Hay availability - Summer 2023

[eightpondfarm]

We had our two main fields hayed last week and only got 30 roundbales. 1,500 pounders though. (we need 30 tons…so we’re not where we need to be yet.). I figured maybe we’ll get another chance for a second cutting this Fall.
But>>>> got a phone call from my alfalfa supplier, (i have a standing order for 50 tons second cut) and they said they wanted me to stop by and take a look at their first cut. They only got 5400 55#bales and they are afraid that might just be the one and only cutting this year. I can take my allotment from that, should i choose. Price/bale is 12 this year. I will go by in the morning and take a look and leave them full payment if it’s decent enough. I’m just afraid it’s going to be a tight summer.

Grass hay we got from our own fields was perfect. i really like it when most of the grasses are in half seed. (like free grain man!) So, good hay. But not nearly enough…

I’m expecting high prices due to low supply here in MO

[goodhors]

Michigan hay is looking good. Lots being done this last week, heat and all. We got ours in and done today, just hotter than heck! Found two wonderful guys to stack in the barn. One of those “Praise the Lord” times!! Paid them well and gave tips! Our hay is grass, but you might find a hay broker, have some hay shipped out to you if you can’t find enough locally.

Weather here and further into Indiana has been perfect for cutting, drying and baling hay. Might not get a second cutting if we don’t get some rain soon. Third week of no rain and dry. No dew at night either.

[2DogsFarm]

Hayguy neighbor took down my “field” today.
Quotes because it’s just the L-shaped acreage surrounding my pastures, maybe 1ac+?
They got 100+ small squares off last year.
As @goodhors said, weather is right, but we’re drought-ish. No decent rain since May 8
What I see, laying unraked, looks to be less than usual.
Same for the alfalfa field across the road, cut this week.
My pastures are skimpy. Enough so I’m feeding a lot less hay, but I’ll need to keep feeding. No way there’s enough forage for my 3 in the 2+ac in pasture.
There’s a 2nd cutting, little chance of a 3rd

[Texarkana]

The season started out great here, but now it’s been so dry. I noticed just tonight that my grass is yellowing and my clover is shriveling up. That doesn’t bode well for the next cuttings of local hay.

With so much of North America dry, I hope things don’t get too dicey.

[SLW]

Hit or miss around here depending on where the rain cells landed. Beautiful stuff being cut & baled with 1-3 miles of me. 7 miles north or south and the guys say their hay fields are in bad shape.

[lenapesadie]

Local hay farmers had a good first cutting. We’ve gotten some rain since but could use more. Last year we had so much rain it was hard to cut, dry and bale decently.

[LilRanger]

I’m in northern NM, and it’s been raining a lot, the water situation right now looks good for grass and alfalfa. I’ve been seeing a fair about of hay coming south, so i assume Colorado is also having a good spring.

[2DogsFarm]

Same here!
Wednesday we got literally a 5min rainstorm - thunder & lightning, but next to zero precip.
I talked to a friend maybe 10mi from me & they got 1.25" rain

[NancyM]

Looking good so far here for us. Neighbours are going to do first cut soon, more than 3 weeks early for here. We won’t be, as we have only one irrigation gun working, waiting for parts for the other one. But we only take one cut anyway, the neighbours take two (and use more fertilizer than we do as a result of dragging their soil down). We are probably a month away from cutting. Forest fires will be burning here by then. Naturally smoked hay (local joke).

[candyappy]

@eightpondfarm

I’m expecting high prices due to low supply here in MO

Our yields are down. We just got our first rain ( 3/4ths inch) in a month. The hay is lovely and we are putting it up as fast as we can but no more rain expected for the week. You bet prices here will be up.

If the alfalfa is good , get it.

[SLW]

@2DogsFarm

Same here!
Wednesday we got literally a 5min rainstorm - thunder & lightning, but next to zero precip.
I talked to a friend maybe 10mi from me & they got 1.25" rain

I got 4.75” of rain that day!

[eightpondfarm]

i went and looked at the alfalfa stacks yesterday. There is brome/alfalfa mix at 13/bale and Orchard/alfalfa mix at 11/bale. Orchard has seed heads still intact… I saw the fields. The alfalfa is green and i can see how very alfalfa-y the fields are…prob 75% alfalfa. Oh and then then there is pure alfalfa hay at 14/bale.

In all the stacks the alfalfa is pretty stemmy, plenty of leaf, but the leaf is dry…powdery. I can only visualize my livestock getting the powder in the dead of winter when they can get up off the ground better.

So, i guess i’ll get mostly the alfalfa orchard mix and maybe just 500 bales of the pure alfalfa for Jan/Feb.

[2DogsFarm]

If you mean the 2-string 40-50# small squares {GULP} That’s about twice what small squares went for last year.
Those who - to my mind, foolishly - waited to buy until the dead of Winter, paid $7/bale.
Or more. For orchard grass - with maybe some timothy, higher if the mix had alfalfa.

Looks like I was right
Hayguy neighbor thinks they’ll be lucky to get 50 bales off my field.
Alfalfa across the road goes into round bales.
Baled yesterday, I counted less than a dozen.

If no 2nd cutting happens, I expect some scary hay prices.

[eightpondfarm]

@2DogsFarm

If you mean the 2-string 40-50# small squares {GULP} That’s about twice what small squares went for last year.

these ones that i get from this guy (well, it’s a large family hay production/implement/auctioneer company…pretty large operation. Anyhow, they have allll the machines. They bale and bundle and move without tossing around. So whatever has been caught up in a bale stays there…that’s the good news. And, they are a business…so they compare and price according to market with emphasis to sell quickly. They don’t hoard and play the waiting game…which i appreciate. AND they deliver!

Their sq bales are 2string, and avg 55+ pounds… heavier than i want to lift, but i have to anyway. lol. And every bale is at least 75% alfalfa. Orchard just invaded the edges of the fields. They have about 400 acres in hay, mostly alfalfa.

[Calvincrowe]

We got a shot of really hot weather in early May here in the PNW, after a very wet March and April (and so much snow this winter in the mountains!), which allowed some folks to get a first cut about a month and a half early, of the “local” or “unfarmed” hay. Just saw several fields cut this weekend as we are expecting another round of hot weather/no rain.

I know the drought situation in eastern Oregon is alleviated in many areas, though some are still seeing significant water shortages. But the irrigation water situation is looking really good for most of central Oregon, so there should be plenty of export hay available from eastern WA and OR both. My hay broker gets all the hay off a few “pivots” from a massive cattle and hay operation in Christmas Valley, OR and he said it’s looking great so far. I’m thrilled!

Another sign? Lots of last year’s hay is for sale locally as folks bought it up anticipating a lack of hay last summer (and there was…but mostly due to high cost meaning folks bought less and stretched it out). Good bargains to be had if one can store hay and the quality of the hay is still good.

[2DogsFarm]

I don’t feed alfalfa. No broodmares or horses in anything approximating Work here
They get 1st cutting orchard & stay fat as ticks
My Hayguy neighbors don’t bale as heavy.
Their 2-string bales are ~40# & sold for $5/bale.
We barter my year’s worth - 350 bales - for storing loaded wagons in my indoor.
I’ve had as many as 7 in there, including 2 humongous cage wagons, & still have enough room to ride.
They also deliver & stack for me

[eightpondfarm]

grass hay is still affordable here. Harder and harder to find anyone baling square though. As far as getting people to stack it >>>>> LOL now THAT’s hard!!

[2DogsFarm]

Kids don’t want to work that hard.
Probably 15yrs ago my former hayguy paid HS kids $10/hr to stack.
Every year, a new kid. Even then it was too much sweaty, hard work when they could sling fries for nearly the same

[kaya842]

Agree that price is SUPER high for the MO area (I’m MO/ IL in the STL area and paid less than $7/bale stacked and delivered full alfalfa last year). Hopefully that isn’t the trend for this year. I think my alfalfa guy said bales would be $7.50 this year which is totally fine/ doable, but that was before baling season.

[K_VanOlst]

@kaya842

Agree that price is SUPER high for the MO area (I’m MO/ IL in the STL area and paid less than $7/bale stacked and delivered full alfalfa last year). Hopefully that isn’t the trend for this year. I think my alfalfa guy said bales would be $7.50 this year which is totally fine/ doable, but that was before baling season.

If they’re buying from Wise Bros they are notoriously high priced/low quality lol. I saw one of their hay postcards for this year and it’s obscene.