I have never seen such a bumper sticker. I don't think there are too many people that care than much about hay? To most people, I think it's just a simple necessity. A plain old commodity. But to me, it is so much more.
What other crop can a farmer grow that is as multi-dimensional as hay? Bean, grains, potatoes? Seen one, you've seen them all. I know there are going to be some objective measures. But you mostly just load it on a truck and send it to market. It's not as personal and individual as hay.
Maybe vegetable or fruit growers can relate? Surely the customer can appreciate the qualities of a perfect tomato or peach? The grower beams with pride when the customer comments the many finer attributes of a superior specimen. In that brief moment, all the painstaking details and labors that created that result seem worthwhile.
The same attention to details and efforts goes into creating the ultimate hay bale. In some cases, maybe more. The right ingredients, texture, nutrition, and palatability are no less appreciated by livestock than the most discriminating connisseur!
Growing up around hay, I didn't take interest in it right away. It was a gradual thing as I handled it more and more. I began to notice the subtle differences. I learned to recognize higher quality and enjoyed everything about it. I liked the color, texture, the aroma, and I'm not too embarrassed to admit I've tasted it a time or two - on purpose.
I even grew to enjoy handling it. My first job was working on a hay crew. Although too much of any good thing can be overwhelming, like hand stacking 120# bales in an elevated and dusty loft during a hot summer. Despite those negative experiences, I never lost my enthusiasm.
All of my teenaged years, I handled hay regularly feeding beef livestock and horses. I would watch the animals consumption idiosyncrasies. I would learn their preferences and habits. It was all observation for me in those days, as I didn't know about all of the science behind the industry.
When I finally realized the opportunity to gain my own place in the country, I was naturally inclined to grow hay. The one acre next to the house was already in alfalfa (and it was a gorgeous stand!) But I had to exercise extreme patience as I was not financially ready to do any farming yet.
It was nothing short of torture to watch somebody else harvest hay off of my new property! It wasn't my hay, but I would still walk out into it every opportunity that I had. I was just monitoring the progress and looking at the contents. I learned appreciation for the people that were harvesting it. Their timing and ability to package a quality product was to my admiration. But Oh! How I envied them! Especially when they were on the swather making perfect cuts through the lush vegetation.
I would go out and estimate the weight and number of bales made and write it on my calendar. I could get a good estimate of their yields and I was impressed again. Compared to what I was used to seeing as a youngster, it was some good stuff and a lot of it. It was near dairy quality hay and huge yields!
I tried to make note of everything that they did. The month and day of their cuts, the time of day, how long they dried (or tried to), their raking, and baling. The irrigation timing and frequency. How long their sets were. Anything that I could observe. I talked to the farmer about planting techniques, variety, and density. I was going to emulate this obvious success the best I could to start with.
I found numerous books on the subject and a whole lot more information on line. I've learned about laboratory testing and various numerical representations of quality analysis. And I learned of a home method for accurately measuring percent moisture using the microwave.
I put a lot of emphasis on getting the moisture correct. When you get it right, it's analogous to a perfect medium cooked steak. It melts in the mouth. Too much moisture poises the risk of unacceptable mold. Not enough moisture and it's like an overcooked steak. The flavor is missing, it's hard to chew, it swells bigger in the mouth and it's hard to swallow.
There is a lot of science involved in making and grading hay, but there is not and likely never will be enough to discount the art of haymaking. Try as you might to follow the best recommended practices to the number, but every cut situation is different. Anybody that starts to think they have all the answers is one cutting away from a heaping serving of humble pie!
I've had my share of humble pie, and I don't like it. I'd rather have peach cobbler! But it's part of the game. All you can do is try to fail better the next time. It's a constant challenge, but it's all worth it for those magical times you know there's a few near perfect hay bales in the stack.
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