How much hay do I keep?

FarmerDavid · #1 07/18/12, 11:40 AM

How much hay is an average that I need to keep for winter? I have 4x6 bales and am trying to figure out how many I can sell. Ive only had cattle for 2 years so I have alot to learn.

G. Seddon · #2 07/18/12, 11:58 AM

I'm sure someone here can help you figure this out, but they'll need to know how many cows (and calves), your location, and it might also help to know the amount you used the first 2 years.

DaleK · #3 07/18/12, 12:17 PM

Keep it all if you have room for it. Sell it in the winter or early spring when you have a better idea of how much you'll use.

FarmerDavid · #4 07/18/12, 12:43 PM

Right now I have 7 cow calf pairs, 5 heifers and a bull. I could hold onto it longer but I have 270 bales. I could hold onto it but I'm getting offers of $60 a bale and that sounds pretty good to me. It's fescue cut at the right time but nothing fancy. Pastures are getting burnt up but I can probably go 3 weeks without rain before I'd have to fed any. I also plan to have wheat that they can graze but don't want to count on that incase it doesn't get planted. I only used a few bales last year but circumstances were different. They are beefmasters.

Allen W · #5 07/18/12, 12:47 PM

Right now I would say keep at least two years worth on hand.

FarmerDavid · #6 07/18/12, 12:56 PM

I mentioned earlier they are 4x6, they are net wrapped. Neighbor who baled them told me they should weigh 1100 but I haven't weighed any yet.

springvalley · #7 07/18/12, 01:46 PM

If your getting offers for 60 now, 75 may be a better offer later this fall. Don`t get in a hurry to sell yet. > Thanks Marc

FarmerDavid · #8 07/18/12, 02:30 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by springvalley

If your getting offers for 60 now, 75 may be a better offer later this fall. Don`t get in a hurry to sell yet. > Thanks Marc

It could also start raining and be worth 30 later this fall. The question I was intending to ask was how many bales I need to keep not when to sell the remainder. I didn't sell any at 60 yet, but that is high enough to get me thinking.

Last year I had about 100 to sell and held them thinking they would be worth more later, as it turned out we had a mild winter and I almost got stuck with all of them, I ended up selling 80 of them in late jan for 20$ less then what I'd been offered in aug. I was lucky to move them because it greened up early this spring and he didn't even end up feeding most of them.

ramiller5675 · #9 07/18/12, 03:12 PM

A cow will eat about 2.5-3 % of her body weight per day in hay. Or, a 1100 lb. cow will eat about 1100 lbs. of hay per month (assuming it isn't severely cold or wet, etc.)

So figure out how much you think your cattle weigh to figure how much hay they will need, add in some more for waste, add a little more in case it is a long cold winter, then add in some more in case there is a drought next year.

myersfarm · #10 07/18/12, 05:32 PM

did not see what state your in BUT

It could also start raining and be worth 30 later this fall

I do not think raining now will help the grass grow much in my area
..I would keep 2 years feeding ...and price it at $80 a bale you can always come down

Welshmom · #11 07/18/12, 07:41 PM

This May, after first cutting, I was adding my new bales to last years' hay. I had about 1/3 2011 hay left over. I remember thinking "Wow, we are going to have way too much hay! I'll have to start selling some".

It hasn't rained since that day, and I have been feeding hay 4 months early. Worst case, I won't even get a third cutting. Sure glad I didn't get around to selling it.

I'm not saying don't sell, but I agree with others to keep at least a 2 year supply on hand.

FarmerDavid · #12 07/18/12, 08:19 PM

If I go by the figure ramiller provided I need to keep 55, so even at a two year supply I'll have 150 to sell. Do you all seriously have a two years supply? I don't know Of anyone around here that does.

ramiller5675 · #13 07/18/12, 09:27 PM

I've never had two years worth (which I would define as enough to feed for two winters that were 4 months long or 8 months worth), but I've had an extra couple months worth stored and the next winter I needed every bit of it because there wasn't much hay to cut that summer because of a drought.

If it ever starts raining again, I plan to store more hay so I'm not sweating bullets in the spring because I ran out of hay.

Personally, if I had that much hay stored, I'd sell part of the hay and use the cash to buy some more cattle and turn the remaining hay into beef.

FarmerDavid · #14 07/18/12, 10:37 PM

I've thought along those lines, I'd rather trade for cattle, as opposed to selling the hay and buying cattle back. If I sell the money will probably go into cattle working facilities.

Cliff · #15 07/19/12, 07:26 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by FarmerDavid

If I go by the figure ramiller provided I need to keep 55, so even at a two year supply I'll have 150 to sell. Do you all seriously have a two years supply? I don't know Of anyone around here that does.

And that's why people have to sell off their cows when unusual weather hits.

myersfarm · #16 07/19/12, 07:31 AM

it only takes one year of feeding hay in July when you usally start feeding in September thats 90 days difference 2 or 3 bales a day makes a 180 to 270 more bales needed....or sell out something you really do not want to sell

why I keep a 2 year supply

bigbluegrass · #17 07/19/12, 10:12 AM

You got some good advise above. I will just add that it depends on where you are at and how you store the hay. Around these parts (KY) a bale of hay stored outside for two years is pretty worthless. My family is from South Dakota and frequently store multiple years of hay outside, uncovered, with little loss (10% or so). If I were you, I would keep 70 bales and sell 200. Take the money from the 200 and build a pole barn or other structure to hold at least 100 bales. It would pay for itself in a few years. But you may live in a semi-arid area or already have a place to store hay inside.

Then I would go up to the rotational grazing sticky and start thinking about doing that. Stop selling hay and all your nutrients and get some more cows. You can't beat a cow for efficiency of harvesting grass. You will still need the hay shed for a time of drought.

Can you add your location to your profile? It really helps to know where someone is from so we can help a little more!

francismilker · #18 07/19/12, 10:53 AM

The question I'd ask in response to yours is what do the 4x6 bales weigh and what do your cattle weigh? The average bovine needs 3-4% of it's body weight per day of feed/hay intake. If your bales weigh 1000lbs and your cows weigh 1000lbs is one thing but if your bales weigh 1800lbs and your cows weigh 1000lbs your number of bales needed is significantly different.

On average per year in my area it takes approximately 4x6 round bales of grass hay per cow\calf pair to give rough estimate.

I will also add that after last year's drought I will never get caught feeding this year's hay again. My grandpa used to say, "If your not feeding last year's hay you're in a bind and don't realize it." If put up properly, while it may lose some nutritional value, hay will keep and be palatable for years.

What farmers are seeing during times of drought now days is the fact that last year we had extra and sold it to someone in another region for a HUGE sum of money only to need to buy it back this year at a HUGE sum of money. It's a viscious cycle that could be remedied if we'd all store two years worth of hay. Just my two cents............

FarmerDavid · #19 07/19/12, 11:24 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bigbluegrass

You got some good advise above. I will just add that it depends on where you are at and how you store the hay. Around these parts (KY) a bale of hay stored outside for two years is pretty worthless. My family is from South Dakota and frequently store multiple years of hay outside, uncovered, with little loss (10% or so). If I were you, I would keep 70 bales and sell 200. Take the money from the 200 and build a pole barn or other structure to hold at least 100 bales. It would pay for itself in a few years. But you may live in a semi-arid area or already have a place to store hay inside.

Then I would go up to the rotational grazing sticky and start thinking about doing that. Stop selling hay and all your nutrients and get some more cows. You can't beat a cow for efficiency of harvesting grass. You will still need the hay shed for a time of drought.

Can you add your location to your profile? It really helps to know where someone is from so we can help a little more!

I must have added where im from while you were typing this. Im from Southwest Missouri.

100 bales of the hay came off of waterways on ground that my dad rents to row crop, so those acres will never be grazed. Its good hay that catches plenty of fertlizer, that im allowed to hay to save dad the cost of brush hogging it.

There is probably an additional 15 acres that im trying to clean up so that it can be baled, its got alot of pine trees and multiflorial rose grown up in it but whats left is natural prarie grass. About half of what was baled, was killed and planted to beans after haying so i wont always have so much extra hay. What was there was thin and low in fertility, with poor fences.

With what i have currently in pasture i can support 20 moma cows. Im hoping to get to that number by next spring. Things such as good facilites to work them, portable corral, stock trailer, pole barn for hay storage and improved fencing are all on the list. Hopefully in a few years i can have all of those things and have the ground that i killed to plant beans wil be improved enough that i can put it back to pasture and increase my cow numbers.

At least those are my current thoughts, i like hearing what others have to say, and my plans may change. I guess its hard for me to see having an extra years worth of hay around, when i have lots of other areas i can use the money to upgrade. I can always bale wheat or chop silage if need be.

and francis my grandpa insisted in having a seperate shed for the combine, and each tractor so if one cough on fire you wouldnt lose them all. I dont know of a single person that does that anymore.

bigbluegrass · #20 07/19/12, 01:52 PM

I see your location now. SW MO! Do you store your hay inside now? I don't but I should. I really want to build a hay storage shed so I can buy hay during the wet years for the dry years. If it were inside, you would store it indefinitely - well that may be a stretch, but at least 4 or 5 years easily.

It sounds like you are headed in the right direction. It takes time. You could take the money from the hay and buy more cows, only problem is if the drought persists you will really be in a bind. Cow prices are headed down right now, so it isn't a bad time to buy some more. I imagine your area is probably selling off some really nice cows for cheap, just because of the drought. I suspect that even if the drought breaks, they will keep going down since corn is headed up. You could keep all the hay and buy a bunch of cows, feed them the hay, then sell the cows... but that is adding a lot of risk - potential to make a lot of money also, or lose a whole bunch. Cash flow may be a problem with that plan as well. You could also sell 120 bales, buy about 8 heifers or cows, and have 150 bales left to feed them (15 total). Should feed them easily until next spring with some left. You have a lot of options.