How do you plant and harvest hay?

Question

I have a grassy area which I would like plant hay in for some goats and/or miniature horses. Is this feasible? How does one go about planting and harvesting? Thank you!

Answer 1

If you have enough property, it would be cheaper in the long run to talk to local farmers, and do the share cropping thing. Believe me, by the time you buy all the equipment, you will be in the hole for 10 years or so. Or just use the property for grazing your own live stock. Hope this helps!

Answer 2

We just did an acre and a half and got 18 big bales of haylage ( can't store hay)
What we did was to keep the horses off since spring, but we put fertilizer on it and weeded it out.
We have our own mower and hay rake so could cut and turn it and finally get it rowed up ourselves but we got a local contractor in to bale and wrap it.
Should be doing another field in about a week and that should be enough to see my horses through the winter.

Edit, I expect to get a bill of about £200 for the baling and wrapping and the fertilizer cost about £20 for those 2 fields.
Cost of 30 bales bought from local farmer would be around £450 so as far as I'm concerned it's well worth it.

Answer 3

It takes machinery to harvest hay, but the good thing is that you don't have to plant anything! With hay, you also need really flat land. If it was once a feild for wheat, barley, soy beans, just anything that needs to be worked every year and isn't just a pasture will work. You will also need a lot of acrage for this to be feasable. It's not worth the cost of machinery and deisel to do this for a 20 acre patch. If it's 80 + though, then it would be. Also, how many goats and mini's do you have?? If there's a lot then yes, but if you only have 2 or 3 of each. then no, it won't be. If you have any more questions or I didn't give enough detail on something, just email me. Thanks. Good luck and God bless you.

Answer 4

First answer pretty good. Talk to your County Cooperative Extension Office too and they can help. Tractors, mowers and Hay Bailers are expensive. For Horses most people like Square Bales. When I had my equipment I would cut and bale for people and they split with me 50/50. You may want to consider that approach after your grass get established. Eventually I sold my equipment and let others do the work 50/50.

Answer 5

nicely assuming you have already got a container of grass, you verify it for rocks, and different such obstructions that would intervene with equipment, before it grows somewhat long then you definately cant see it. We fertilise our grass utilising a tailwag broadcaster fertiliser spreader which includes Nitrogen, Phosphate, and Potassium. We practice that to the grass and shop inventory off for a great 3-4 months. as quickly as that could be a dryish day to decrease (being in scotland it is not in any respect going to be totally dry while reducing!!) then you set approximately utilising the two a disc or drum mower, ideally with a conditioner on the back to decrease down dryng time. as quickly as that has been completed you utilising a Haybob or a Tedder to coach it and spred out the swards of decrease grass aside to permit the solar to dry it off for sure and while it is spred it is plenty much less complicated. For us we turn it regular for 4 days, and on the 5th day (offering it has no longer rained inbetween) we use a haybob with adjusted gates on the back to "Row it up" or you ought to use a wind rower. this would placed it into rows for you the place you are able to them come for the time of with a around or sq. baler to make it into bales. as quickly as that is been baled you are able to then have the determination of wrapping it or no longer, many times wrapped no remember if it is saved outdoors in moist situations. you are able to then initiate carting it into sheds or stacks. as quickly because it is finished, you park up your tractor, have a dram of wiskey with your friends interior the feild and understand your new grant of hay! i could upload too, it is in Scotland, so may be diverse for the starting to be proccess out with you considering the fact which you men have hardcore grasses like Alpha Alpha etc. and the widespread we can purely dream of over right here lol!

Answer 6

well after ya get the seeds planted , ya need a tractor,a hay cutter,a raker,a binder,a wagon,and some help,,,if you have a few animals its just better to buy it

Answer 7

Hay is just grass!! That has been left!!