Wrapping hay

[Robw54]

We've unintentionally wrapped haylage which was close to hay before with mixed result in the past.

We are looking to make some hay this year (beyond haylage now) and get it properly dry. Not sufficient inside storage for it all - wondering would a thin layer work better than our usual 6?

Are we looking for total air exclusion or just to keep the rain off? It's gonna sweat whatever.

 

[Northeastfarmer]

Unless it’s fully sealed it’ll sweat and rot
Either wrap it properly or don’t waste your time and money

 

[Robw54]

Reason I ask also is our grass gets a little stalky which potentially means more small holes on wrapped baled. This is a problem with fermented haylage, particularly when the grass is drier/older due to less fermenting - but 15% say 'hay' but is it such an issue with hay?

 

[Rod Dumbreck]

I wrapped some straw for someone once, and it sent horrible and mouldy.

 

[andybk]

june haylage will prob be ok as nearly hay as moisture in stalks and plant has sugars , july / august dead stalks and poor sugar grass is a different thing wrapped , The drier it is the more wrap it needs unless you let it sweat out for a month or two

 

[Dry Rot]

There's an American study by one of their colleges on the web somewhere that concluded that the dry matter of grass (so silage, haylage, or hay) didn't matter so long as you exclude air. How you do that is the deciding factor.

Also, lots of studies on covering hay in round bales in various ways. After trying a few, I've found just storing on pallets with a few extra layers of net wrap is as effective as anything as the wrap sheds most of the rain. Even the usual 1 1/2 layers is pretty effective.

Sitting uncovered bales on damp ground causes more loss through water wicking up than through rain penetration through the top.

P.S. I'm in the Highlands, 40 miles north of Inverness!).

 

[jamesy]

There's an American study by one of their colleges on the web somewhere that concluded that the dry matter of grass (so silage, haylage, or hay) didn't matter so long as you exclude air. How you do that is the deciding factor.

Also, lots of studies on covering hay in round bales in various ways. After trying a few, I've found just storing on pallets with a few extra layers of net wrap is as effective as anything as the wrap sheds most of the rain. Even the usual 1 1/2 layers is pretty effective.

Sitting uncovered bales on damp ground causes more loss through water wicking up than through rain penetration through the top.

P.S. I'm in the Highlands, 40 miles north of Inverness!).

Your right there, I usually store my hay on links type ground, so very dry but still more waste on bottom than top & sides

 

[Robw54]

june haylage will prob be ok as nearly hay as moisture in stalks and plant has sugars , july / august dead stalks and poor sugar grass is a different thing wrapped , The drier it is the more wrap it needs unless you let it sweat out for a month or two

It's going to stop out a week then into shed. Will wrap in sept if it needs to go outside again.

 

[Old Tip]

It's going to stop out a week then into shed. Will wrap in sept if it needs to go outside again.

That’s probably the ideal way of doing it, I have often thought of wrapping it then cutting a 12” hole in either end to let it sweat but fear it will just mould on the outsides

 

[Dry Rot]

That’s probably the ideal way of doing it, I have often thought of wrapping it then cutting a 12” hole in either end to let it sweat but fear it will just mould on the outsides

Is there no way of programming an ordinary wrapper to simply put a layer on the curved surface, like net wrap, i.e. leaving the ends open? I know that plastic wrap can be put on like net wrap at the time of baling but apparently that doesn't work because the bale will still sweat causing mould. I've also heard putting hay through a tubeliner works, but think it would need to be very dry.

 

[Sharpy]

I am sure @DrDunc wraps hay and gets on well with it. We will probably wrap some round bale hay this year too for various reasons.

 

[glasshouse]

i was warned last yr by contractor that wrapped hay goes mouldy.
build a shed quick

 

[DrDunc]

I am sure @DrDunc wraps hay and gets on well with it. We will probably wrap some round bale hay this year too for various reasons.

Aye, wrapped over 200 bales last year.

Usually that would feed the sheep all winter with plenty spare. This winter they'd finished the lot before the end of February

I wrap the hay with 6 layer in the field, and cart home and stack. You get an occasional bale with surface mould if the plastic is damaged. It's usually no more than a few handful that needs discarded if feeding sheep. Think there was about 6 altogether last winter.

Provided you exclude air, it can sweat as much as it wants, but won't mould.

 

[DeeGee]

I frequently wrap hay that is not quite dry enough to bale and touch wood I find that it comes out as as sweet smelling slightly damp hay, which the horse people love.

As Dr Dunc says, you sometimes get some localised light mould if the wrap has been damaged but this happens with damper haylage as well.

 

[HasthorpeGrange]

If you know your going to wrap it straight away make sure the tension is on full on the baler to get air out and don't give it a chance to sweat wrap straight away and it will smell lovely when opened
Spongy bales that have some sweat left will mould due to the air in them

 

[Dry Rot]

White mold on haylade is harmless as I found out when I gave some to a neighbour for his cattle. He smiled wih glee and I later found out why. He'd sold it to his liveries!

 

[trewern]

looks like I’ll be wrapping hay this year well past haylage and no storage and seams no possible way of keeping hay without a shed! I’d like to think I can let them sweat on the field then stack them on pallets place tyres on top to keep water flowing off and not pooling and sheet the top any thoughts ?

 

[AvonValleyFarmer]

looks like I’ll be wrapping hay this year well past haylage and no storage and seams no possible way of keeping hay without a shed! I’d like to think I can let them sweat on the field then stack them on pallets place tyres on top to keep water flowing off and not pooling and sheet the top any thoughts ?

I sheet my excess bales, usually on a trailer but pallets would work. I try to make an apex at the top and lay a few lengths of timber on top, to keep the sheet off the hay.