← Forage and pasture H15-03 · Module 3 of 7 · Pages: 19 · Worksheets: 6

Haymaking: mowing, drying, stacks and bales

When and how to mow with a scythe and a mower, how to dry hay, build a pole stack and a rick, store bales and prevent spontaneous combustion

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Haymaking: mowing, drying, stacks and bales

In short

  • Cut grasses as the first heads emerge, clovers at early flowering. Later you get more bulk, but much poorer hay.
  • Hay needs 3–4 days without rain; cut after the dew, turn while the leaf is still supple.
  • Hay is stored at up to 18 % moisture (small bales exceptionally up to 20 %): a twisted wisp crackles, the stem doesn't bend damply.
  • Damp hay heats and can catch fire 2–6 weeks after storing. Check the temperature with a probe bar or thermometer.
  • Above 65 °C (150 °F) call the fire service, don't open or pull the hay apart, and never walk on a hot stack.
  • Build a stack on a base, with the middle firmer and higher than the edge and the top raked down so water runs off.

What's inside

Chapters

  1. When to cut
  2. Mowing with a scythe
  3. Mowing with a machine
  4. Drying: from grass to hay
  5. The pole stack
  6. The rick and the hay barn
  7. Bales
  8. Spontaneous combustion of hay
  9. Dust and health
  10. Common mistakes
  11. Printable checklist

Worksheets

  • Mowing log
  • Hay temperature log
  • Bale, stack and space calculator
  • Stack labels
  • Mowing and storing cost sheet
  • Hay calendar

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