Haying Equipment

   / Haying Equipment #11  
Do some math:

Cost of haying machinery verus sales income. /forums/images/graemlins/tongue.gif

Thank the farmer for comming over and baling your two acres and maybe even provide him with beverages on a hot day! /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

Egon /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif
 
   / Haying Equipment #12  
Depending on your area, you should have no problem trading for the farmers services.

Any farmer around here would be more than happy to cut and bale for you in exchange for some the hay. This also will get you better 'service' because they now want the hay to be better quality.
 
   / Haying Equipment #13  
</font><font color="blue" class="small">( Average people with average skills (and without the extensive resources available on the Internet) have been planting, growing and harvesting crops of all kinds for a long, long time. )</font>

And some of those "average people with average skills" have been a part of haying for generations. They learned the "skills" over time, and with the benifit of someone elses mistakes. Anyone "new" to haying is going to have to deal with the learning curve. You can research it to death, and there will still be unforeseen circumstances that make you scratch your head in disbelief. (weather mostly)

Anyone can do hay under ideal conditions. Nothing more than a LOT of hard work. Dealing with the unexpected takes years of experience to know which way to turn next.

And then there's an issue of hay quality. If "average" hay does the trick, average Joe can usually deal with it. High grade hay doesn't come with asking a few questions and buying some equipment. You're talking experience PLUS above average skills and abilities. (with plenty of $$$$$$ mixed in)
 
   / Haying Equipment #14  
</font><font color="blue" class="small">(
Do some math:

Cost of haying machinery verus sales income. /forums/images/graemlins/tongue.gif

Thank the farmer for comming over and baling your two acres and maybe even provide him with beverages on a hot day! /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

Egon /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif )</font>

But you see I could always till it under and plant wildlife restoration grasses as well and get just as much use out of that. I still keep feeling a bit used here in that this farmer gets the goods for free. I know he does the work but my land and taxes are still paid for by my dime and not his. Seems very odd. On the opne hand he says he uses the hay himself and does not sell it - But on the other hand I really do not know. Also what about if he gets hurt on my land doing this work - Pretty sure I am liable.
 
   / Haying Equipment #15  
</font><font color="blue" class="small">( </font><font color="blueclass=small">(
Do some math:

Cost of haying machinery verus sales income. /forums/images/graemlins/tongue.gif

Thank the farmer for comming over and baling your two acres and maybe even provide him with beverages on a hot day! /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

Egon /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif )</font>

But you see I could always till it under and plant wildlife restoration grasses as well and get just as much use out of that. I still keep feeling a bit used here in that this farmer gets the goods for free. I know he does the work but my land and taxes are still paid for by my dime and not his. Seems very odd. On the opne hand he says he uses the hay himself and does not sell it - But on the other hand I really do not know. Also what about if he gets hurt on my land doing this work - Pretty sure I am liable. )</font>

Farmers have insurance like any other contractor. If he gets hurt, he's covered. If he doens't it's not your problem, that's why we have contracts and lawyers.

The farmer is not doing it for free. It's his machinary, etc... He could suck up a bicycle chain or something in his equipment and wreck it. He could slip into a gopher hole and wreck his equipment, snag a rock, etc... This is all stuff he's risking by cutting your hay.
 
   / Haying Equipment #17  
</font><font color="blue" class="small">( </font><font color="blueclass=small">(
Do some math:

Cost of haying machinery verus sales income. /forums/images/graemlins/tongue.gif

Thank the farmer for comming over and baling your two acres and maybe even provide him with beverages on a hot day! /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

Egon /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif )</font>

But you see I could always till it under and plant wildlife restoration grasses as well and get just as much use out of that. I still keep feeling a bit used here in that this farmer gets the goods for free. I know he does the work but my land and taxes are still paid for by my dime and not his. Seems very odd. On the opne hand he says he uses the hay himself and does not sell it - But on the other hand I really do not know. Also what about if he gets hurt on my land doing this work - Pretty sure I am liable. )</font>

Taxes -- we have had someone doing hay on our pastures(22-28 acres) for the last several years. That's a fair amount of hay. We don't have the equipment, nor the time, he does do whatever that amount of acreage will produce - primarily for his own cattle, but maybe he sells some we don't know. We put most of the property in forest management and horticultural use a few years ago. Both depend on the property being used for that. You can't lease it, so we get a report annually for what he produces - has to be $1000 in value. In exchange our taxes were reduced by 2/3rds. Our fields don't go fallow, and they look great after being raked and baled.

I've recently purchased a tractor so am reclaiming more fields and some he's let go. I've also been looking at some other arrangement but frankly I don't see any better way to go for now.

You've got a couple of acres, you could cut that with a lawn mower if you wanted. Or let him keep doing it. I don't see any way you're not coming out okay with the present arrangement.
 
   / Haying Equipment #19  
</font><font color="blue" class="small">(

I only have a JD 3320 32.5hp tractor - is that large enough to take care of hay with????

)</font>

Yes, absolutely it is big enough, with square baler.
I figure my dad has made over 120,000 bales with his old 8n and his old NH baler.

Just get out there and do it, you'll learn quick enough.
 
   / Haying Equipment #20  
I hope the farmer that is cutting the 2 acres of hay lives close by. I have a feeling that he is just breaking even for his time and machinery use. He is not getting rich on it, that is certain.
 
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