Absolutely new to haying, need some advise

[tmc_31]

Actually, my son in law and grandson want to try haying. They have a 60 acre field and a 18 acre field available to them for this grand experiment. They are going to have to acquire some equipment to get started. I was wondering if anyone uses a shredder (rotary cutter) for cutting hay. I have never heard of anyone around here doing it but why not. It looks to me like a fellow could cut it with a shredder then windrow it with a rake.

Tim

 

[Streetcar]

Shredder could work with several drawbacks
It leaves the grass high
It can clump cutting grass which will not dry properly

I have seen people bale grass on roadside cut with shredder.

 

[hosspuller]

The nutrient value of hay is the leaves. A shredder beats the leaves off. Then you're baling straw. Good for erosion control, poor for feeding.

 

[thekkfan]

Contrary to what others here say, yes, you can-but only with the right rotary cutter.

Will the output be as plentiful as a sickle type or disc/drum- no. In fact you'll have some waste due to what you run over with the tractor that will not get cut. Doesn't sound like much until you do the math of width of tire tracks across the entire field, lol.

I have a bush hog we've used in the past for this. But will tell you that my Hardee (from the late 50's or early 60's- see attachment below for diagram) has a removable panel on the left rear, so that the grass is thrown out on first cut, not chewed and beat up like mentioned above. I sharpen that baby as good as I can before starting and keep it sharp throughout.

It's not ideal, but can work while you search for another cutter. I'd say if you were here in NC you were too late to START searching for a cutter as most have already made 1st cut, and would probably make it my mission for 2nd cut or a fall purchase getting ready for next year.

View attachment 52-60-66-72LT & LTO.pdf

 

[RedNeckRacin]

If you are going to buy equipment anyways, buy a cheap sickle mower. They take almost no hp to run.

 

[CobyRupert]

The nutrient value of hay is the leaves. A shredder beats the leaves off. Then you're baling straw. Good for erosion control, poor for feeding.

Shredder? Is OP talking about a rotary mower, also known by brand name Bush Hog, or generically as brush hogs, etc..? And not a (rotary) disk mower?

Hosspuller makes a good point, and I always wondered why the recent trend around me is to use hay tedders to fling the crap out of hay, before raking it (flinging it again) or windrowing it with the tedder?
I realize it's good for speeding up the drying process, but seems like all that extra flinging would knock off leaves.

 

[Ortimber]

The nutrient value of hay is the leaves. A shredder beats the leaves off. Then you're baling straw. Good for erosion control, poor for feeding.

I agree with this, good point.

 

[flusher]

Shredders (brush hogs, etc) are not really the best choice for haymaking. Find a used sickle bar mower (6 or 7 ft wide cut) and learn how to set it up and operate it. They are simple, relatively inexpensive mowers, but need to have sharp blades and be properly adjusted. Also they tend to clog if not set up properly.
If you have more budget, a disc mower or a drum mower are better choices. They are easier to set up than the sicklebar and, with sufficient PTO horsepower, can mow faster than the sicklebar.


Good luck

 

[tmc_31]

Thanks for your responses guys, I figured that there were reasons why I hadn't seen this done. I had already figured that they were going to lose too much hay due to the shredder trailing behind the tractor instead of being offset behind it. Didn't think about beating the hay to pieces.


Tim

 

[leeave96]

What’s your budget? What is the plan for the hay - use it or sell it?