What exactly is hay?
Hay is a grass that has been cut, dried, and stored for animal feed. Hay is made from the stems, leaves, and seed heads of plants that are fresh. It is cut and baled when it has the most nutritional value, and is fed to livestock.
What is hay in agriculture?
Hay, in agriculture, dried grasses and other foliage used as animal feed. Usually the material is cut in the field while still green and then either dried in the field or mechanically dried by forced hot air. Typical hay crops are timothy, alfalfa, and clover.
What is difference between straw and hay?
Hay is a crop that is grown and harvested as a feed crop for cattle, horses and other farm animals. Straw on the other hand is a byproduct of a grain crop; in our area it’s usually usually wheat straw that we see. Hay often is made up of a combination of different plants growing in a field or meadow.
What kind of grass is hay?
Kentucky bluegrass, orchardgrass and timothy are all examples of common grasses used for hay. Benefits: Grass hay is lower in protein and energy than legume hay — but it’s also higher in fiber, which can make it a good choice for many horses.
Is hay easy to grow?
No matter what your reason for growing, harvesting and baling hay, it can be a great project that can reap great rewards. Hay – grasses and legumes that can be dried for stock feed – is simple to grow either as part of a crop rotation or a permanent meadow, and grows naturally in many areas.
What does good hay look like?
Good quality hay should be bright green in color with little fading. A bleached, yellow, brown or black color may indicate aged hay, mold or poor storage conditions. Storage condition and age have a significant effect on vitamin content of hays. In some cases, they can replace hay in the diet entirely.
Why do farmers put hay bales in fields?
These rolls of hay, compiled of grass, legumes, and other plants, are cut, dried, and rolled to store on the land for the animals to graze on. They are imperative for grazing animals when the pasture doesn’t provide the correct nutrients or if the weather doesn’t permit grazing access.
Is straw cheaper than hay?
Straw is far less expensive than hay in our area, selling for under $4/square bale. Since hay is more nutritious but more expensive, we buy hay solely for the horses to eat. Since straw is cheaper, dried and therefore less likely to mold or attract moisture, we buy straw for the backyard chicken coop and nesting boxes.
Is hay just long grass?
Hay is grass, legumes, or other herbaceous plants that have been cut and dried to be stored for use as animal fodder, particularly for large grazing animals raised as livestock, such as cattle, horses, goats, and sheep. However, it is also fed to smaller domesticated animals such as rabbits and guinea pigs.
Can you make hay out of any grass?
Although you can’t make haystacks as above form suburban lawn (you’ll need taller grass and lots of it), grass clippings are excellent for making hay in smaller amount. The two most important things to check are: The lawn shouldn’t be chemically treated: no weed-killing solution or chemical fertilizer used.
What happens if hay gets rained on?
If rained-on hay is not again dried fully, mold and mycotoxin growth can occur which can put livestock health at risk. Furthermore, baled wet hay can combust due to the temperature increase caused by microbial growth – putting a producer at risk of barn fire.
Does hay grow back every year?
Some fields are always used to grow hay, and don’t require re-planting every year. In other cases, hay is a part of a crop rotation, where farmers plant different crops on the same field in different years. Hayseed can be a mixture of many types of seeds, with alfalfa, clover, and timothy being among the most common.
How many times a year can you harvest 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.
Is year old hay still good?
Generally, hay that is two to three years old is still acceptable given the right storage conditions. So before you go tossing last year’s hay, give it a check over and feel confident feeding it if everything looks good.
How can you tell if hay is good quality?
Look for the following characteristics:
- Maturity – High quality hay will have a high proportion of leaves in the bale, with few or no coarse stems or seed heads.
- Condition – High quality hay will contain little dust or mold.
- Color & odor – High quality hay generally has a bright green color and a sweet, fresh odor.
Is it worth wrapping dry hay?
Wrapping dry hay allows farmers to protect feed from the weather without building more structures. Some farmers believe that more layers, up to six, are well worth the extra cost. A thicker barrier is more dependable than a thin one, but more costly.
Does rain hurt baled hay?
Should I use hay or straw in my garden?
Hay and straw both make great mulch in the garden as long as they weren’t treated with persistent herbicides or contain noxious weed seeds. Using hay or straw as mulch in the garden has the following benefits: Reduces moisture loss and reduces watering. Keeps soil cooler in hot weather.
Hay is a grass that has been cut, dried, and stored for animal feed. Hay versus straw: Hay and straw are commonly confused. Hay is made from the stems, leaves, and seed heads of plants that are fresh. It is cut and baled when it has the most nutritional value, and is fed to livestock.
What is Hays in agriculture?
Composition. Commonly used plants for hay include mixtures of grasses such as ryegrass (Lolium species), timothy, brome, fescue, Bermuda grass, orchard grass, and other species, depending on region. Hay may also include legumes, such as alfalfa (lucerne) and clovers (red, white and subterranean).
Why do farmers leave hay bales in the field?
The reason they are in empty fields is that because of their good keeping qualities, you can bale them up and then just leave them where the baler spat them out until you need them – so reduces handling and storage.
How many times a year can you cut hay?
Unfortunately, weather and other commitments don’t always let you cut hay at the optimum time. 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 long is hay good for?
You can store hay indefinitely if the stack is managed correctly; although, in humid climates, using hay within three years of harvest is ideal. Hay growers need to bale it at correct moisture levels because if it’s baled too damp the hay will generate heat, which leads to molding.
Is hay just dried grass?
Hay is a grass or can be a form of grass. When referring to it as a form of grass, it is a cut grass that has been cut then dried for the purpose of becoming an animal feed or food. Hay is a common food commodity for livestock owners who raise horses, cattle, sheep and goats.