Looking out onto a field of perfectly rolled hay bales is a beautiful sight to see. It is even more impactful if you are the one that baled them. Can feel yourself filling with pride on a job well done.
When it comes to making the perfect hay bale there are many steps to take care of. Things like being at the right moisture content, the maturity of the forages, and the settings on the machines that you will be using all play a part in how your hay bales will turn out.
But how can you get all of the factors to mesh together to produce your desired result? Well, today I will go over the 4 main steps that you can use to make the perfect bale of hay.
Moisture is key
When going over any strategy the first step is always the most important. By getting this step right, you can build off with the others falling into place. When it comes to baling hay the first step to look at is making sure that the cut hay is at the right moisture percentage.
The moisture content should be in the 16% to 20% range depending on the size of the bale that you are going with. Small square bales can be baled at 20% or less, Large round bales need to be at 18% or less, and large square bales can not be more than 16%.
Finding the right moisture percentage to bale at is a very delicate balance. If you bale at a higher percentage you will lose more dry matter content due to heating and molding. However, if you bale at too low of a percentage you will lose much of the nutrient content because of leaf loss.
One way that you can reduce dry matter loss is to use hay crimpers and crushers. Using these will reduce curing time in the swath, overall exposure to weather, as well as leaf shattering, and respiration loss.
Your problems with moisture content do not need once the bale has been made. It is also important to prevent moisture, such as rain, from getting into the hay bale after it has been baled. The way that you can prevent this from happening is in how you store the bales.
Have the right size windrows
A large part of having a perfect hay bale is making sure that the windrows are the right size. This of course will all depend on the size of the baler that you will be using.
The windrows should be evenly spread out across the chamber of the baler. The way that you will do this is by having your hay rake set to the proper settings.
Creating a correctly sized windrow will ensure that the same amount of hay is under each belt. When you do this your hay bales will come out level and even. Another thing this will do is make sure that your bales are tight which will reduce the likelihood of moisture getting into the inside of your bale.
It is important to not only have the windrows at the right width but to also have your baler set to the right height. The pickup part on the front of your baler should flow evenly with the contours of the land. If it is set too high you will not be getting all of the hay that is on the ground. Too low you run the risk of either damaging the equipment or picking up rocks in your hay bales.
When it comes to making windrows there are 3 types of equipment to use: Parallel bar, Wheel, and rotary.
- Parallel Bar: sometimes referred to as twin rakes or basket rakes. This type is better able to handle wetter, heavier forages.
- Wheel: These are the most common here in North America. Their simplicity and lower costs make them an attractive option for most producers. A drawback is that they do not perform well with wetter, heavier forages
- Rotary: Like the parallel bar this type can handle wetter, heavier forages. Though they are not as capable of high field speeds.
Make sure the hay baler is set right
Just because you have the equipment set right when you start does not mean that is the end. Continue to monitor bale density in the chamber while you are running and make adjustments as needed.
Ensuring that the tension is correct is vital as well. While baling you may have to make adjustments to your twine or wrap to keep tension just right. You can tell if the tension is not right is that the bale will appear to expand once it is out of the chamber.
To make sure that your bales are tight you will need to use the correct baler density settings. Another way that you can ensure bale density is to make sure that the chamber is full. It is not uncommon to have to make readjustments in the field while you are baling.
A common problem when baling is low density. A visual sign of low density is that one end of the hay bale will be tighter than the other. If this happens to you there is no need to worry, it happens to everyone.
If you are not sure about how to fix the problem with low density in your bales the folks over at haymanager.com have some tips that you can follow:
- Increase the target force. If the target force is too high you will need to decrease it or use stronger twine.
- Consider installing additional side hay resistors on each side of the compression doors. Most experts recommend adding three to each side of the doors in addition to the resistors that are already installed.
- Operate the baler between 30 to 60 strokes per bale. If you are having difficulty staying within this range you may need to rake more hay into the windrow. Other remedies include shifting gears up or decreasing PTO speed.
Properly store your hay bales
Now that you have created your perfect hay bales how you store them can make all of the difference. If bales are not stored properly you can lose up to 25% of the dry matter content of your hay. Along with the DM, improper storage can also decrease the overall digestibility.
The moisture percentage at the time of baling will determine how long you can store them. Store them too early and you will lose a large percentage to molding. Not to mention you run the risk of the bales combusting from the increase of heat.
Hay that is baled with more than 22% moisture should not be put into storage for 30 days.
The internal temperature of the hay bale will also tell you when you are able to store too. The internal temperature of the bale should be no more than 120 degs when stored inside. If the temperature gets above 170 degs you run the chance of the bales combusting.
Whether you are storing the bales inside or outside there are things that you can do to prevent dry matter and digestibility losses. Things like putting them on well-drain soil and keeping enough distance between them are just a couple of steps that you can take. If you are interested in learning more about what you can do I talked about that in a previous article “5 rules for proper hay storage”.
