HOW IMPORTANT IS IT TO KEEP HAY RING RELOCATED?

[Anonymous]

I hesatate from moving my hay ring around due to it tearing up my pasture where they stomp around it,but it brings some concern with them standing in about 3 inch mud while they eat. Can this cause any problems? Thanks

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[Anonymous]

During the wet parts of the winter when the ground isn't frozen we have the same problem. We feed the hay in the poorest paddock that we have that particular year. We treat it as an almost waste paddock, although the tramping of some hay and the churning of the mud helps to work some fertility in the soil. We move the rings so that when the cows are at the ring , their just barely outside of the area they just chewed up. As an area dries, we move the ring back over the same ground. It's only when wqe have a prolonged wet period that we have to move the rings very much out of the established pattern. In the spring when the ground is wet and the cows are out on pasture we drag then roll the area.

dunmovin farms

> I hesatate from moving my hay
> ring around due to it tearing up
> my pasture where they stomp around
> it,but it brings some concern with
> them standing in about 3 inch mud
> while they eat. Can this cause any
> problems? Thanks

 

[Anonymous]

> During the wet parts of the winter
> when the ground isn't frozen we
> have the same problem. We feed the
> hay in the poorest paddock that we
> have that particular year. We
> treat it as an almost waste
> paddock, although the tramping of
> some hay and the churning of the
> mud helps to work some fertility
> in the soil. We move the rings so
> that when the cows are at the ring
> , their just barely outside of the
> area they just chewed up. As an
> area dries, we move the ring back
> over the same ground. It's only
> when wqe have a prolonged wet
> period that we have to move the
> rings very much out of the
> established pattern. In the spring
> when the ground is wet and the
> cows are out on pasture we drag
> then roll the area.

> dunmovin farms

Thanks for that insight. Could you explain a little more on the drag and roll procedure in the spring.Are you saying you drag it with a scrap blade and roll it with hay? Thanks dunmovin farms.

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[Anonymous]

We drag ot with something that will break up the "pies", usually a spike harrow, then roll it with a field roller, some years we broadcast seed before rolling.

dunmovin farms

> Thanks for that insight. Could you
> explain a little more on the drag
> and roll procedure in the
> spring.Are you saying you drag it
> with a scrap blade and roll it
> with hay? Thanks dunmovin farms.

 

[Anonymous]

We eliminate the moving of hay rings by two means. 1) using a hay unroller and 2) by placing geotextile fabric on the ground and cover it with crusher run gravel. Both have there advantages, but mud and ruining pastures is not happening.

 

[Anonymous]

Seems like you wouldn't save all that much, you still loose pasture but from the gravel. The rerst of the year we can graze the areas where fed hay.

dunmovin farms

> We eliminate the moving of hay
> rings by two means. 1) using a hay
> unroller and 2) by placing
> geotextile fabric on the ground
> and cover it with crusher run
> gravel. Both have there
> advantages, but mud and ruining
> pastures is not happening.

 

[Anonymous]

you guys out west slay me. 3" of mud is oat planting weather here. it didn't freeze last winter except for just a few days at a time, we moved hay rings when the cows started having trouble getting to them, bellies about 4" off the ground, By march I had to thro the cows out of the sacrafice lot onto a hay field so I didn't loose calves in the mud when the cows dropped thenm Lost first cut from one hay field but didn't loose calves. rotated the cows down the field every two or therr days just to keep them in mud 3" or less

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