Hay production and harvest, colloquially known as "making hay", "haymaking", or "doing hay,"involves a multiple step process: cutting, drying or "curing," processing, and storing.Hayfields do not have to be reseeded each year in the way that grain crops are,but regular fertilizing is usually desirable, and overseeding a field every few years helps increase yield.Methods and the terminology to describe the steps of making hay has varied greatly throughout history, and many regional variations still exist today.However, whether done by hand or by modern mechanized equipment, tall grass and legumes at the proper stage of maturity must be cut, then allowed to dry (preferably by the sun), then raked into long, narrow piles known as windrows.
Hay has a good nutrition value, used as a stock feed for cattle, sheep, horses, alpacas and more.... |
Lucerne Round Bales
