I am in total agreement with you Chuck. we bale our own hay. 5x5 rounds and 50lb square bales. We do sell excess bales to neighbors and several horse farms nearby. you are exactly right, whatever works in each individual operation is right!
Absolutely love your videos. I’m a 60 year old city boy but I’m learning from you. Hope to buy about 20 acres in Kansas and begin regenerational grazing very soon. Not interested in making a living doing it but need something to do in retirement. But don’t want to lose money so I’m paying attention.
I raise our own hay, not because it saves us money, it does not. But we are able to control what is or better yet what is not sprayed or spread on it. Our hay pastures have zero herbicides or pesticides, the only fertilizer is what the cows or goats produce and we may add lime when needed. Enjoy your videos keep up the good work.
It amazes me how having a screen between you and these folks seems to endow them with the knowledge of what is right for you and your place. I doubt they would come up to in person and make such declarations of superior knowledge. Just keep doing what is correct for you
I TOTALLY agree with you. I have tried both ways but sold the hay equipment and used the storage space of equipment to keep my hay. You didn’t include that in your analysis. Great content.
We have always bought hay we tried buying some older equipment years ago but we all have off the farm jobs and by the time we took time off work fought the weather and breakdowns, and found fields to mow it took 2 years to realize its a waste of time. We let someone else deal with all that hassle and with a car trailer , truck and onetank of diesel we haul all the hay we need in a day. From what I have read over the years you would need to put over 500 round vales through your equipment or more per year to make it make sense financially to own ,maintain, pay taxes on equipment and land, fertilizer. Our hay harvest season consists of one days work per year
Great video! Some of these people that are picking your hay apart have probably never farmed anything that wasn’t simulated on a computer. If your animals are eating the hay, they are healthy and this works for your operation and you feel as though you’ve gotten a good deal, then why do they care?!?! lol. We actually bale and sell hay as a main enterprise in our operation. We don’t run cattle, but the wife has several goats that are happy as can be to gobble up any lower quality hay that i bale up lol. Keep up the great videos. We always enjoy the insight you give!!
I totally understand why you don’t make hay, but in our case I just love doing it. I love working the tractors and knowing I made what I feed. And on the plus side I mow about 30 acres and it all belongs to someone else. Doesn’t cost me a thing to rent the land they’re just happy they don’t have to pay someone to bush hog it. But once again I love doing it, from a financial standpoint it don’t make sense but for my piece of mind it does. I know exactly what’s in my hay and well if it’s junk or if it’s good lol.
I’m 69 years old and have had a small farm all my life. Have put the pencil to it many times myself and I agree 1000% that I can buy hay cheaper than I can own equipment and grow it myself 👍 GREAT VIDEO
Forgetting one of the biggest expenses fertilizer! You’re bringing in nutrients instead of taking nutrients away so I definitely agree with you. Pick what you do well and do it leave what someone else does well to them.
I suppose that there is a cow to acre ratio at which making hay is worth it, but in Appalachia it just doesn't make sense even though many do it? My granddaddy always said: "Make beef or make hay, do not make both."
@@raydall3734it depends on where you are at. In some parts of Texas there isn’t enough ground for a cow not to starve to death. You could give them 100 acres and it wouldn’t be enough. In the Brownwood area the locals use a 15 acres to 1 cow ratio. Two years ago the cows were starving at this ratio, so 15 to 1 was not enough. In the Ozarks of Arkansas the ratio is 3 acres per cow. Some improved pastures allow better stocking rates, but most people are not running on improved pastures. I would love a 1 to 1 ratio, but that land is typically coming at a premium. The flat lands of Arkansas where they grow crops would easily support a 1 to 1 ratio, but that land is 4-5x the price of forested/decent pasture ground.
We buy all of our hay as well. That’s what my calculator tells me to do. I think a lot of people enjoy making hay. Probably similar to running a saw mill. It’s hard for me to make either of those make sense but it’s important to do what you enjoy too.
Chuck, I watch ALL you and Sandra’s video’s and I have to tell you. Don’t give the negative commenters the satisfaction of replies. They probably don’t even farm……..keep showing us your operation. It’s great,honest, content. You two are greatly appreciated.
I own a 50 acre sugar bush. That the primary item. But I need to maintain a NOFA organic certification and a Vermont current use plan. I also like my deer as does Bernie Sanders for other reasons. I think they taste good. So I am arranging some pasture areas to hold a new shop barn etc. All on grass for the cows. The goats do weed control. Mostly Japanese Barrbery. So hay helps with the operation and I know what is coming in and out chemical wise. I also like trad bails over rolls but buying hay in trad bails costs more. The old bailer is a work in progress but at 600 bucks, you can’t beat it.
Making your own hay with your own land and equipment gives you more control. But is is also a big investment. We only keep one bale and the rest is our son in law's. He raises beef cattle.
Great video and sometimes a rant is needed. Everyone has different circumstances. I am totally in agreement with you. And your cows look great. God bless!
I watch to learn and not give unsolicited advice. By the time we move, i hope to have a wealth of knowledge covering many topics. Thank you for todays video.
Hello i came across your channel and enjoy your videos. I some questions if you could answer for me . One what kind of grass do you grow for your cattle to eat its beautiful and the other is, for how many cows and how long does one of the large bails last? Thank you
Just a month ago I was wondering what I was going to do with my 15 acre pasture full of grass. A neighbor came over and said he’d bale it for me. I let him take most of it because I just wanted it cut. I don’t have any cows or sheep on it yet. I thought he might get six bales but he got 22 off of 12 acres. The rest of the pasture has too many trees and a pond. I do have a 6 foot bale by one of the Barns in case I have to put my chickens into a stall if it ever does snow here. Joe Salatin did a video where the break even point was 600 acres of hay to justify the equipment 😮
Or just do like me, buy all 30 + yr old equipment. Fix it when it breaks. Spent around $5000 on a 3400 ford industrial tractor, 572 ford baler, a 273 nh for parts, 849 nh 5x4 rnd baler (manual tie), vicon 7ft disc mower, ford roller bar rake. Still takes a while to pay for it. I can cut when i want, hopefully at best quality and not wait on someone else.
Hello great videos love watching your videos. You forgot to tell the crazy people. About the fuel and parts for the machine and the travel time. and the twine for the machine. What are you going to do with the cooler panels in the upper barn bay.
I do agree with you on you don’t have to cut your own hay to be a farmer but I will say for me doing my own hay gave me more control over my end product ( good beef). I cut my own hay for years and now I have buy it and it’s kinda stressful. What’s the price, quality, and availability. We’ve had a drought for two years in a row which can make it difficult to get hay. I’m also glad you have a reliable supplier for hay around here there are some shady hay suppliers. Even though it may cost more to do it myself it’s worth it for the piece of mind. Everyone needs to do what best for them. Enjoy the videos chuck see ya
I agree with you entirely especially since I am not overly mechanical and can't fix a thing, ha. Btw, unless you have snow cover during the winter, what do you think about seeding winter rye and/or wheat and feeding way less hay?
Some of your comments ignore them ( want-be-farmers) we buy all our hay too. Agree with u graze it let someone else have the stress of making hay. Only thing I do once in a while in spring if I have a field that looks real good like this year I have several nabors that custom bale hay was so heavy this year baled 170 5 x5 off 17 ac after cutting ,teding, rake, baleing came out to $14.35 a bale can't get any cheaper. Can't justify owing equipment at that price and that also included fuel.
Great video. Wish hay was that cheap here in sweden. I ranges between 60-100$ per bale + transport. I make my own, but very costly too. Its been hard years.
I love you guys. I live in southern Utah in the high desert. I buy hay because I don’t have the water or infrastructure to put it in. It just adds to the cost of hay. You two keep the good work and know somebody appreciates you!
Awesome video, Chuck. I appreciate all the great information. I know you're correct because you and Sundra are running a successful business . Thanks for all you do.
You are 100% correct. Hay bailing and hay equipment for a small operation is a money pit and ill advised. Let the hay making pro's do their job and the ranchers do theirs. The pencil doesn't lie!!
We have enough grass for the summer. We buy hay for the winter. The first time we buy from someone we ask to have them unroll one. If they don’t we move on. Even then you will have one or two full of weeds from a ditch or edge. Took a couple years but have a nice supplier now. We have to buy early summer before he sells out. So check a bale, buy early.
University of Kentucky used to say its not worth it in any scenario with less than 20 cows. With cost of equipment now that may be significantly higher. With a little planning and control of where your cows graze and a few paddocks of stockpile or different forages. You can get by with very little hay anyway.
Completely agree I have a neighbor I buy 100 bales from every year at the same price your paying. And it just doesn't make sense to make hay. The time it takes I just cant justify the expense to get into making hay.
So what if the hay bales don’t look like what other people think they should. If the cows are happy & healthy doesn’t matter what others think. Have a safe & blessed weekend
Well, it seems like if you don't have the land to set aside then that's really the end of it. The bonus is that you buying hay from another farmer keeps that farmer in business and if he might need chicken or beef, he might come to you for that. As farmer's no one can do EVERYTHING, so a mutually beneficial relationship is the way we keep as many farmer's as possible working, earning a living and supplying their neighbors/customers with needed commodities. I'd never fault anyone for making their own best decisions and for those that would...well, let them do it themselves and more power to them!
Can I ask how big is your tractor? I do agree that making hay doesn't always make sense because good hay making is also an art. The only issue I have is that way up north here, we have far fewer grazing days and can't rely on good pastures for long. Hay up here hay makes sense. Finally I prefer loose bale because they breath. We have had some wet years when it was hard to grow good dry bales and the loose bales allowed us to bale wetter than we wanted, but dry out enough not to mould.
In Bismark, ND, Gabe Brown and his son minimize the need for hay by stickpiling forages for the cattle. Dirt To Soil (a book by Gabe) and many interviews and talks on yt tell of this regenerative system.
Hey Chuck, that nail in the shed isn't pounded in all the way so that's a poor shed. You shouldn't trust someone else construction, take it down and build your own new... 🤣🤣 make sense haha
It’s almost impossible to be a pig farmer cattle farmer grain farmer chicken farmer and hay farmer. A lot of people just fool with hay because they like to do it so they convince themselves that’s it’s a must. I love fooling with corn but I got sense enough to know that it’s not cost effective for me to buy a grain cart and a combine and grain bin to feed 8 turkeys and 3 pigs and 15 ducks so I just stick to my sweet corn😂 and buy my field corn to grind from the local big farmers that specializes in grain. They get more than mill price out of me and I get corn for a lot cheaper than the store that better quality. People gone nick pick every little thing especially the professionals no matter what you do
I totally agree, I have had cattle and horses for over 30 years, and I buy hay every year cheap than getting tge equipment, and time to cut it and bale it. Time is money
Chuck, you can’t worry what these people think or say. Do what’s best for you. You don’t owe me or them an explanation on what the hay looks like, how it’s wrapped or stacked. Odds are many of them have never spent a summer picking up hay like we did many years ago.
You are not wrong. I see so many people having their animals penned up on a small area so that they can use the land to do hay, when they would be far better off pasturing that land so they don't have to feed the animals all spring, summer and fall. Then just buy the feed they need for winter. It would eliminate lots of equipment cost, time commitment and would just be easier. For the small operator it usually makes more sense to just buy the feed in.
The largest outfits out west mainly all buy hay. They save their pasture for more cattle or for stockpiling for Droughts. The few that do bale their own hay, mainly specialize in farming over cattle but do own cattle. Do what works and what you enjoy folks, because at the end of the day we are all farming, and farming ain’t easy it a get rich quick scheme.
What size are those bales? 3x4 or 4x4? Don’t see smaller than 4x5 and 5x5 around here. Would hay be cheaper per actual ton of material in bigger bales?
I only agree to a point. Once the equipment is paid for ( and you have sustained your own hay to a zero cost on the equipment, you said 5 years, but let's make it 10 ) then you are in profit. You don't HAVE to make hay, but it can generate an income in the long run. I don't understand how farmers can make any kind of profit if they are buying NEW equipment every 5 years or so. I am trying to find the money to start a hay op, not for me, because I will never see a penny of profit, I would be starting it for my kids, my kids will reap the benefit of what my wife and I ( first gen farmers ) are building. All the fruit and nut trees we are planing, all the perennials, we get to do the work, but the kids will get to enjoy them.
@@donmartin7728 I just wrote a novel and erased it because it all boils down to, financially, that makes no sense because you are still spending more than you are making.
I think your doing just fine buying from your neighbor,I’m from east Texas and I can’t believe what some of these guys paid for big new equipment and still see some not uniform bales in field
I just worked with a new farmer kid and we got him up and running for $4500. A really nice old square baler, a John Deere at that, and a rake. You’re right tho, a lot of people are still asking for the $ stuff was bringing 2 yrs ago, which is 2-4 times what it was 4 yrs ago. Let it sit and rot. Walk away.
For that price I wouldn’t care if it had weeds 😂 we get hay here in central Texas for $100 a bale, with weeds for $70. I would have no complaints for $30 a bale 😂 ppl will always find something to complain about. Keep doing work brother.
Complete self sufficiency isn't always the practical answer. Having some folks more specialized and/or able to over produce a product will keep us all rolling in hard times. No farm is an island, to coin a phrase.
I agree with buying hay. If I were in the same situation, I would buy it. To me it just wouldn't be worth the time, hassle, and cost, especially for small farming/homesteading.
Chuck don't let the trolls get under you skin. What you and boss lady are doing is spot on. you are using your available resources on YOUR farm at 100%. Tell the na sayers to blow smoke.
No two pieces of ground are the same. Why people think every farmer should manage their ground the same is crazy to me. If producing your own hay is the right choice for your land then you should probably do it, but if it's not then buying hay might be the right choice. There is no one solution in a world with infinite variables.
If you don't want to make hay, don't make hay. You can be profitable making hay, or buying hay. You just have to build your farm to handle that choice. Honestly I love making hay, it is probably one of my favorite farming tasks besides raising cows and pigs. I am not a big fan of growing corn, I feel like it would be inefficient for me on the scale I want to be at to have to own a combine, a planter, and do all the field work. I don't want to use chemicals, so I would have to cultivate 2x times a season. I have gotten my enjoyment out of growing corn already and don't have the interest. I rather have pasture ground and hay fields while buying a little grain for grain finishing cattle and feeding to pigs. I would grow small grain, like oats for a grain to feed cattle, and for the straw. but only if it was reasonable to hire someone to combine for me.
The value of having hay from a place that does not spray is priceless these days.people that hay sell their fertility to you. You have to get it back some way. Hay is a great way to import it from someone else willing to give it to you.
Each of your arguments for not raising your own hay have merits. In addition to your four good points, I offer two other great points to add to the wisdom of buying hay 1) carbon inputs and 2) feeding inferior hay just because you baled it. Each bale you bring to your soil adds all its carbon to improve your soil health all across your farm. Net carbon addition is the name of the game to farm-wide soil health. You get net positive carbon with the feed you buy for your chickens, turkeys and pigs. Why not your cows as well? With the way you feed each winter you are spreading these nutrients across your fields to the spots you want it most. As long as you are not bringing in Grason and other chemicals these are very significant soil health bonuses. Secondly, whenever you raise your own crops, you will always feed it to your cattle even if you were hit with inconvenient rain, dried it too much, had a plague of pests or had weeds out of control. Farmers who buy hay can selectively reject inferior hay. Once you have invested a year's work on hay you will feed it even if it is inferior that year.
Sorry, but I wrote my response before listening to the end of your video where you mentioned nutrients. Guess I showed my ignorance by posting too soon.
I've considered many times starting a RUclips channel but I see so many having to explain their actions to complete strangers i just wouldn't be that nice about it... or would I ever feel the need to explain myself
I don't think people include their value to caring for their live stock as time consuming. That being said, if you are cutting hay it is less time varing for your livestock. Ì can tell you and whistle britches do a fine job of more than just maintaining your stock. They all look Fat and healthy. Keep up the good work!
I wish we could clarify what everybody is considering hay. I grew up on a dairy farm we consider hay 85% or more of it alfalfa in the Bale. what you have purchased is not hay it is grass that we use for dry cows and to keep the young stock fed through the winter. so what you are buying I wouldn't go out and buy equipment to make it. but for the milking cows I need to control the quality of the Bales more so I have to go out and buy equipment to make it I'd say what you're doing is perfectly fine keep doing it and let haters be haters
Every operation is different. I cut my own and sell the surplus to help offset the cost of making hay. As long as you are happy with what you got then it doesn’t matter Some ppl love my hay and others don’t. Get it somewhere else lol
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thank you for showing a different perspective! btw i love the way you say soil
I am in total agreement with you Chuck. we bale our own hay. 5x5 rounds and 50lb square bales. We do sell excess bales to neighbors and several horse farms nearby. you are exactly right, whatever works in each individual operation is right!
Absolutely love your videos. I’m a 60 year old city boy but I’m learning from you. Hope to buy about 20 acres in Kansas and begin regenerational grazing very soon. Not interested in making a living doing it but need something to do in retirement. But don’t want to lose money so I’m paying attention.
I raise our own hay, not because it saves us money, it does not. But we are able to control what is or better yet what is not sprayed or spread on it. Our hay pastures have zero herbicides or pesticides, the only fertilizer is what the cows or goats produce and we may add lime when needed.
Enjoy your videos keep up the good work.
I love your hay video!! What works for you, works for you!!
It amazes me how having a screen between you and these folks seems to endow them with the knowledge of what is right for you and your place. I doubt they would come up to in person and make such declarations of superior knowledge. Just keep doing what is correct for you
I TOTALLY agree with you. I have tried both ways but sold the hay equipment and used the storage space of equipment to keep my hay. You didn’t include that in your analysis.
Great content.
We have always bought hay we tried buying some older equipment years ago but we all have off the farm jobs and by the time we took time off work fought the weather and breakdowns, and found fields to mow it took 2 years to realize its a waste of time. We let someone else deal with all that hassle and with a car trailer , truck and onetank of diesel we haul all the hay we need in a day.
From what I have read over the years you would need to put over 500 round vales through your equipment or more per year to make it make sense financially to own ,maintain, pay taxes on equipment and land, fertilizer.
Our hay harvest season consists of one days work per year
@@mountaineerpicker9811 yup. Doesn’t make sense. Thanks for watching.
Great video! Some of these people that are picking your hay apart have probably never farmed anything that wasn’t simulated on a computer. If your animals are eating the hay, they are healthy and this works for your operation and you feel as though you’ve gotten a good deal, then why do they care?!?! lol.
We actually bale and sell hay as a main enterprise in our operation. We don’t run cattle, but the wife has several goats that are happy as can be to gobble up any lower quality hay that i bale up lol.
Keep up the great videos. We always enjoy the insight you give!!
I totally understand why you don’t make hay, but in our case I just love doing it. I love working the tractors and knowing I made what I feed. And on the plus side I mow about 30 acres and it all belongs to someone else. Doesn’t cost me a thing to rent the land they’re just happy they don’t have to pay someone to bush hog it. But once again I love doing it, from a financial standpoint it don’t make sense but for my piece of mind it does. I know exactly what’s in my hay and well if it’s junk or if it’s good lol.
I love to watch your videos because you are real. I'm just getting started you help me alot thank you. You can't make everybody happy
I’m 69 years old and have had a small farm all my life. Have put the pencil to it many times myself and I agree 1000% that I can buy hay cheaper than I can own equipment and grow it myself 👍 GREAT VIDEO
Forgetting one of the biggest expenses fertilizer! You’re bringing in nutrients instead of taking nutrients away so I definitely agree with you. Pick what you do well and do it leave what someone else does well to them.
I grew up on a cattle farm (100ac) and hay. I fully agree with you brother.
It's your operation, work it anyway you want.
For a small operator, it makes sense to buy hay.
I suppose that there is a cow to acre ratio at which making hay is worth it, but in Appalachia it just doesn't make sense even though many do it? My granddaddy always said: "Make beef or make hay, do not make both."
I was taight 1 cattle pair per acre (mother & calf)
Feed lots clearly break that rule with about 150 cows/acre all commercially fed.
@@raydall3734it depends on where you are at. In some parts of Texas there isn’t enough ground for a cow not to starve to death. You could give them 100 acres and it wouldn’t be enough. In the Brownwood area the locals use a 15 acres to 1 cow ratio. Two years ago the cows were starving at this ratio, so 15 to 1 was not enough.
In the Ozarks of Arkansas the ratio is 3 acres per cow. Some improved pastures allow better stocking rates, but most people are not running on improved pastures.
I would love a 1 to 1 ratio, but that land is typically coming at a premium. The flat lands of Arkansas where they grow crops would easily support a 1 to 1 ratio, but that land is 4-5x the price of forested/decent pasture ground.
We buy all of our hay as well. That’s what my calculator tells me to do.
I think a lot of people enjoy making hay. Probably similar to running a saw mill. It’s hard for me to make either of those make sense but it’s important to do what you enjoy too.
Chuck, I watch ALL you and Sandra’s video’s and I have to tell you. Don’t give the negative commenters the satisfaction of replies. They probably don’t even farm……..keep showing us your operation. It’s great,honest, content. You two are greatly appreciated.
I own a 50 acre sugar bush. That the primary item. But I need to maintain a NOFA organic certification and a Vermont current use plan. I also like my deer as does Bernie Sanders for other reasons. I think they taste good. So I am arranging some pasture areas to hold a new shop barn etc. All on grass for the cows. The goats do weed control. Mostly Japanese Barrbery. So hay helps with the operation and I know what is coming in and out chemical wise. I also like trad bails over rolls but buying hay in trad bails costs more. The old bailer is a work in progress but at 600 bucks, you can’t beat it.
Making your own hay with your own land and equipment gives you more control. But is is also a big investment. We only keep one bale and the rest is our son in law's. He raises beef cattle.
You’ll got right many bales in that space. I’d call that another successful project completed ☑️ 👍🏽
Hay is here!! Nice work and good to know the cows are taken care of for the winter months! ❤❤
Great video and sometimes a rant is needed. Everyone has different circumstances. I am totally in agreement with you. And your cows look great. God bless!
Thank you!
I watch to learn and not give unsolicited advice. By the time we move, i hope to have a wealth of knowledge covering many topics. Thank you for todays video.
Hello i came across your channel and enjoy your videos. I some questions if you could answer for me . One what kind of grass do you grow for your cattle to eat its beautiful and the other is, for how many cows and how long does one of the large bails last?
Thank you
Everyone should do what's good for them I think you made total sense. I guess some people just have to find something to complain about.
For a small acreage like mine, a hand baler that you can make from 2x6 lumber and some bolts and screws works great.
A nice video!
Thanks for filming it.
Just a month ago I was wondering what I was going to do with my 15 acre pasture full of grass. A neighbor came over and said he’d bale it for me. I let him take most of it because I just wanted it cut. I don’t have any cows or sheep on it yet. I thought he might get six bales but he got 22 off of 12 acres. The rest of the pasture has too many trees and a pond. I do have a 6 foot bale by one of the Barns in case I have to put my chickens into a stall if it ever does snow here. Joe Salatin did a video where the break even point was 600 acres of hay to justify the equipment 😮
Or just do like me, buy all 30 + yr old equipment. Fix it when it breaks. Spent around $5000 on a 3400 ford industrial tractor, 572 ford baler, a 273 nh for parts, 849 nh 5x4 rnd baler (manual tie), vicon 7ft disc mower, ford roller bar rake. Still takes a while to pay for it. I can cut when i want, hopefully at best quality and not wait on someone else.
Hello great videos love watching your videos. You forgot to tell the crazy people. About the fuel and parts for the machine and the travel time. and the twine for the machine. What are you going to do with the cooler panels in the upper barn bay.
I do agree with you on you don’t have to cut your own hay to be a farmer but I will say for me doing my own hay gave me more control over my end product ( good beef). I cut my own hay for years and now I have buy it and it’s kinda stressful. What’s the price, quality, and availability. We’ve had a drought for two years in a row which can make it difficult to get hay. I’m also glad you have a reliable supplier for hay around here there are some shady hay suppliers. Even though it may cost more to do it myself it’s worth it for the piece of mind. Everyone needs to do what best for them. Enjoy the videos chuck see ya
Really like that tune you have on the video. Do you mind identifying it? Thanks
I agree with you entirely especially since I am not overly mechanical and can't fix a thing, ha. Btw, unless you have snow cover during the winter, what do you think about seeding winter rye and/or wheat and feeding way less hay?
I wish our hay was $35 a bale.
You are 120% correct! Keep up the great work!
Some of your comments ignore them ( want-be-farmers) we buy all our hay too. Agree with u graze it let someone else have the stress of making hay. Only thing I do once in a while in spring if I have a field that looks real good like this year I have several nabors that custom bale hay was so heavy this year baled 170 5 x5 off 17 ac after cutting ,teding, rake, baleing came out to $14.35 a bale can't get any cheaper. Can't justify owing equipment at that price and that also included fuel.
Great video.
Wish hay was that cheap here in sweden. I ranges between 60-100$ per bale + transport.
I make my own, but very costly too.
Its been hard years.
My neighbor bales hay for me, almost 6 foot , and they are tight. 😊
I love you guys. I live in southern Utah in the high desert. I buy hay because I don’t have the water or infrastructure to put it in. It just adds to the cost of hay. You two keep the good work and know somebody appreciates you!
Not to mention, you can run additional cattle (more incoming $$$!) since you don't have that land set aside for hay.
Always informative and entertaining, Chuck!
Awesome video, Chuck. I appreciate all the great information. I know you're correct because you and Sundra are running a successful business .
Thanks for all you do.
You are 100% correct. Hay bailing and hay equipment for a small operation is a money pit and ill advised. Let the hay making pro's do their job and the ranchers do theirs. The pencil doesn't lie!!
Exactly. Just does not make sense for me.
We have enough grass for the summer. We buy hay for the winter. The first time we buy from someone we ask to have them unroll one. If they don’t we move on. Even then you will have one or two full of weeds from a ditch or edge. Took a couple years but have a nice supplier now. We have to buy early summer before he sells out.
So check a bale, buy early.
University of Kentucky used to say its not worth it in any scenario with less than 20 cows. With cost of equipment now that may be significantly higher. With a little planning and control of where your cows graze and a few paddocks of stockpile or different forages. You can get by with very little hay anyway.
You are a Very / Wise and Smart man!! Best Wishes I send to You!!!! Keep the TRUTH coming!!!
I really enjoy your content. Thank you for showing the real of it all.
Completely agree I have a neighbor I buy 100 bales from every year at the same price your paying. And it just doesn't make sense to make hay. The time it takes I just cant justify the expense to get into making hay.
So what if the hay bales don’t look like what other people think they should. If the cows are happy & healthy doesn’t matter what others think. Have a safe & blessed weekend
Nice 👍 thanks for all you do .
How many rolls do you use per day ? for how many cows ? thank you😇
Well, it seems like if you don't have the land to set aside then that's really the end of it. The bonus is that you buying hay from another farmer keeps that farmer in business and if he might need chicken or beef, he might come to you for that. As farmer's no one can do EVERYTHING, so a mutually beneficial relationship is the way we keep as many farmer's as possible working, earning a living and supplying their neighbors/customers with needed commodities. I'd never fault anyone for making their own best decisions and for those that would...well, let them do it themselves and more power to them!
Can I ask how big is your tractor? I do agree that making hay doesn't always make sense because good hay making is also an art. The only issue I have is that way up north here, we have far fewer grazing days and can't rely on good pastures for long. Hay up here hay makes sense. Finally I prefer loose bale because they breath. We have had some wet years when it was hard to grow good dry bales and the loose bales allowed us to bale wetter than we wanted, but dry out enough not to mould.
In Bismark, ND, Gabe Brown and his son minimize the need for hay by stickpiling forages for the cattle. Dirt To Soil (a book by Gabe) and many interviews and talks on yt tell of this regenerative system.
It’s a 70hp New Holland
Looks like good clean hay to me , idt a lotta people realize how hard it is to find round bales that aren't molded ..
Hey Chuck, that nail in the shed isn't pounded in all the way so that's a poor shed. You shouldn't trust someone else construction, take it down and build your own new... 🤣🤣 make sense haha
Common sense, Chuck, I do think the Bales would look better if Sandra Had stack them 😂😂😂😂 Thanks Chuck for the video
We buy hay here in Texas for 110 to 150 a bale for coastal!
Up here hay is worth around 130 a bale and up and that’s for a 1500 lb bale and balers new here are worth about 90,000 dollars
It’s almost impossible to be a pig farmer cattle farmer grain farmer chicken farmer and hay farmer. A lot of people just fool with hay because they like to do it so they convince themselves that’s it’s a must. I love fooling with corn but I got sense enough to know that it’s not cost effective for me to buy a grain cart and a combine and grain bin to feed 8 turkeys and 3 pigs and 15 ducks so I just stick to my sweet corn😂 and buy my field corn to grind from the local big farmers that specializes in grain. They get more than mill price out of me and I get corn for a lot cheaper than the store that better quality. People gone nick pick every little thing especially the professionals no matter what you do
I totally agree, I have had cattle and horses for over 30 years, and I buy hay every year cheap than getting tge equipment, and time to cut it and bale it. Time is money
Hay goes for $70 if you pick it up (including loading it), $90 delivered around here. You are getting a pretty good deal.
Chuck, you can’t worry what these people think or say. Do what’s best for you. You don’t owe me or them an explanation on what the hay looks like, how it’s wrapped or stacked. Odds are many of them have never spent a summer picking up hay like we did many years ago.
Working with good local people means more than saving a few bucks.
I feed 40 square bales a day in the winter for 120 head of beef cattle.
You are not wrong. I see so many people having their animals penned up on a small area so that they can use the land to do hay, when they would be far better off pasturing that land so they don't have to feed the animals all spring, summer and fall. Then just buy the feed they need for winter. It would eliminate lots of equipment cost, time commitment and would just be easier. For the small operator it usually makes more sense to just buy the feed in.
We are running 150 mom cows and we buy all of are hay
"As gawt as mah witness, I shall never bale hay again." -- Scarlett O'Farmer I dislike weed seeds in mah paints.
we grow our own hay and there is men that will cut it on halves,, so no you don't have to buy all that equipment,,, Jerry in Arkansas
The largest outfits out west mainly all buy hay. They save their pasture for more cattle or for stockpiling for
Droughts. The few that do bale their own hay, mainly specialize in farming over cattle but do own cattle. Do what works and what you enjoy folks, because at the end of the day we are all farming, and farming ain’t easy it a get rich quick scheme.
Yes what ever keeps your boat-a-float
great stuff chuck god bless 🙏🙏👍
Don't worry about these haters. You're letting it get to you.
What size are those bales? 3x4 or 4x4? Don’t see smaller than 4x5 and 5x5 around here. Would hay be cheaper per actual ton of material in bigger bales?
I only agree to a point. Once the equipment is paid for ( and you have sustained your own hay to a zero cost on the equipment, you said 5 years, but let's make it 10 ) then you are in profit. You don't HAVE to make hay, but it can generate an income in the long run. I don't understand how farmers can make any kind of profit if they are buying NEW equipment every 5 years or so. I am trying to find the money to start a hay op, not for me, because I will never see a penny of profit, I would be starting it for my kids, my kids will reap the benefit of what my wife and I ( first gen farmers ) are building. All the fruit and nut trees we are planing, all the perennials, we get to do the work, but the kids will get to enjoy them.
Farmers need the tax credit and tax write offs and depreciation that comes with buying new equipment.
@@donmartin7728 I just wrote a novel and erased it because it all boils down to, financially, that makes no sense because you are still spending more than you are making.
I think your doing just fine buying from your neighbor,I’m from east Texas and I can’t believe what some of these guys paid for big new equipment and still see some not uniform bales in field
I just worked with a new farmer kid and we got him up and running for $4500. A really nice old square baler, a John Deere at that, and a rake. You’re right tho, a lot of people are still asking for the $ stuff was bringing 2 yrs ago, which is 2-4 times what it was 4 yrs ago. Let it sit and rot. Walk away.
For that price I wouldn’t care if it had weeds 😂 we get hay here in central Texas for $100 a bale, with weeds for $70. I would have no complaints for $30 a bale 😂 ppl will always find something to complain about. Keep doing work brother.
Complete self sufficiency isn't always the practical answer. Having some folks more specialized and/or able to over produce a product will keep us all rolling in hard times. No farm is an island, to coin a phrase.
I agree with buying hay. If I were in the same situation, I would buy it. To me it just wouldn't be worth the time, hassle, and cost, especially for small farming/homesteading.
Chuck don't let the trolls get under you skin. What you and boss lady are doing is spot on. you are using your available resources on YOUR farm at 100%. Tell the na sayers to blow smoke.
Your farm plan works that's all that maters
No two pieces of ground are the same. Why people think every farmer should manage their ground the same is crazy to me. If producing your own hay is the right choice for your land then you should probably do it, but if it's not then buying hay might be the right choice. There is no one solution in a world with infinite variables.
If you don't want to make hay, don't make hay. You can be profitable making hay, or buying hay. You just have to build your farm to handle that choice. Honestly I love making hay, it is probably one of my favorite farming tasks besides raising cows and pigs. I am not a big fan of growing corn, I feel like it would be inefficient for me on the scale I want to be at to have to own a combine, a planter, and do all the field work. I don't want to use chemicals, so I would have to cultivate 2x times a season. I have gotten my enjoyment out of growing corn already and don't have the interest. I rather have pasture ground and hay fields while buying a little grain for grain finishing cattle and feeding to pigs. I would grow small grain, like oats for a grain to feed cattle, and for the straw. but only if it was reasonable to hire someone to combine for me.
To be a good farmer you don't need to make Hay! To be a good farmer you need to be a good businessman
,😊
What is that music??? The first song.
Don't worry about the haters ! That cow Don't mind !
The value of having hay from a place that does not spray is priceless these days.people that hay sell their fertility to you. You have to get it back some way. Hay is a great way to import it from someone else willing to give it to you.
Each of your arguments for not raising your own hay have merits. In addition to your four good points, I offer two other great points to add to the wisdom of buying hay 1) carbon inputs and 2) feeding inferior hay just because you baled it.
Each bale you bring to your soil adds all its carbon to improve your soil health all across your farm. Net carbon addition is the name of the game to farm-wide soil health. You get net positive carbon with the feed you buy for your chickens, turkeys and pigs. Why not your cows as well? With the way you feed each winter you are spreading these nutrients across your fields to the spots you want it most. As long as you are not bringing in Grason and other chemicals these are very significant soil health bonuses.
Secondly, whenever you raise your own crops, you will always feed it to your cattle even if you were hit with inconvenient rain, dried it too much, had a plague of pests or had weeds out of control. Farmers who buy hay can selectively reject inferior hay. Once you have invested a year's work on hay you will feed it even if it is inferior that year.
Sorry, but I wrote my response before listening to the end of your video where you mentioned nutrients. Guess I showed my ignorance by posting too soon.
I've considered many times starting a RUclips channel but I see so many having to explain their actions to complete strangers i just wouldn't be that nice about it... or would I ever feel the need to explain myself
Those who leave the silly comments are generally those without a clue!
I don't think people include their value to caring for their live stock as time consuming. That being said, if you are cutting hay it is less time varing for your livestock. Ì can tell you and whistle britches do a fine job of more than just maintaining your stock. They all look Fat and healthy. Keep up the good work!
Haters will be haters…
I wish we could clarify what everybody is considering hay. I grew up on a dairy farm we consider hay 85% or more of it alfalfa in the Bale. what you have purchased is not hay it is grass that we use for dry cows and to keep the young stock fed through the winter. so what you are buying I wouldn't go out and buy equipment to make it. but for the milking cows I need to control the quality of the Bales more so I have to go out and buy equipment to make it I'd say what you're doing is perfectly fine keep doing it and let haters be haters
It is a little loose
I make 40 acres and sell it all because I can buy cattle hay cheaper than my good quality horse hay
Hi Chuck, I’m a firm believer in you do you and I‘ll do me. If you don’t like it, we’ll that’s their problem not mine.
?? I think people just want to complain about something! 🤬
That hay is just fine, fer cryin' out loud.. 🙄
Music too loud
Every operation is different. I cut my own and sell the surplus to help offset the cost of making hay. As long as you are happy with what you got then it doesn’t matter Some ppl love my hay and others don’t. Get it somewhere else lol