Drying straw

[sodbuster]

I've got a load of oat straw lying in 35 feet swaths. Its had rain on it this weekend past and is fairly wet. I've got a wuffler that I could run through it but I think it will take too long to dry this way. I'm considering running through it with the 4 rotor tedder and spreading it out to then rake up and bale. Would I be best to straddle the rows and try to Ted full width or run to the side and use just 2 rotors??
Thanks

 

[michael N123]

Won’t it be a bit unhealthy for the Tedder to put all the pressure on one side for big acres.. id run it threw the middle of it

 

[Bob the beef]

Through it right out. We frequently have to do that with smaller swaths later in the autumn. Dries out very quickly that way. Anything else is just a waste of time

 

[sodbuster]

If I throw it right out will my 6m rake manage to gather it all back in ?

 

[Pan mixer]

I tried running through a big swath of hay lat week with a 4 rotor tedder, it wasn't a great success running down the middle as the middle two rotors go the wrong way i.e. trying to chuck the stuff forward.

This was hay though and very thick and inclined to rope if you know what I mean.

In the end I did alternate rows with each side so that I evened up the wear on the machine.

I have done wheat straw down the middle and that was fine, if the tedder drifts one way of the other by an inch then all the swath ends up on one side.. Would have been better to ted it with one outside pair of rotors first then go down the middle I reckon.

 

[gone up the hill]

I've got a load of oat straw lying in 35 feet swaths. Its had rain on it this weekend past and is fairly wet. I've got a wuffler that I could run through it but I think it will take too long to dry this way. I'm considering running through it with the 4 rotor tedder and spreading it out to then rake up and bale. Would I be best to straddle the rows and try to Ted full width or run to the side and use just 2 rotors??
Thanks

You need to turn it over in the swath.

Ted it out and all you will do is lose a lot of the straw and end up raking in plenty of small stones when its ready to bale.

 

[bluepower]

You need to turn it over in the swath.

Ted it out and all you will do is lose a lot of the straw and end up raking in plenty of small stones when its ready to bale.

That is why I still have a single rotor rake, far better for turning straw than a twin rotor.

 

[Bob the beef]

We throw it all right out. Sometimes have to drive across the swathes to get it spread evenly. Then just rake it back up. Sounds excessive but it works and you get dry straw, which can be hard to achieve in late September / early October

 

[sodbuster]

It's a very full swath as the stuff I've baled already is doing about 6 8x4x3 bales to the acre so roughly 3 tons

 

[Chae1]

Oat straw is the worst stuff ever to dry out in my experience.

I would spread it. Have spent weeks trying to get it dry in bout before.

 

[sherg]

I'm tedding my oat straw out tomorrow just go steady and don't try and thrash it to death

 

[sodbuster]

Wont be me personally it'll be a lad that works for me but I'll tell him

 

[Matthew Britton]

If you have a weeks dry and a bit of wind it will come dry if left alone, failing that let it dry as much as possible and just move it towards the end to finish it off. Flipping over with a single rotor rake or a merger is the best way but I only ever had a hs360 haybob which did the job.