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60 comments

  • tazzer
    got ours baled yesterday, made a whopping 17 bales far cry from last years 73.

    we need rain bad here in east Texas [B)]
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  • danielgage
    quote:Originally posted by tazzer
    got ours baled yesterday, made a whopping 17 bales far cry from last years 73.

    we need rain bad here in east Texas [B)]


    yes sir
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  • Mobuck
    Desperation prevails here in north MO. I see guys cutting crap that isn't worth the cost of fuel while their cows are starving on burnt up pasture across the fence. I think they would be better off to pasture everything and figure out how to get hay or alternate feed later.
    I talked to my hay buyer yesterday about filling out his order with some CRP hay. He has some pretty specific parameters for his operation but as of yesterday, hay(any hay,any size bale, any sort twine/net wrap) rolled up for transport and loaded on his semi will suffice.
    One of the problems I see with this "weather disaster" is cattlemen got greedy when cattle prices got high and over stocked. Now, they're trying to compensate for lower prices/higher rents with even higher stocking rates. Add some dry weather and you've got a disaster. I didn't see it that way when I was in the cattle business. Pasture rent was cheap and having more acres than required was cheap insurance against just such a disaster as is happening now. Baling/feeding hay was/is expensive and time consuming. Renting additional pasture(if you can get it) is way cheaper in every respect.
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  • danielgage
    sounds like you are spot on Mobuck
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  • danielgage
    quote:Originally posted by Barzillia
    They are selling the heck out of it in Oklahoma.


    what is it selling for there[?]
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  • tazzer
    I have not checked yet Iv heard its going for 40-60 a bale here thats first cutting. I lucked out and bought a extra 40 rolls for 30.00 a bale but they are 4x5 bales
    and thats if you can find it
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  • danielgage
    10-4

    I have been hearing $100.00+ for 4x5 round bales of Bermuda hay in these parts

    I have sold mine for $50.00 for several years including this one
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  • grumpygy
    The guys that did get theirs bailed I see they left them in the field and are selling them from there.
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  • danielgage
    quote:Originally posted by grumpygy
    The guys that did get theirs bailed I see they left them in the field and are selling them from there.


    smarter than me

    delivering can cause problems
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  • tazzer
    Done a little checking and they are around 75.00 here for Bermuda now

    norm is around 25-30.00 and 40 for better stuff
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  • danielgage
    thanks
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  • redneckandy
    I started feeding hay last week. I have never fed hay in July before. I got lucky and was able to buy a bunch of bales. If winter is bad this year I'm gonna be in trouble.
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  • danielgage
    I have heard others say that in Western Missouri
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  • pulsarnc
    Here in NC depending on what type grass average is about $30 a bale for a 4x5 round bale from this years cutting have seen some barn stored 2017 cow quality for 10 a bale
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  • montanajoe
    • Community moderator
    pg.#2
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  • danielgage
    baled up 865 more small square bales today

    hope to get it delivered tomorrow
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  • danielgage
    got it delivered
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  • redneckandy
    Been feeding hay since the end of July. No rain and I have never seen my fields so dry. Selling more cows than I want to and I'm still going to spend twenty grand on hay this year.[B)][B)]. Last year I spent six grand.

    Farming is rough.
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  • allen griggs
    Ah, yes, stacking hay bales.
    In the summer of 1977, I was up in Newport Washington and hard up for a job.
    My cousin and I got a job loading hay bales. This was on a big dairy farm they milked 96 cows.

    Up there, now I don't know what size bales they make on your farm, but up there the bales are 95 pounds. Alfalfa. In fact we had one field, about 4,000 bales there, I don't know what happened but those baled were 105 pounds. Good God!
    We split 9 cents per bale, so, if we put 1000 bales a day in the barn, I got $45!

    I had done lots of construction work, carpenter laborer, and God Forbid, brick mason helper, in the hot Georgia sun, but My God twelve hours a day in those hay fields of Washington state will make a man out of you.

    We had a pop up loader, so one guy stood in the truck while the other guy drove. Put maybe 150 bales in the truck.
    Then back to the barn, one guy tossed the bales off and the other stacked. 95 pounds times 3,000 reps.

    I learned that the hawks see a hay bale as a dining room table. Every day there was a pile of dried rabbit guts on one of those bales, you lift it up with the hooks and dried rabbit guts fly into your eyes.
    And, on the next bale, a pile of hawk s*it, you throw that bale and you get dried hawk s*hit flying into your face.

    No, that was one unforgettable summer, throwing alfalfa bales on the old dairy farm. Did that for about 3 months.
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  • danielgage
    quote:Originally posted by redneckandy
    Been feeding hay since the end of July. No rain and I have never seen my fields so dry. Selling more cows than I want to and I'm still going to spend twenty grand on hay this year.[B)][B)]. Last year I spent six grand.

    Farming is rough.


    yes sir I can't find enough round bales of hay for the people I know in Missouri

    have got them some though

    they are not wanting to sell cows but my have to
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  • danielgage
    quote:Originally posted by allen griggs
    Ah, yes, stacking hay bales.
    In the summer of 1977, I was up in Newport Washington and hard up for a job.
    My cousin and I got a job loading hay bales. This was on a big dairy farm they milked 96 cows.

    Up there, now I don't know what size bales they make on your farm, but up there the bales are 95 pounds. Alfalfa. In fact we had one field, about 4,000 bales there, I don't know what happened but those baled were 105 pounds. Good God!
    We split 9 cents per bale, so, if we put 1000 bales a day in the barn, I got $45!

    I had done lots of construction work, carpenter laborer, and God Forbid, brick mason helper, in the hot Georgia sun, but My God twelve hours a day in those hay fields of Washington state will make a man out of you.

    We had a pop up loader, so one guy stood in the truck while the other guy drove. Put maybe 150 bales in the truck.
    Then back to the barn, one guy tossed the bales off and the other stacked. 95 pounds times 3,000 reps.

    I learned that the hawks see a hay bale as a dining room table. Every day there was a pile of dried rabbit guts on one of those bales, you lift it up with the hooks and dried rabbit guts fly into your eyes.
    And, on the next bale, a pile of hawk s*it, you throw that bale and you get dried hawk s*hit flying into your face.

    No, that was one unforgettable summer, throwing alfalfa bales on the old dairy farm. Did that for about 3 months.


    I just thought my bales were heavy(55 to 60) never done Alfalfa WOW
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  • Mobuck
    "I just thought my bales were heavy(55 to 60) never done Alfalfa WOW"

    Makes a big diff on what size/type of baler you have. Common bale chamber size is often 14" x 18" x whatever length you set. The next step is about 16" x 24"(not sure about exact dimensions since we never had one of those)x set length.
    It's darned tough to make a 14"x 18" bale over about 60-65#. Getting it tight enough and/or long enough to make more weight ends up breaking twine, missing knots, or bulging in the middle. Wire tie is a whole nother ball game and I never had one of those either.
    Some folks bale alfalfa a bit "tough" to save as many leaves(the good part)as possible while hoping it doesn't mold.
    We used to hire hay handlers for a penny a bale and lunch. On a good day, we slid 1000 bales across the wagons behind the baler and often handled each bale 3 times for the same penny. I've picked up hay out of the field(no mechanical loader) and stacked it for 6 cents a bale. That bought 2 men, a tractor (w/driver) and wagons.
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  • danielgage
    quote:Originally posted by Mobuck
    "I just thought my bales were heavy(55 to 60) never done Alfalfa WOW"

    Makes a big diff on what size/type of baler you have. Common bale chamber size is often 14" x 18" x whatever length you set. The next step is about 16" x 24"(not sure about exact dimensions since we never had one of those)x set length.
    It's darned tough to make a 14"x 18" bale over about 60-65#. Getting it tight enough and/or long enough to make more weight ends up breaking twine, missing knots, or bulging in the middle. Wire tie is a whole nother ball game and I never had one of those either.
    Some folks bale alfalfa a bit "tough" to save as many leaves(the good part)as possible while hoping it doesn't mold.
    We used to hire hay handlers for a penny a bale and lunch. On a good day, we slid 1000 bales across the wagons behind the baler and often handled each bale 3 times for the same penny. I've picked up hay out of the field(no mechanical loader) and stacked it for 6 cents a bale. That bought 2 men, a tractor (w/driver) and wagons.


    yes sir using good strong twine has helped me tremendously

    good tight solid bales withstand accumulator and grapple handling
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  • Mobuck
    "accumulator and grapple handling"

    Hey, that takes all the fun(?) out of the process.
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  • danielgage
    quote:Originally posted by Mobuck
    "accumulator and grapple handling"

    Hey, that takes all the fun(?) out of the process.


    yes sir but lets this old guy keep doing it
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  • danielgage
    baled up 1390 more square bales the last two days
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  • Mobuck
    "sounds like you are spot on Mobuck"

    I've been doing this long enough that I should(?) know all the angles.

    FWIW
    We just got another 4/10" of rain. We've had more rain in the last 10 days than we had since May 24(when we got wind, rain, and hail that destroyed everything).
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  • danielgage
    I drove to Springfield MO today looks like the pastures have greened back up

    rained most of the way back too
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  • tazzer
    got about 4" of rain the other day then 1" yesterday

    meadow is looking a lot better

    RRExkZ5l.jpg
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  • danielgage
    quote:Originally posted by tazzer
    got about 4" of rain the other day then 1" yesterday

    meadow is looking a lot better

    RRExkZ5l.jpg


    good deal[:)]
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