I have a very small farmette (5 acres total, but horses/pasture/barn are on 2.5 of that with no option to expand due to topography/house). I try to purchase hay that my horses (two retired geldings at this point) will eat all up, leaving little hay waste. Currently, I am feeding a lovely first cut orchard which they eat very well, but there are some thicker stems that don’t get eaten which I think is fairly normal. It usually amounts to a few pitchforks full. I’ve avoided putting hay in my compost system as it really doesn’t break down well-- I use pelleted bedding, but it consists mostly of poop.
Do you toss hay in with your stall cleanings? Separate the hay bits and put somewhere else? I do turn my piles (3 bin system) with my tractor but it isn’t covered and I can’t water (not enough!) during the dry months. I currently have a separate pile of hay bits, chicken coop cleanings, etc.