Wasted Our Time & Money or Salvagable Hay?

[yellowbelly]

No need to panic yet - it's still 'fastened at one end'.
You've only wasted your time and money when you've baled it too soon and it's either gone solid with mould in the bales, heated up and burnt your shed down or laid rotting in the field for 2 months.
You need a few different things to make hay - weather, mower, tedder, baler, etc, but the most important thing you want is a good dollop of patience.

 

[bobk]

No rush to cut that , another fortnight or so may bulk it up .

 

[marshfarmer]

No need to panic yet - it's still 'fastened at one end'.
You've only wasted your time and money when you've baled it too soon and it's either gone solid with mould in the bales, heated up and burnt your shed down or laid rotting in the field for 2 months.
You need a few different things to make hay - weather, mower, tedder, baler, etc, but the most important thing you want is a good dollop of patience.

They always put the Norfolk show on slap bang at the optimum time for haysel. Around here

 

[puppet]

Thanks for confirming - will ask the local contractor when he is planning to cut theirs to book my slot!

Cut it by the weather forecast, not the contractors timetable. I would leave that field another 2-3 weeks until more grass is shot and far easier to make.

 

[Grassman]

June hay is often spoilt one way or another. That in the picture won't hurt for many weeks.

 

[Ukjay]

To the OP: It is still early for hay yet and that grass won't take any harm if left for a few weeks yet so no need to rush.

Thanks for the above - the guy did say they will be cutting theirs mid July, so we do not have a date to cut etc.

 

[Ukjay]

Whar's it to be fed to?

I was always taught that grass for hay should be cut when it comes into flower, i.e. when the heads are producing pollen. Can't see any pollen on that grass.

For young stock and breeding stock, cut a bit earlier as it will have more protein. I'll be cutting late because native ponies need bulk (carbohydrate and fibre) rather than high feeding value. I will also get a heavier crop...and, hopefully, the weather will have settled down by then.

Its to feed everyones favourite animal, the Horse

 

[Grassman]

Its to feed everyones favourite animal, the Horse

Plenty early enough for horses. Most just want belly fill!

 

[It was already broken.]

They always put the Norfolk show on slap bang at the optimum time for haysel. Around here

Rather make hay than trudge round the Norfolk Show paying four quid for a pint, looking at machines I can't afford and be ignored by reps who know I can't afford them.

 

[Dry Rot]

Its to feed everyones favourite animal, the Horse

Horses vary. The hay I'll be feeding my Highland ponies won't be cut before July when it has bulked up and lost some of it's feeding value. I want quantity, not quality. If you have Thoroughbreds and breeding stock, I suspect your requirements will be different.

 

[marshfarmer]

Rather make hay than trudge round the Norfolk Show paying four quid for a pint, looking at machines I can't afford and be ignored by reps who know I can't afford them.

Ah, that's what happens there is it, glad I've never been then

 

[Ukjay]

Horses vary. The hay I'll be feeding my Highland ponies won't be cut before July when it has bulked up and lost some of it's feeding value. I want quantity, not quality. If you have Thoroughbreds and breeding stock, I suspect your requirements will be different.

We have competition horses, so we do not want high sugar content, as we need to be cautious in respect of colic and laminitis.

 

[Grassman]

We have competition horses, so we do not want high sugar content, as we need to be cautious in respect of colic and laminitis.

Wait till July then!

 

[bobk]

We have competition horses, so we do not want high sugar content, as we need to be cautious in respect of colic and laminitis.

No many competition hosses with lami

 

[Ukjay]

No many competition hosses with lami

Im not going to get into a debate here, but in a nutshell most responsible horse owners monitor the feeds and diet given to their horses and feed a diet containing very low sugar but include minerals etc to balance the intake.
Lets not forget, not all competition horses are thoroughbreds with higher metabolisms - but at the same time, you still need to balance sugar intake with them too, and give a balanced diet, whereupon as you cannot say for certain how much sugar etc hay contains - caution must prevail to prevent laminitis.

High sugar diets are attributed in part to being an influence on horses getting laminitis, as increased weight and so on is seen as a pre cursor to potential laminitis issues if the irresponsible do not keep the diet balanced and weight under control.
Also, if you look at a lot of horses feeds now, a lot will contain lower sugar levels - allowing the owners to maintain a balanced sugar content!

A fizzy horse can also then become excluded from owners riding them due to becoming what is termed a non novice ride, whereupon the weight gain leads to complications thay may or may not include laminitis.

 

[bobk]

Im not going to get into a debate here, but in a nutshell most responsible horse owners monitor the feeds and diet given to their horses and feed a diet containing very low sugar but include minerals etc to balance the intake.
Lets not forget, not all competition horses are thoroughbreds with higher metabolisms - but at the same time, you still need to balance sugar intake with them too, and give a balanced diet, whereupon as you cannot say for certain how much sugar etc hay contains - caution must prevail to prevent laminitis.

High sugar diets are attributed in part to being an influence on horses getting laminitis, as increased weight and so on is seen as a pre cursor to potential laminitis issues if the irresponsible do not keep the diet balanced and weight under control.
Also, if you look at a lot of horses feeds now, a lot will contain lower sugar levels - allowing the owners to maintain a balanced sugar content!

A fizzy horse can also then become excluded from owners riding them due to becoming what is termed a non novice ride, whereupon the weight gain leads to complications thay may or may not include laminitis.

Laminitis is caused by poor blood circulation.

 

[Ukjay]

Laminitis is caused by poor blood circulation.

Erm, strongly disagree.

There is no one cause for laminitis as indicated by your statement, and additionally, it was once considered only a bain of fat ponies.
It can affect any horse, any age, and there are many contributory factors influencing laminitis in horses from dietry issues to impact damage to medicines used.

It becomes even more of a concern if you have a horse with EMS, as the starch in some hay can be converted in the body to simple sugar such as glucose, that can affect laminitis, as it is similar to insulin.

This is why prevention is better than dealing with laminitis prone horses, as it prevents the problem and why most responsible feed hay that has lower starch content in order to reduce conversion to sugars. You jyst need to ensure fresh water is plentiful to hopefully avoid colic caused by compacting the feed in the gut.

 

[Somerset Farmer]

Hi All,

We continued treating our land to remove weeds etc, as we were looking to try and yield a crop of our own hay this year, but the grass is going to seed earlier than we were told to get it cut due to the precipitation we have been having around here recently - so the question here is, will this be useable for Hay do you think?

Excuse the nutter bouncing around like a flea on crack - she just loves being out

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Looks like it has been sprayed with herbicide recently make sure if you cut for hay all withdrawal conditions are observed