Conditioner for Grass Hay?

Littleleroy38 · May 28, 2006

Greetings to all on this board. Please allow me to introduce myself. My name is Brian Jackson. I spent my teen years working on my grandfather's farm in Iowa back when the family farm did a bit of everything: cattle, hogs, sheep, chickens, hay, oats, corn, and beans. While I baled a lot of hay then, it was back when you could count on 7 people showing up to help!

Recently, my brother purchased a 150 acre farm in Vermont with 55 acres of grass hay in bottom land. Thanks to all of you on this board, he has been able to make much more informed decisions about which equipment to choose. He has already purchased a New Holland bale wagon, tedder, and a rake. Next week, he'll have a square baler.

All of this is prologue to asking everyone for his opinion on whether or not my brother is going to need to condition his grass hay in order to speed up drying times. Personally, I think that if he uses a disc mower and tedder, he should be all right. However, this is bottom land, and from what he gathers from his neighbors, haying is a race against the weather. Any and all thoughts in this regard would be very appreciated. You guys have already helped us tremendously.

Littleleroy38 · May 28, 2006

Greetings to all on this board. Please allow me to introduce myself. My name is Brian Jackson. I spent my teen years working on my grandfather's farm in Iowa back when the family farm did a bit of everything: cattle, hogs, sheep, chickens, hay, oats, corn, and beans. While I baled a lot of hay then, it was back when you could count on 7 people showing up to help!

Recently, my brother purchased a 150 acre farm in Vermont with 55 acres of grass hay in bottom land. Thanks to all of you on this board, he has been able to make much more informed decisions about which equipment to choose. He has already purchased a New Holland bale wagon, tedder, and a rake. Next week, he'll have a square baler.

All of this is prologue to asking everyone for his opinion on whether or not my brother is going to need to condition his grass hay in order to speed up drying times. Personally, I think that if he uses a disc mower and tedder, he should be all right. However, this is bottom land, and from what he gathers from his neighbors, haying is a race against the weather. Any and all thoughts in this regard would be very appreciated. You guys have already helped us tremendously.

HayDR · May 28, 2006

A disc mower and a tedder is the way to go with grass hay.

HayDR · May 28, 2006

A disc mower and a tedder is the way to go with grass hay.

jwcinpk · May 29, 2006

All I use is a disc mower and tedder and it will dry almost as fast. 2 days in the kind of weather we've been having here in Ky.. Disc mowers are the most trouble free invention yet as far as I'm concerned.

jwcinpk · May 29, 2006

All I use is a disc mower and tedder and it will dry almost as fast. 2 days in the kind of weather we've been having here in Ky.. Disc mowers are the most trouble free invention yet as far as I'm concerned.

farmerjim · May 31, 2006

for the northeast/new england area i would def reccommend a conditioner. it will def make a difference in your drying time, esp when the weather is against you, and esp on 1st cutting i'm sure the grass is very thick up there in vt as it can get here in ct, esp since you said it was bottom land. i would say a moco, if its in the budget or even just a disc cutter and a seperate conditioner, they're a bit harder to find and then you'll need 2 people when cutting 1 running the cutter and 1 on the conditioner, 1 person can do it but its going to take a while longer.which is the way we've been doing it for about 28 yrs.

farmerjim · May 31, 2006

for the northeast/new england area i would def reccommend a conditioner. it will def make a difference in your drying time, esp when the weather is against you, and esp on 1st cutting i'm sure the grass is very thick up there in vt as it can get here in ct, esp since you said it was bottom land. i would say a moco, if its in the budget or even just a disc cutter and a seperate conditioner, they're a bit harder to find and then you'll need 2 people when cutting 1 running the cutter and 1 on the conditioner, 1 person can do it but its going to take a while longer.which is the way we've been doing it for about 28 yrs.

plowrup · May 31, 2006

I'm a JD and Hesston Dealer, and where we are we have a lot of high Mountain Grass (Timothy) Hay-we use the Impeller Conditioner and have had very good results with decreased drying time. I would highly recommend you take a look at them-

plowrup · May 31, 2006

I'm a JD and Hesston Dealer, and where we are we have a lot of high Mountain Grass (Timothy) Hay-we use the Impeller Conditioner and have had very good results with decreased drying time. I would highly recommend you take a look at them-

jimg · May 31, 2006

By impeller youre talking about rubbing the waxy surface off the stems vs crushing them? Ive only seen these on the dealer lot but never knew anyone who owned one. How do they work on other than grass crops?

jimg · May 31, 2006

By impeller youre talking about rubbing the waxy surface off the stems vs crushing them? Ive only seen these on the dealer lot but never knew anyone who owned one. How do they work on other than grass crops?

barticus73 · May 31, 2006

I am in western Pa and have been using a disc mower followed by a tedder for grass hay. I have been tedding the next morning after I cut while the dew is still on. Typically I have been able to bale the next day.

barticus73 · May 31, 2006

I am in western Pa and have been using a disc mower followed by a tedder for grass hay. I have been tedding the next morning after I cut while the dew is still on. Typically I have been able to bale the next day.

plowrup · May 31, 2006

They work extremely well in both Grass and Alfalfa-I have sold them in 3 different States with the same results-this concept is not new, we have had it for over 15 years. It takes some understanding of how the machine processes the Hay, but after you figure it out it does an absolutly fantastic job. Up here we cannot cut one day and Bale the next, but this can make it a three day job compared to five or six.

We havnt sold a roll machine in over 7 Years-

plowrup · May 31, 2006

They work extremely well in both Grass and Alfalfa-I have sold them in 3 different States with the same results-this concept is not new, we have had it for over 15 years. It takes some understanding of how the machine processes the Hay, but after you figure it out it does an absolutly fantastic job. Up here we cannot cut one day and Bale the next, but this can make it a three day job compared to five or six.

We havnt sold a roll machine in over 7 Years-

scott_vt · Jun 1, 2006

Hi Brian,
Welcome aboard to TBN. Most of my neighbors use a conditioner/ haybine. By crimping the hay it helps alot up here in the drying process. On the first cut, you usually need three rain free days for the job. I dont presently bale my property but have helped my neighbors out on occasion.

What part of Vt is your brother at?

Good luck in your search.

scott_vt · Jun 1, 2006

Hi Brian,
Welcome aboard to TBN. Most of my neighbors use a conditioner/ haybine. By crimping the hay it helps alot up here in the drying process. On the first cut, you usually need three rain free days for the job. I dont presently bale my property but have helped my neighbors out on occasion.

What part of Vt is your brother at?

Good luck in your search.

Littleleroy38 · Jun 1, 2006

Scott, thanks for the welcome, and thanks to everyone who has responded.

My brother is up in West Charleston. He's got 55 acres to do. At first he was going to sell it to dairymen, but he can't get much for it unless he bales it. His plan now is to bale it up in squares and sell it to horse people.

What you say about a conditioner fits in with what his neighbors seem to have done in the past. It's hard for me to imagine that things are so wet there that a conditioner makes a big difference for grass hay, but my personal experience was in the Midwest back when cutting with a sickle bar was the norm. Dodging the rain was not too difficult either.

What happens if you condition the hay, and it gets rained on? Is the hay ruined then?

Littleleroy38 · Jun 1, 2006

Scott, thanks for the welcome, and thanks to everyone who has responded.

My brother is up in West Charleston. He's got 55 acres to do. At first he was going to sell it to dairymen, but he can't get much for it unless he bales it. His plan now is to bale it up in squares and sell it to horse people.

What you say about a conditioner fits in with what his neighbors seem to have done in the past. It's hard for me to imagine that things are so wet there that a conditioner makes a big difference for grass hay, but my personal experience was in the Midwest back when cutting with a sickle bar was the norm. Dodging the rain was not too difficult either.

What happens if you condition the hay, and it gets rained on? Is the hay ruined then?