Making hay?

[Cottie]

I've got several acres of pasture that seem to be going to waste. I don't want to run it over with the mower, as it's useless for hay.

Any ideas on small-scale hay production? Everything I'd read said "bush hog bush hog!!" which is just outside my price range.

Old fashioned way with a scythe? Give the kids scissors and say "go forth!"?

 

[Dood]

I have a small hand scythe and can get two feed bags full in less than half an hour. I also have a large two handed scythe with a 30 inch blade, but it doesnt fit as well in my car and would look pretty ominous if I hauled it out to go cut a fallow field by the side of the road.

The grass/clover/goldenrod/vetch/tree-foil/whatever is brought home and some is fed to the buns fresh and the rest is placed on a hammock to dry out.

Once it is thoroughly dry, I tie it like a sheath of wheat and set in the barn with the rest of the hay for winter feeding.

 

[Cottie]

Do you just go cut other people's yards? Sounds like a form of neighborly community service.

The hammock trick is a neat idea. I'm looking into a scythe, but am accident prone, so large, sharp-bladed objects are discouraged.

The boyfriend suggested a weedeater. I may give it a shot. Worse case scenario it goes to the oinks.

 

[LauraNJ]

"Go forth with scissors children and cut and make hay" lol!

A weed wacker may work. Our last house was a new build and by the time we moved in it was knee high grass. I cut it all down with the weed wacker. Took some time and wearing pants is essential to not getting stung by bits of grass and sticks and things but it did work, I did about a quarter acre that way.

 

[Dood]

I am now on the border of suburbia, the city has crept up after 27 years, so there are a lot of empty fields that were once farmed but are now owned by speculators waiting for permission to develop.

I usually wade into the middle of the fields, there tend to be less toxic/poisonous weeds there, and I am less likely to be bothered by some busy body who wants to give me a lecture about stealing the 'purdy flowers' like golden rod, purple loosestrife and other noxious weeds that you will be fined for if the city sees them in your garden!

 

[Miss M]

The author of one of my favorite blogs decided to grow a half-acre of wheat as an experiment. She and her husband used scythes they bought at antique stores to harvest.

http://www.rural-revolution.com/search/label/wheat

According to her, once you get used to the scythe and develop a rhythm with it, it is not hard work. The scythe does the work. Otherwise, farmers could not have done it all day. The scythe had to be efficient. Makes sense.

 

[grumpy]

A small gas-operated hedge trimmer may be just the ticket for you.

I'm seriously considering converting my 20,000 sq.ft. market garden area into an alfalfa patch. They've even got plans somewhere for making a "hand-operated" square hay-bale maker. Neat idea that's portable.

grumpy.

 

[LauraNJ]

Where do people buy smaller quantities of seed? Our local feed store doesn't carry any alfalfa seed. I looked online but so far it seems like it is high priced for an ounce or two of seed.

 

[Cottie]

I went out and got a small battery powered weed whacker. Only slightly more expensive than the "antique farm scythes" I found on CL.

Laura, I don't know! I went to TSC and they had a 25lb bag of forage seed for $50! Seriously? My fallow field isn't alfalfa. It's some combination of standard lawn grass and tall prairie grass. I think they'll manage.