Running the Gamut of New England Hay Baling Weather
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 20 มิ.ย. 2024
- From 70's and sunny to 90's and cloudy, muggy, and an ever present chance of rain. Welcome back to the New England dry hay game!
(I tried something different at first with this video - having heard a lot of my own voice in recent editing, I thought I had a perfect weather stretch and could do a "no talking, just haymaking" video. That took an abrupt left turn, but perhaps enjoy the first section of no gabbing :) )
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(We are a 53-acre haying operation in Conway, MA - making all small square bales for the local food, fiber, and livestock community. Learn more about our farm at windrowfarmconway.com, or connect with us on instagram @windrow.farm)
Equipment List:
Massey Ferguson 275 Tractor
Massey Ferguson 165 Tractor
Massey Ferguson 135 Tractor
Vermeer TM610 disc mower
Vicon RS410T Tedder
Kuhn GA4101 GTH rotary rake
New Holland 256 hay rake
Massey Ferguson 124 baler (with New Holland 70 bale thrower)
Four kicker wagons
Delmhorst FX-2000 Hay Moisture Meter
Sundown Fertilizer Spreader
I grew up in Arkansas working hayfields from 12 to 18 before joining the Navy. I spent most of my childhood on a MF 255 and a 135. This brings back memories.
That’s great! Glad to share it. I owe a lot to these tractors. Thanks!!
That brutal humidity swooped in and gotcha that sucks bad
Oof, yep 😅
Great job documenting the whole process, WF. You worked hard and ended up successful. Really enjoyed this episode, as I do all of them, but this one had me reminiscing about the neighborhood I grew up in. Lots of the terrain in your neck of the woods was so similar to my landscape back in the day. Awesome post, WF!
Thanks so much! That means a lot. Challenging as this terrain and field shapes and weather and shade lines can be, I really love haying in this area. Glad it reminds you of what you knew too!
Really good video but I sure missed the usual narratives. Glad you kicked it back in towards the end. Mike calls humidity during hay making humility! It’s so true and so frustrating. We are dry, dry here. I’m concerned there might not be much regrowth for us. Take care buddy!
Thanks!! It was an experiment, that then turned into a lot of work to keep up 😂. Once things went sideways, I knew I had to discuss it after all. Glad my talking resonates!
Gosh, sorry to hear it’s still so dry there. Feels like if it’s not one extreme, it’s the other. Fingers crossed for you and some second cut regrowth!
(I’ll have to start using that line about humility, it’s very true!)
I enjoy seeing you using the Massey Ferguson tractors my Dad used them first tractor I used was a150 Ferguson
Thanks, so glad you enjoy it! One of my land/barn owners has a Massey 150 (gas - I think continental?) with an allied Loader on it. Would have loved to see it in its glory day (clutch and throttle are both a bit out of adjustment for my liking now, but hey, most I ever have to do is move it out of the way sometimes.) But it does seem like it's the same chassis as the 165 (?) - so I can relate! Thanks for watching!
Epic video - the challenges of hay making on display this round!
Thanks! 😅
Love watching your shows keep up the great work
Thanks so much!
We're in the Adirondack mountains, NY and had the identical experience. Watching your video was like reliving last week. I've never tedded, raked, re-tedded, re-raked, started baling, stopped baling so much in my life. Got 47 acres done somehow. Keep it up.
Oh gosh, right?? Sorry it was the same story for you too. And woah, 47 acres?? that’s impressive! Were you making rounds? Thanks for watching, and glad it resonated!
Yes, all 4x5 round bales so we can cover ground fast once the hay is ready, but getting it there was tricky.
I managed to get a small section done in this east coast heat wave. I was lucky and cut early Monday afternoon and the wind and sun were strong. Tedded twice on monday and my dad got it at noon on tuesday. Dampness set in hard on Tuesday night but woke up to no dew on Weds and tedded again at 10, rake at 12 and was baleing at 1:30. It was running 11-14% on the old make you crazy meter. But i know im safe there. Had the od hit of 18-19 in the outsise row. I got up 260+ and wish i did more. My friens got caught with the showera on the Thursday when i went to round bale another field for him. I ended up running around a field picking up squares with him and to try and save them..... Not fun. He has a bale basket to and wasnt using it..... Makes me really appreciate the thrower and having alot of wagons.
Wow! So glad you got some in. It was a tricky forecast, and I kept thinking I wish I’d mowed more, then was grateful I didn’t. So hard to know! Those “no dew” mornings feel like such a gift when they happen.
I like that mower! Cuts nice!
Thanks! I had a few things to work out with it (including a narrower right tire, as the original one trampled the un-cut edge by a few inches). But now that I have it dialed in, I love it! Thanks for watching!
@@windrowfarm good week coming up. You should be able to mow tonight and bale by wednesday if you have any fields this week.
@@GEisele0606 plenty of fields left! Currently trying to figure that out though - sources are talking about rain starting early to mid afternoon on Wednesday, and folks can’t seem to agree how much sun we’re going to get today. Maybe better out your way?
@@windrowfarm I have no rain for the next 10 days. Everyone should be finishing up first cut this week.
@@GEisele0606 Wow, glad to hear it! I'm only halfway done out this way - every operation is different 🙂. I think I will mow a chunk of a field later morning today though and give it a go. Questionable sun this afternoon, but sounds like amazing wind for the next 24 hours. I'll choose a piece that gets great sun and has finer grasses and roll the dice (I think!)
Definitely missed the narrative but enjoyed the content nonetheless! Ive never been much of a massey guy before but these workhorses are definitely nice machines!
Thanks!! Glad to know folks appreciate my gabbing 😂. I sort of stumbled into the Massey game, but now I wouldn’t have it any other way. The Perkins engines pack a punch, and I biasedly think you can’t beat the Massey knotters either 😁. Thanks for watching!
17 percent is fine it wont get dusty till you start getting into the 20 percent range
Thanks! That’s my hope - though folks always talk about 15% being the cutoff around here. I’m always the overly cautious one not wanting to fill someone’s barn with hay that will get funky. But since it was fully cured, I’m inclined to agree with you. Thanks for watching!
I mowed on that Saturday and baled on Tuesday (18th). We had heat but not high humidity so no problems. I think you made all the right moves. Hard to deal with all those small fields that require constant staging! Question: How late after cutting is too late to fertilize?
Phew, I'm glad you were spared that humidity! Did the sun cooperate? Thanks for the support, as always. Hard to say on the too late to fertilize after first cut question (I'm also not an expert). I just assume you get diminishing returns the later you wait, but I also like to see the grass bouncing back before applying it. I figure even if it can regrow for another month after applying, that'll be something - and what it doesn't use (more or less) will still "feed the soil". Rough science 😂
@@windrowfarm Day 1 and 2 were mostly/partly sunny but breezy and day 3 was full on sun/heat. Same with day 4 until right after baling was done when the clouds rolled in...phew. I have never had a moister meter and always go by feel...never have gotten into trouble unless I did something overtly stupid and tried to get away with it. Sometimes I wish I had one but mostly I'm glad I don't...too much data might drive me crazy. But if one were to get one, would you recommend a hand held probe or an in-line one?
@@andyrobinson339 that’s great! So glad you got it. I always grew up doing it by feel and only got a moisture meter a few years ago. I find I can blend the two approaches pretty well, and having a number to go by really helps when weather is difficult. I find myself a lot less stressed 😂. I am a huge fan of having the monitor installed in the baler - I use that function way more than the handheld, but it can do both, which is great. (Mine is a Delmhorst FX2000, if helpful). But yeah, it can also turn into data overload 😂
So the moisture meter goes right to the baler?
Yep! This one (Delmhorst FX-2000) comes with the kit to wire it into the bale chamber. (A sensor plate on the left wall of the bale chamber, near the knotter). I have a short video on it from two springs ago, if you're curious to see more.
What are you spreading for fertilizer?
The first few fields for the draft horse veggie farm are managed organically (they spread manure and some organic fert blends). The last one in this video above the cemetery just got urea this spring (based on the soil test) - but usually I spread 20-5-25 or 19-19-19, depending on what a field needs. Thanks!
To much drama with you
😂😂
Not drama...just reality for someone who cares deeply about what he does.
@@andyrobinson339 (Thanks!!)