Modern Hill Woman

From mid-May until late June, I spend a lot of time on the road chasing down tractor parts from various tractor dealerships. The tractors weren’t used much throughout the winter so parts often need replaced. Delays due to broken parts or inadequate equipment can result in a late harvest or improperly dried hay. Equipment that’s ready to go is one less source of stress when field and weather conditions finally align for that first cutting of the year.

Once the tractors are up and running, my husband is in the hay and I am a “hay widow” for around four weeks. Some nights he’s in the field until midnight.

Putting up hay is a multiple step process: cutting, drying, raking, baling and storing.

Hay harvesting is an important part of life for farmers who have livestock. A good hay crop is defined by weather, field conditions, and plant reseeding, as well as the farmer’s perfect timing and hard work.

Cutting the hay too early could produce lower yields, while cutting too late may result in lower nutrition content because the plant has begun focusing on seed production.

During hay season, my husband keeps up with the weather better than any weatherman. You need at least three days of dry weather to cut your hay. It takes this amount of time to dry hay for baling, and rain interrupts this process. Within a day of cutting the hay, it must be tedded or raked. A tedder is a piece of machinery that aerates the hay by spreading it out, so light and heat can dry it. Once the hay is sufficiently dry, it can be baled. If hay is baled while too moist there is a significant risk of spontaneous combustion. Once the hay is baled it is hauled and stored in a barn, or sometimes left in the field and covered.

Many teenagers have bucked (thrown) bales in the summer for extra cash. In the 70s, a crew consisting of four or five people got paid 15 cents per bale and on average could throw 100 small square bales on a trailer per hour. That was $15 an hour split between a few people. In the mid 80s most farmers went to large round bales.

In a month, my husband will get a small reprieve, then the second cutting will begin.