New to Haying Question

[corey9212]

Hello, I am new to haying and looking for any advice I can get. I will be mowing my pasture with a 12' JD 1470 Discbine and baling with an International 3450 round baler both being pulled with my 5115M. The pasture is just wild grass but I think there is a bit of Alfa Alfa in it as well. The Internet seems to be very vague when it comes to how to use a Discbine and baler.

Questions on my mind at the moment is turning and handling characteristics of the Discbine? (as my signature shows my attachments that I'm used to is just slightly bigger than my tractor and follow straight behind.)

How low should I cut the grass?

How high should I let the grass grow before I cut it?

Does the grass have to be completely dry before I cut it?

How long to let it dry?

How do I know when it's dry enough to bale?

When bailing how do I know I'm going fast enough? Is there such thing as too slow?

When the bale is full is the wrapping and release automatic or do I have to do certain things?

When cutting my pasture is very awkward in shape what's the best way/ pattern to mow it and bale it? (See attached picture.)

Any other advice you can give me?

Thank you.

 

[DT86]

Be careful turning sharp with the mower, it is easy to get the tongue into the rear tires.

The mower is probably set up to an acceptable hight by who ever had it before you. I think most prefer to mow fairly low, I always have.

As far as when to cut, it depends. The grass will mature at a different time than the alfalfa. You need to decide which one will dictate when you mow.

Its late, that's all I've got for now...

 

[AKfish]

I like to leave about a 4 inch stubble remaining. Enough to give the grass a good start for a possible 2nd cutting and/or grazing for the horses about 3 weeks after baling.

How high should I let the grass grow before I cut it? I cut it just as it begins to head out. Don't let the seed heads mature as you'll lose both protein and other nutrients.

Does the grass have to be completely dry before I cut it? No... that would mean you'd be baling in September!!

How long to let it dry? However, long it takes to get the moisture content down to around 10%. Does your baler have a moisture meter? If not, you should invest in one - and, I have a hand-held moisture tester that I check the windrows with.

How do I know when it's dry enough to bale? If you've got a good dry barn or a place to store the hay after baling - you should be Ok baling the windrows when the moisture is less than 15%.

When bailing how do I know I'm going fast enough? Is there such thing as too slow? Yeah... you can go slower than you really need to. I'd guess that the harm would be taking too much time and losing your good weather window. And, of course you'd have a bigger fuel bill, too. If you're going too slow you might also have a problem filling the bale chamber evenly and putting out bales that could be lopsided to one side or the other. However, you'll notice that soon enough... after the first couple of bales hit the ground!

When the bale is full is the wrapping and release automatic or do I have to do certain things? Depends on your model of baler. Some of the newer balers have auto-wrap or auto-tie.

When cutting my pasture is very awkward in shape what's the best way/ pattern to mow it and bale it? (See attached picture.) Mowing is gonna require that you follow the contour of the field. Raking will allow you to move a lot of the hay out from the short areas and merge the cut swaths together into straighter rows that are more or less the length of the long axis of the field.

Any other advice you can give me? Have fun!! :BigGrin: Don't be afraid to stop if something doesn't sound or look just right! Don't turn too sharp with the pto running - it'll put a lot of unnecessary wear and tear on the U-joints.

AKfish