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Vocabulary: Bale: A large bundle of raw or finished material bound tightly together with cord, and sometimes wrapped; examples: a bale of hay or a bale of cotton. Baler: A machine that bales hay. Hay: A grass that has been cut, dried and stored for animal feed.
What does hay bale mean?
(heɪ beɪl) agriculture. a cylindrical or rectangular bundle of hay, usually produced by a machine.
What are hay bales used for?
Hay is usually gathered up into bales, and stored for the animals to eat during the winter when the grass is not growing. In many parts of the world, farmers depend on hay to feed their cattle, sheep, or horses during the long winter period.
What are hay bales made out of?
It’s entirely made from plants, and is cut or mowed multiple times a year. Hay ground, or a hay field, may be seeded with a mixture of alfalfa, clover, timothy, ryegrass, fescue, or other grasses and legumes.
How is hay made into bales?
Farmers cut hay in the field and let it dry for several days in the sun. Then they raked the dried hay into rows and ran baling equipment over the rows. This produced the bales. Storage is key to keeping this crop ready to be fed to animals in the winter.
What happens if you bale wet hay?
If wet hay is baled while it is too wet, microbe populations will flourish and intensify the heating process. This results in hay that is lower in nutritive value and dry matter availability. Allowing cut hay to dry (or cure) will slow down the respiration process.
How much is bale of hay?
What Is the Average Price for a Bale of Hay? On average, a bale of hay costs around $15. For example, two wired Alfalfa Hay bales typically run high, costing $19.95 apiece, whereas bermudagrass is only $8.75. Timothy Hay is the most expensive, typically costing at least $20 a bale.
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.
Is hay a straw?
Straw is a stalk, usually a waste product of wheat, that’s used as bedding for barnyard animals. Hay—typically alfalfa or a grass—is used as animal feed. A. Straw and hay both begin life the same way—as a field crop.
What can you do with hay?
What to do with extra hay: Bedding & Nesting material for nesting boxes, coops, hutches, and run-ins. Filler for the pool the pigs built. Seeding. Mulch for yard, around trees, or in pumpkin patches. Entertainment – chickens and pigs LOVE to scratch, roll and play in fresh hay.
Why are hay bales wrapped in plastic?
Plastic wrap is most commonly used in high-moisture baling. In this method the forage crop is cut sooner, immediately baled, and wrapped in plastic to ferment like silage. Because forage is at it’s highest quality when cut, baleage is higher in protein and more palatable for livestock than dry hay.
What is hay called?
Hay is grass and other plants that have been cut, dried and collected. It can then be stored in piles (called hay stacks), or tied into blocks called bales. Bales can be round or box shaped (usually called square bales). Hay is mostly used to feed animals. Hay is different than straw.
What is hay vs straw?
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.
How big is a hay bale?
Rectangle Bales Size Dimension(L x H x W) Weight 2 stringed bale 36 inches x 19 inches x 16 inches 40 to 75 lbs. 3 stringed bale 44 inches x 22 inches x 15 inches 100 to 140 lbs. Half ton 6 ft x 4 ft x 3 ft 1000 lbs. 1 Ton 8 ft x 4 ft x 4 ft 2000 lbs.
Why does hay get hot?
High-moisture haystacks and bales can catch on fire because they have chemical reactions that build heat. When hay’s internal temperature rises above 130 degrees Fahrenheit (55 degrees Celsius), a chemical reaction begins to produce flammable gas that can ignite if the temperature goes high enough.
Are hay bales a fire risk?
Hay bales are often stored in timber barns, so a serious fire can spread very quickly. Farmers can ensure hay stays as dry as possible by keeping it in weathertight conditions.
Why is hay so expensive?
Drought, excessive rain and a late spring hay harvest are causing prices to rise on hay. The weather last year, over the winter of 2018-2019, and the wet end of winter this year are causing hay prices to soar, according to several sources.
How long does a bale of hay last?
In general, a standard 40 lb. square bale of hay lasts one horse for about 3.5 days. But many factors such as age, workload, type of hay, and access to pasture grass affect how much they eat. I find most horses eat between 10-15 pounds of hay each day.
How much does a hay bale cost UK?
Meadow Hay – Small Bales Quantity Price 1-9 bales £5 each 10-19 bales £4.75 each 20 or more bales £4.50 each Pack of 21 bales (must be sold and loaded as a complete pack) £90.
