# What to do with very mature alfalfa



## FarmerCline (Oct 12, 2011)

I have a alfalfa field that has now been 45 days since 1st cut and it is beyond full bloom with a few blooms left but mostly seed pods. Never had a field get this mature and I don't think it's going to make that good of hay because almost half of the length of the stems the leaves have fallen off and it's going to be very stemmy. I don't have a market for cow hay or the option to round bale it.

I thought about maybe I could let it mature out and combine the seed to plant next year but it doesn't appear that the pods are filling out very well so I'm guessing the seed yield would be pretty low? Don't really know much about alfalfa seed production or if it would be worth trying to do.

What does everyone else do if there alfalfa gets this mature and what would the feed value be if I would bale it at this stage?


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## ARD Farm (Jul 12, 2012)

Crimp the hell out of it, bale it and sell it to horsey people or on Craigslist. Horsey folks for the most part don't know the difference between good and bad hay.

Just don't say anything. Silence is golden in the hay for sale business....

Don't sell it to anyone you know.....lol

I have the same scenario unfolding but in my case it's never been cut. At least it has some orchard grass mixed i.... and I still can't get in the field (I walked it today and it still has some somewhat wet spots.

Hay is gonna be stupid high here, I'll have no issues offing it probably for at least $4.50 a bale

In antipitation of the impending cut, I have the crimp roll tension cranked down and I'm going to cut higher than normal to take advantage of some stubble air space underneath.

Been a great year far as fuel goes. Haven't used any.


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## FarmerCline (Oct 12, 2011)

ARD Farm said:


> Crimp the hell out of it, bale it and sell it to horsey people or on Craigslist. Horsey folks for the most part don't know the difference between good and bad hay.
> 
> Just don't say anything. Silence is golden in the hay for sale business....
> 
> Don't sell it to anyone you know.....lol


 Can't and not going to do that.....don't want to risk my reputation of selling #1 hay. Most of my customers are loyal buyers and know good hay.


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## ARD Farm (Jul 12, 2012)

I won't sell mine to anyone I know and I certainly am not alluding that you should either. Interestingly, one of my regular customers that I've been selling hay to for years, I was talking with and because they are down to just about no hay, wants some of it.... It's bad forage wise here.

I'll do CL but if my regulars want it I'll tell them the downside up front and if they are still game, no issue with me. Of course it won't be 4 and a half for them, thats just for CL strangers.

Selling hay on CL is quite an eye opening experience....


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## 8350HiTech (Jul 26, 2013)

There's no way you can find someone to round or mid-size it or you don't care for it as an option?


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## FarmerCline (Oct 12, 2011)

8350HiTech said:


> There's no way you can find someone to round or mid-size it or you don't care for it as an option?


 Around here it is next to impossible to get any custom work done.


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## Nate926 (Apr 6, 2014)

You might be suprised how looks in the bale. Once you bale it if your not happy with it discount it to a price that you feel it's worth and sell it on craigslist. I am a stickler for the way my hay looks, I felt bad about my first cutting till I started selling it, and new customers I got off craigslist said it looked so much better than what they have bought in the past. I sometimes think we can be our own worse enemy when it come to seeing how good our own hay is.


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## Flacer22 (Oct 31, 2009)

Nate926 said:


> You might be suprised how looks in the bale. Once you bale it if your not happy with it discount it to a price that you feel it's worth and sell it on craigslist. I am a stickler for the way my hay looks, I felt bad about my first cutting till I started selling it, and new customers I got off craigslist said it looked so much better than what they have bought in the past. I sometimes think we can be our own worse enemy when it come to seeing how good our own hay is.


I'll 2nd that last year I about was rdy to give my hay away I was so convinced I did it all wrong till I listed it for sale on craigslist and started delivering it. When u stack hay in someone else barn you get to see what they bought before and my junk hay or so I thought made most of the crap I saw in barns look like stuff is have brush hogged. Also gained a few very loyal repeat customers. This year thought my hay was alot better and they think I'm under selling myself now ha-ha.


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## hog987 (Apr 5, 2011)

Some of my best selling hay in the past has been very mature hay. Had one field that I was convinced it was only going to be cow feed for myself ended up being my best selling horse hay. As long as you get it up green it should sell.


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## endrow (Dec 15, 2011)

That is why you should (IMO) ALWAYS have a little orchard grass mixed in the stand it saves the value of the crop when it gets old


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## Rodney R (Jun 11, 2008)

I've baled quite a bit of stuff that had the seed pods on it. The big thing is for you to be carful to NOT lose any of the leaves you have left. You have to be carful about the tedding/raking/baling time of day, and how many leaves are coming off, but as long as it does not get any rain, or a heavy dew it should be pretty green.

I don't see that you really have any other option - if you can't get it custom baled, then you have to bale it. I think for seed production you're only about halfway there. The craigslist idea doesn't sound terrible, if you don't want to sell it to any of your normal customers.

Rodney


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## mlappin (Jun 25, 2009)

endrow said:


> That is why you should (IMO) ALWAYS have a little orchard grass mixed in the stand it saves the value of the crop when it gets old


Yep, everything I'm making now is past by a month of its prime, the OG stalks are ripe and brown of course but the second cut OG came in underneath, looks pretty good in a bale actually. One other huge plus to having some kind of grass interceded with your alfalfa, heaving is greatly reduced.


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## Teslan (Aug 20, 2011)

I agree with ARD. Sell it to horsey people. I've never once had them ask for a feed analysis (which I rarely do anyways) on alfalfa. In my experience alfalfa that is too mature looks little different then alfalfa cut at the right time. Besides horsey people generally when buying alfalfa are looking for something with just more protein and feed value then grass hay. It doesn't need to be 200 rfv for horsey people. Which even mature your alfalfa should be able to beat grass hay. In this area when it gets to 3rd of 4th cutting alfalfa I always warn horsey people that it is rich stuff and to ease their horses into it or they might have trouble.


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## Coondle (Aug 28, 2013)

Seems like many haymakers in wide areas will be unable to produce hay to the standard they normally do. There will most likely be a shortage of the type of hay normally produced in your area. When hay is in short supply it is amazing the rubbish hay a hungry horse is happy to see.

Short of hay and your customers have to pay a premium or extra freight, either way their costs go up.

Consider very lightly discounting if you have to but if top-quality hay price goes through the roof, you can sell at your normal price.

But for your regulars be absolutely up front, they may not know hay but they depend on your knowledge to keep their hay supply reasonable in price, reasonable in quality and safe.

Whether they buy or not, they will appreciate your honesty. If they go to and stay with another supplier you would have lost them anyway either by being found out or by not being able to suply them in the first place.

Alternatively use CL and there will be someone somewhere that will be happy to find your hay. With any newbie, you can choose to be up front or not. Do not undersell your hay, but at the same time do not oversell. If when in the bale there is an appearance or quality issue the prospective buyer can be given a gentle heads-up and invited to inspect for themselves. Do not undersell because most horsey people do not know what they are looking at. May buy a trial shipment.

Best salvage what you can, doing nothing is not an option.

Usual price in a high-price year is better than nothing.


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## Ray 54 (Aug 2, 2014)

Horses for the most part are better without a lot of leaf on alfalfa. The leaf is where the protein is.It's needed for dairy cows to give more milk,not horses most of which are not worked.My father grew up with draft horses and wanted grain hay that was cut in the heavy dough stage.Working horses need the carbs from the grain.I know that concept is not how hay is made where most of you are,but it works here.

The leafiest in California goes to dairy cows ,the stemy but clean to the horse people,and the range cattle people fight,dry dairy cattle over the rest.


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## shortrow (Feb 21, 2012)

I sell it like it is. If it looks good and smells good, it is good. Not trying to stiff anyone.


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## mlappin (Jun 25, 2009)

Long and short of it, in the dead of winter somebody will buy it.


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## Colby (Mar 5, 2012)

Ship it to Texas cheap and I'll buy it from you


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## FarmerCline (Oct 12, 2011)

Ray 54 said:


> Horses for the most part are better without a lot of leaf on alfalfa. The leaf is where the protein is.It's needed for dairy cows to give more milk,not horses most of which are not worked.My father grew up with draft horses and wanted grain hay that was cut in the heavy dough stage.Working horses need the carbs from the grain.I know that concept is not how hay is made where most of you are,but it works here.
> 
> The leafiest in California goes to dairy cows ,the stemy but clean to the horse people,and the range cattle people fight,dry dairy cattle over the rest.


 Wish it was like that here. Most of the people here want very fine leafy alfalfa......I know their horses don't need that rich of hay but the owners are going to buy it somewhere. I do have a few customers that their horses are not lawn ornaments and are actually worked and those horses need a little good alfalfa.


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## FarmerCline (Oct 12, 2011)

Colby said:


> Ship it to Texas cheap and I'll buy it from you


 Found out last winter when I was out of hay and trying to get some from out of state that shipping hay and cheap don't belong in the same sentence. Could buy the hay at a good price but by the time I paid the freight I had a bunch of money in it.


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## Vol (Jul 5, 2009)

It has been a tough year all over for quality hay. If you can get it in a bale in a good dry condition like Rodney said, there will be plenty of buyers for it out there.....and like several of the posters mentioned, things quite often look a lot different in the bale than in the field. Your worries are pre-mature at this stage.

Regards, Mike


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## Coondle (Aug 28, 2013)

FarmerCline said:


> Found out last winter when I was out of hay and trying to get some from out of state that shipping hay and cheap don't belong in the same sentence. Could buy the hay at a good price but by the time I paid the freight I had a bunch of money in it.


When it comes to hay it is a commodity that is low value density.

Diamonds on the other hand are high value density.

Freight on a ton of hay is a relatively high proportion of the landed cost compared with the freight on a ton of diamonds.

That is why the hay this year that is not up to your usual standard will still sell and sell well compared to its quality, because for the picky and choosy to bring unblemished hay in from distant areas they have to put too many $$$$$ in to it and even more because demand for that hay has increased and its initial price has risen.

The hip pocket nerve connected through their wallet is very sensitive. Customers respond to price very swiftly.


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## hayray (Feb 23, 2009)

Everyone in my area has way over mature hay if you are dry baling so I am not really too worried about it except I am a little worried about getting enough 2nd cut up for my forage finished beef feeders since it is getting late in the growing season already for us northerners. Unless the jet shifts from a trough to a ridge later this summer I would expect a early fall which could hinder a lot of my traditional 2nd and 3rd harvest.


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## farmero (Sep 23, 2013)

Lots of good info here and I agree with all of it. Last weekend I sold a small load at auction of Ist cut alfalfa/orchard grass that got some mold and dust while it sat on a wagon. I was telling customers that is was not for horses and Also had a note on the sales bill- "Hay has some dust and mold". A couple came up to me and liked the load for their horses. I then pulled samples for them. They ended up paying 180 a ton for my hay. I deliverd to them at 25 miles away. We talked at length after unloading, They proved to be very knowlegeable on hay making and were interested in more when I make. I do run orchard grass in all my alfalfa. Most customers like it that way. edit: this post is just to illustrae how tight the hay market has become in my area.


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## Bishop (Apr 6, 2015)

Mature alfalfa can still be over 12% protein, which is better than most grasses. Cut it and bale it up, just make sure you get the leaves.


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## FarmerCline (Oct 12, 2011)

Well I went ahead and cut it today. Was going to cut it earlier in the week and then they changed the weather to a couple days of 50-60% rain so I didn't cut.....never got the rain. Now since I cut today there is rain in the forecast for tomorrow night and Saturday. The weather has been like this for the past two weeks.....good chances of rain but we never got it and they change the forecast by the hour. We really do need the rain bad so if this hay gets wet it won't hurt my feelings too much since it looks even worse than it thought it would. I would say it was 3/4 or more defoliated with just a few leaves at the top of each stem.....really rough looking.


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## Vol (Jul 5, 2009)

FarmerCline said:


> I would say it was 3/4 or more defoliated with just a few leaves at the top of each stem.....really rough looking.


Too bad you cannot find someone to roll it for you.

Regards, Mike


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## FarmerCline (Oct 12, 2011)

Vol said:


> Too bad you cannot find someone to roll it for you.
> 
> Regards, Mike


 Yeah, I know it.....the only way I can get someone to round bale it is if I give them the hay.....local beef cow guy. 
Thinking a round baler and maybe even a wrapper might be worth looking into.


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## shortrow (Feb 21, 2012)

We're all in the same boat, but it will turn around.


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## FarmerCline (Oct 12, 2011)

Well yesterday I baled a few squares and it looked like green colored straw since it had so very few leaves. Figured for the time and effort that I would spend putting it up in square hay and the fact that I would be lucky to get a few dollars a bale the way it looked I just decided to give it to the beef cow guy to come roll it up to get it off the field. Over mature alfalfa looks way worse in a bale than over mature grass hay.


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