How many cuts can you get from hay?

How many cuts can you get from hay?

In regions that lie south of our location, the growing season is longer and hotter, making alfalfa the prime hay crop, and often as many as four or five cuttings may be taken from a single field. The third cutting is typically very soft hay that is primarily leaves with very few small stems.

What is hay cutting?

Cutting hay is done when the hay has the most nutritional value. Usually that is after about 60 days when harvesting alfalfa for hay. The same field of hay can be cut two or three times in the same season. Machines that can cut hay are called mowers.

Why do people cut hay at night?

Though starches and simple sugars accumulate during the day, a substantial amount of these carbohydrates are used up during the night for growth and maintenance (via the processes of respiration). Therefore, cutting the crop at night will likely maximize the sugar in the crop, at least at the time of cutting.

How tall does hay need to be to cut?

The first cutting in the spring should be when grass has greened up and reached 12 – 16 inches tall. This should clean up all the old growth of winter weeds and such. Then each subsequent cutting is at 3.5 to 5 week intervals. This is dependent on fertilizer and moisture.

Which cut of hay is best?

First cut hay is coarser than second cut, this is because the spring growth (rain, etc.) leads to thicker stems and stalks and heavier leaves. Second cut hay has a finer texture and usually, a greener color and heavier leaves. It is more dense, the leaves are more tender and healthier, especially in protein.

How many times per year can you cut hay?

In most areas of the country, grass hay can be cut twice, sometimes three times, per year. The first cutting generally has the largest yield. Some animals, like sheep, prefer the tender stems of second or third cutting hay.

How fast can you cut hay?

Hay Master Usually shoot for 10 mph but have hit 12 in long fields.

Is it too late to cut hay?

The answers to these questions are usually something like… “it is fine to harvest through the first week of September”, and… “we recommend harvesting at least six weeks before the killing frost.” On average, the alfalfa killing frost (24 to 25 degrees F) in northeast Iowa occurs in the third to fourth week of October.

When should hay be cut?

With all of these factors in mind, it is best to cut hay when there is the greatest opportunity for successful drying, or early in the morning after the dew has dried off. As the old saying goes, “make hay while the sun shines!”

When can you cut hay?

Hay is usually cut in July to September depending on the type of wildflowers present and the weather over this period. Changing between earlier cuts (usually after 15th July) to later cutes (in late August) is beneficial for a hay meadow, rather than cutting at the same time each year.

Can you mow hay in the rain?

When plants are cut for hay, they do not immediately die. As long as moisture is above 40 percent, they will continue to respire – exchange oxygen and carbon dioxide – a process that burns energy. Sometimes, rain will not reduce hay quality significantly if the hay has adequate time to dry and cure prior to baling.