd like to have a straight edge to both sides of the windrow as well as have the windrow be 4 to 5 feet wide (just a little wider than the round baler) with relatively consistent height. I'm going to try a couple things to get this, so we'll see what works. My first option is to rake everything in single windrows with the tandem hitch NH rakes we have (as we usually do). I'll then take the extra NH rake and kick one of the windrows back in so that I get the straight edge on both sides and double the windrows at the same time. If the double windrows work well, I think I might try to make some kind of curtain (like is used on the rotary rakes) to help make a double windrow from the tandem rake hitch directly.


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## Gearclash (Nov 25, 2010)

Here, I prefer to rake for the widest, fluffiest windrow possible. I like to see at least a five foot wide windrow after raking, regardless of the baler. We usually need all the solar exposure we can get. We do not tedder. The swath from the mower is about 1/2 the width of the cutter bar. I prefer to rake the morning of the day we bale, after the dew is off, alfalfa before the leaves are dry, grass after the leaves are dry. Raking two mower swaths on one deposits the windrow on dry soil which aids the final dry down.


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## reede (May 17, 2010)

I ted immediately after cutting. Then, being influenced by HayWilson, I typically rake into windrows a day ahead of baling. At this stage, there is still a little moisture in the hay to come out, so I'm raking into the widest windrow that will fit into the pickup on the baler. Changed balers before last year, and the new one has a wider pickup, so that helps on that account.

Windrows aren't as tall and fluffy as they used to be, but more leaves stay on the hay, and I can't help but think the baler feeds better with a little more even spread of hay going in across the pickup.


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## Fossil02818 (May 31, 2010)

As any of my fields begin to get thin spots the biggest challenge in raking is to maintain a consistent size windrow. I've found that many problems with bale shape and density are caused by inconsistent windrow size. Its easy to get consistent windrows in dense first cut, but, can be very difficult with thin yields like we got with last year's drought around here. I had some strange looking windrow contours in one field but at least the windrow size and shape were consistent. just my .02 cents on raking.


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## somedevildawg (Jun 20, 2011)

For me, windrow formation is subject to change at any given field largely dependent on weather, pan evaporation and dryness of the hay being raked and when said hay will be baled....like Reede, I kick the grass immediately after cutting.....ideally I would like to have two twin windrows with the grass in the middle of the windrows evenly distributed so as to give a uniform feed across the pickup.....that ain't always possible however. Sometimes the wind may play a factor, larger fluffy windrows will blow across the field easily....there are times I rake with no intention of baling the windrow, it will be turned the next day anyway, that somewhat limits your ability to "form" windrows so you have to deal with what you have....like everything else in the haymaking world, it's very dynamic


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## reede (May 17, 2010)

Fossil02818 said:


> As any of my fields begin to get thin spots the biggest challenge in raking is to maintain a consistent size windrow. I've found that many problems with bale shape and density are caused by inconsistent windrow size. Its easy to get consistent windrows in dense first cut, but, can be very difficult with thin yields like we got with last year's drought around here. I had some strange looking windrow contours in one field but at least the windrow size and shape were consistent. just my .02 cents on raking.


We had a pretty dry spell last summer, too, so some pretty thin hay harvested at that point. When you are merging windrows, it sure is frustrating to do it with a v rake. Or any center delivery rake system, I imagine. Then you are only moving the windrow half the width of the rake. I really want a rotary rake, and am pretty sure, because of this, that I want a twin rotor side delivery type.


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## somedevildawg (Jun 20, 2011)

Purty sure you will like it.....mine allows for two small windrows or one larger left hand delivery of windrow. Very handy...


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## r82230 (Mar 1, 2016)

reede said:


> When you are merging windrows, it sure is frustrating to do it with a v rake. Or any center delivery rake system, I imagine. Then you are only moving the windrow half the width of the rake. I really want a rotary rake, and am pretty sure, because of this, that I want a twin rotor side delivery type.


One of the reasons I'm taking delivery on a twin rotary, while looking at the tail lights of the V-rake as its leaving my place this week.

Larry


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## mlappin (Jun 25, 2009)

Josh in WNY said:


> Now that I'm looking at doing more round bales than small squares, I'm thinking I'd like to have a straight edge to both sides of the windrow as well as have the windrow be 4 to 5 feet wide (just a little wider than the round baler) with relatively consistent height. I'm going to try a couple things to get this, so we'll see what works. My first option is to rake everything in single windrows with the tandem hitch NH rakes we have (as we usually do). I'll then take the extra NH rake and kick one of the windrows back in so that I get the straight edge on both sides and double the windrows at the same time. If the double windrows work well, I think I might try to make some kind of curtain (like is used on the rotary rakes) to help make a double windrow from the tandem rake hitch directly.


My cousin has a left and a right for his tandem hitch, works really well for round baling, two straight edges that looks like they were snapped with a chalk line.


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## Josh in WNY (Sep 7, 2010)

mlappin said:


> My cousin has a left and a right for his tandem hitch, works really well for round baling, two straight edges that looks like they were snapped with a chalk line.


Yeah, I know that can be done. The problem is that if the hay is too thick, neither the round baler or the small square baler can handle a double windrow and I'd be back to raking one windrow at a time. I've also never seen one of the right hand delivery rakes in our area.

I've often thought I would like to try one of the rotary rakes, but even the used ones are going for more money that I've spent on my current tandem setup. As much as I'm not a big fan of them, if a decent wheel V-rake comes along, I might take a look at it.


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## RockmartGA (Jun 29, 2011)

I think most equipment has a "sweet spot" that it likes to operate within. For example, with my square baler, windrows that are too thick gives you a miserable day of 1st gear operation with your foot on the clutch. Too thin and you can't seem to go fast enough to cram enough hay in the bale chamber, leading to uneven bales.

With my round baler, I try for the "twin twinkie roll" windrow that will fill the width of the baler. I've got an older baler so it is not quite as tolerant of heavy windrows that some of the newer balers can handle.

After twenty-five years, I still have those days when I want to get the 30-06 and put a few pieces of farm equipment out of its misery.


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