So much rain = no hay.......anyone else worried?

[Marty]

Don't know about the rest of the country but here in Tennessee this year's weather has been unseasonably insane. We have had a very long winter with freezes still in April. Our ground has been saturated now for months with rain, rain, and more rain. My fields are soaked beyond belief and the two fields I have that are level have water just sitting afloat on top of them with no way to sink into the ground. Thank heavens my barn is not underwater like some of them I see around here.

Usually we get our first cutting of hay on Memorial Day weekend but this year, there is no way no how its going to happen then due to so much water. If the hay grows for too long it will become overly mature so that is not good and if the rain doesn't stop for a good couple of weeks that is no good either. The rains just keep on coming nearly every single day with no sunshine in sight.

:arg! :arg! :arg!

Someone send us some sunshine please~!!!

\

UPDATE! Just checked our extended forecast is now showing NO rain for the next 3 days!!!!! YAY!!!!!!We hope they aren't lying to us again!

 

[maryann]

We have been discussing the same issue around here in NC. I have seen

several farmers trying to get their hay cut between rain storms. With

the showers and the heavy humidity at night we are kind of afraid

to buy any hay right now. I don't see how it could be dry enough to

bail. The chance of it molding is pretty high. Fortunately we have plenty

right now but I really like that secure feeling I get when the barn is full

of hay. It smells so good.

I am also getting concerned about the heavy grass in the pastures.

My guys are not used to plush pasture so we keep them in part of the day.

With the past years drought though ,I am definately not complaining .

We will just have to wait a little while. Maryann

 

[LAZY J MINIS]

WE ARE IN THE SAME BOAT(NOAH'S ARK HAS BEEN BY A COUPLE OF TIMES IN RECENT WEEKS). ONE WEEKEND WE HAD 12 INCHES THE NEXT IT WAS ABOUT 10. MY BARN HAS FLOODED AND THE PASTURES ARE A SOGGY MESS. WE GOT LUCKY TODAY IT WAS SUPPOSE TO RAIN AND DIDN'T. WHO KNOWS MAYBE BY HALLOWEEN WE MAY DRY OUT. GOOD WISHES.

 

[Minimor]

No worries here at this point; our grass is just nicely getting started. We had frost last night, -7C...they got up to 10 inches of snow just north of here yesterday morning (glad that missed us, all we got was a light rain shower!) and we had a nice rain the middle of this past week. We will need more rain yet if we're going to have a nice hay crop this summer.

It would be rare for us to get a first cut of hay before the 3rd week of June, and more often it's the last week of June before anyone gets going on haying. This year it's going to be late--likely early July--before 1st cut is ready. By then, we could be drowning in rain too, but I hope not. We had that problem last year, so this year we deserve a good haying season!!

 

[Jill]

Right now, I am in HAY HEAVEN!!!!

This past Thursday, H brought home 7 loads of hay and the bales are HUGE. He got about 125 bales. There's a farm near us and they gave him a great deal on hay if he picks it up (baled) out of the field before they have to load it on their wagon and put it in the barn. It's a mix of timothy and orchard grass (does have some fescue, but we have no horses due until next March). Horses are loving the hay. We thought we were paying $3/bale, which is unheard of for us. We've been paying $7 for smaller bales. H went to pay him and it was only $1.50/bale!!!!!! AND, he's going to be cutting other fields soon and will give us the same deal. Only thing is, we just have room to store maybe another 20 bales unless we get creative (which we probably will at this price). Each bale lasts us over a day (we do use a high fiber pellet to round things out), so we are sitting pretty for some time now!

I just can't believe our luck! And this is pretty hay (very tender for timothy). I'm so picky when it comes to the hay and this passes my test. We'd have paid sooooooooo much more for this hay if they priced it that way. The least I ever remember paying for hay was $3.50/bale and that was back when we first got into minis...

H has been a great "Daddy" to our animals this week with all that hay. He was going to get it and putting it up from 3:30 until after 9:30pm that night! Then he brought home a total of 13 "mushabelly" stuffed toys that Wilson and Watson (shih-tzu puppies) go nuts for. They are made for kids but our dogs love them and they are cheap at Walmart. They are about 7-8" tall, egg shaped, soft stuffed animals that have electronic voice boxes. Our dogs are very proud of their "babies" and that they can make them talk or sing

 

[kaykay]

I was worried too but looks like we are supposed to have sun all week so our hay farmer will be cutting this week hopefully. we also get a discount if we pick it up from the field. NOrmally I never buy first cut hay but since I am running low I will have to buy some.

 

[Annabellarose]

I am worried.

Marty, I am in Southeastern Kentucky, not too far from the Kentucky/Tennessee/Virginia border, so we are kinda', sorta' close to one another geographically. It has rained almost everyday for as long as I can remember, literally. The "hay" looks like it is ready to cut, but it's only 5-7 inches tall. There was severe drought in my area of Kentucky the last two years. I am down to my last 5 or 6 bales of hay. I do know where I can find more hay (at a feed/farm store), but it will be considerably more expensive than if I were able to pick it up myself out of a farmer's field (which I try to do).

 

[afoulk]

I have two fields that we will be laying down today. Calling for 4 days of sunny weather. The orchard grass is easy to get dry however it will take the 4 days for the alfalfa to dry so I am hoping the weather men are correct. I still have plenty of hay but sure like to get the barn totally full as you never know when the weather will cooperate.

Right now around here in central Ohio all the hay is ready to cut just waiting for the weather to do it.

Arlene

 

[LittleRibbie]

Here in Fla. its been dry as a bone. My grass or brown stuff crunches under my feet so my poor horses...even when in the pasture... seem to have nothing but dry crunchy grass.My hay has been coming from Canada or N.Y ...T/A but since the gas prices went up it never really came back down. Im paying 13.00 a bale...ouch!! Wish I could get the same deal as you Jill. Thats great!! your hubby did good!!

 

[calmolly]

We have been very lucky here in GA too! The first cuts are now for sale and they are the same price as last year. We have had alot of rain, even at our farm. We live between two rivers and for some reason it effects how much rain we get. It can rain 10 miles North of us and 10 miles South and we remain in drought. I hope it continues all summer!

 

[Carolyn R]

Alot of farmers are getting ready for their first cutting here in eastern PA. We had an early spring, snow was over by the first week of March.

I almost feel guilty when a family we know from Florida comes to visit our minis. She just about fell over when she saw my hay and asked what I paid, & I just about fell over when she told me what she pays for for a similar mix/quality, $2.50 abale compared to her $15 a bale.

 

[wildoak]

Yes, it's a little scary here too. We've been in a drought for the last year and although we've had some rain this spring it's not enough to bring things back to normal. My husband cleaned out the hay barn a few weeks ago and sold about 70 bales of old not so great hay, anticipating first cutting being soon. Now it's raining and they have delayed the next week or so......and I'm down to less than 20 bales! I don't like to buy a lot of first cutting but this year I won't be so picky, just in case there isn't much more. They are advertising now for first cutting, anywhere from $4 to $7.50 a bale in the field for coastal. If we have another dry summer it's going to be hard to come by at any price.

Jan

 

[Shari]

The hay fields around here are seeding out early... I mean really early. Also not nearly as tall as it usually is by this time of year. I can only hope the end of June, beginning of July... comes around the fields will have grown a bit more.

 

[chandab]

No worries here at this point; our grass is just nicely getting started. We had frost last night, -7C...they got up to 10 inches of snow just north of here yesterday morning (glad that missed us, all we got was a light rain shower!) and we had a nice rain the middle of this past week. We will need more rain yet if we're going to have a nice hay crop this summer.
It would be rare for us to get a first cut of hay before the 3rd week of June, and more often it's the last week of June before anyone gets going on haying. This year it's going to be late--likely early July--before 1st cut is ready. By then, we could be drowning in rain too, but I hope not. We had that problem last year, so this year we deserve a good haying season!!

We are here as well... Usually the last week of June is our earliest hay cut, usually only one cut per year (we are dryland, and no irrigation) and I have limited varieties of hay available. So far, its looking better than last year, but a lot can change between now and the end of June.

I hope we have a good hay season, and I can make to the first cut; I have three round bales of grass left and 12 small squares, this is for 3 saddle horses (who will go out to pasture as soon as the fence is fixed) and 9 minis. [We ran almost completely out of hay this year for the cattle; one bale left for the steers, just enough to get the bulls to turn-out time and the cows are all out to pasture (just squeaking by on the last few bales to make turn-out time).]