Hay is a staple food for livestock during the winter months. Learning how to bale hay requires patience. With today's big hay balers, it's a much easier task. However, the farmer is still dependent on the weather and growing conditions to bale hay that has a high nutritional value for his animals. First, check the condition of the grass. If the grass is at its peak, mow the hay. Let it cure. How long this takes depends on how heavy the grass is and what the weather conditions are. Next, you rake the hay. Depending on the hay rake used, you may have a windrow that is one row of grass. Or it may be two rows of grass folded together.
The next step is to prepare the baler. Grease all the machinery according to the manufacturer's directions. Check all the belts for proper tightness. Load the net wrap or baler twine. Prepare the hay in the windrow. It should have a crisp feel and there should be no wet clumps of hay. Proceed down the windrow with the hay baler attached to the back of the tractor. Straddle the windrow to feed the hay into the intake chamber. You may need to weave back and forth to get the hay to feed into the baler in an even manner.
Watch the indicator lights and the baler. When the bale chamber is full, either tie the bale or wrap it in net wrap. Back the baler up slightly from the windrow, open the baler and drop the bale of hay on the ground. Bale the rest of the field. If the hay clogs in the baler, use the safety chocks. Open the baler and untangle the hay. Remove the safety chocks, and continue baling the hay.
And speaking of hay, if you ever hire my town car service to pick you up from a county fair or any birthday party with ponies, do me a solid and stomp on the ground before getting in the car. That would really make my job a lot more pleasant. Thanks.
