With warm weather forecasted for the next few days many farmers will begin making hay, we offer some advice on how to make good quality hay. Hay production in Ireland is still a common practice in the preserving of grass for farm animals for the winter. Hay is suitable food for cows, cattle, sheep or horses. All animals require a constant water supply when being fed with hay.
Bales (square, block or round) are easily transported in winter time when feeding to animals and are very suitable for farms with scattered lands.
Michael Naughton tedding hay for Oliver Nolan in Rockfield, Co Roscommon
Hay: when to cut
- Hay like silage is best made in early to mid June/July when the moisture has dropped to 70%, soluble sugars are high (20%), crude protein 10-12%, yield although not at peak, reasonably high, D.M.D (Dry Matter Digestibility) 65 to 70%.
- Hay requires a longer growing season than silage but there is no hard or fast rule.
- Farmers try to harvest hay at the point when the seed heads are not quite ripe and the leaf is at its maximum when the grass is mowed in the field. It is the lead and seed material in the hay that determines its quality.
- The cut material is allowed to dry so that the bulk of the moisture is removed, but the leafy material is still robust enough to be picked up from the ground by machinery and processed into storage in bales or stacks.
Weather Dependency
- To make good hay good sunny dry weather is necessary.
- The percentage moisture of the grass can be at 70% in dry weather when cut. This needs to be brought down to the late teens or 20% to make good hay.
- Good sunshine will help in the drying process and in the making of good hay.
- Weather forecasts must be adhered to when planning to make hay. Cutting hay lots in manageable proportions is to be advised.
Saving the hay
- Hay should be cut when dry at the end of a sunny day when sugar levels are at their highest and tedded immediately after cutting. In good weather the grass is tedded twice daily and in very good sunny, breezy weather haymaking should be achieved in
Sam Nuzum baling hay for Trevor Saville at Ashwood Upper, Co Wexford
3 to 4 days.
- The old farmers rule of feeding the hay is still practiced, if it’s cold to feel it’s not fit to bale, warm to feel then it’s fit to bale.
- Hay baled at 20% moisture content or less is fit to gather and can be stored. The old farmers rule applies if it’s fit to bale then its fit for housing.
Storage of hay
- Hay requires good storage facilities, so a good dry loft or hay shed is necessary for storage.
- Hay stores well for a number of years.
Advantages of hay on the farm
- Very transportable in winter
- Suitable for all animals
- Machinery is a reasonable investment
- Suitable for small fields and for cutting in small lots and in manageable amounts
*This is an excerpt from an article by Mattie Kilroy, first published by the Irish Farmers Journal on 18 January 2014.
(Source – Irish Farmers Journal – 16/06/2015)