Hay Lessons Learned

The sheep really like this new hay I got for them.

Meatloaf, right, and Pot Pie, left, enjoy the mornings hay delivery.

They are actually eating less of this new hay than the hay I cut last summer. Most of that, though, was cut too late, I am discovering in retrospect. I waited until the grass and weeds standing in the field were waist-high (shoulder-high in some spots). It was tough work. I injured my elbow and dinged up the scythe pretty bad, too. This new hay is shorter than what I had, and less brown in most spots.

My lessons-learned, new rule for 2014 and beyond is to cut the hay when it's knee-high. That should give me 1) better hay, 2) more hay, and 3) an easier time cutting the hay. Hacking through 6-foot, woody branches is tough work, and I do NOT want a repeat of that experience.