Hay Guard -- RockyHill's First Year Report

As most things with our farming, my reporting on our first year with using any type hay preservative has taken longer than anticipated.

 

To begin, we know how to put up dry hay and given suitable weather conditions we are successful. Suitable weather conditions – they happen – just not always when forecasted or when the hay is at the right stage of maturity.

 

Our hay is grass hay, no legumes. We used Hay Guard on both small squares and five foot rolls, plastic twine. We had been able to see inside the squares but have just now unrolled some of the rolls. The treated hay has a soft texture and good color retention.

 

We are using liquid Hay Guard with the Dohrmann applicator system specifically designed for Hay Guard. The system had everything needed, we did not have to buy any “extras” to do the installation – a very pleasant rareity.

 

One year has not given us the experience to work out everything we need to know to use it to it's full advantage. As you'all know, most of the time I paraphrase Jeff's comments but this time I asked him for specific quotes.

 

“I am convinced it will keep the temperature down of hay that is too green”

 

“some of the hay we treated was still dusty; not sure that we got the proper amount of product on it”

 

“we had two bales of hay that was extremely green but got a lot of Hay Guard put on it and it didn't heat hardly any and it still looked good after it dried out – no question that that hay kept”

 

“I can't truthfully say it 'worked great' because we failed to get as much product on in some cases as we needed; it is hard for me to recommend to 'try it' because of the cost of the applicator and because we can't truly say it works good or not because we're not sure WE used it properly”

 

“a person that is needing a preservative, it is worth the time and expense to learn how to use it in their operation”

 

Now for some random things we've learned.

 

• Hay Guard is heavier than water; full containers are weighty to pour in and the applicator pump is a slow way to fill. Another pump or gravity feed might be considered.

• To install the applicator on a John Deere 535 roller requires removing the twine holders to reach where the bracket bolts on. Also the bracket holes do not line up with the holes on the roller so a couple of new holes need to be drilled.
   

• The nozzle tips are placed close to the incoming hay. We did not have any problems with them being too close but keep an eye on them while baling.

• Hay Guard needs to be protected from freezing. Consider winter storage. We bought in jugs this year to have storage containers in the future.

• The flow meter is a bit difficult to read when mounted by the applicator tank. Keep an eye on the flow meter to make sure tips haven't clogged.

• The finish of the baling equipment is affected by Hay Guard. While it may not be rust it is something to deal with. We have always used air to clean up the balers; rinsing off is really needed.

• Hay Guard needs to be stored with a minimal amount of air space left in the container.

• Hay Guard does not have any odor.

• Leaving a small amount of Hay Guard in the applicator at the end of the season will create a horrible smell. Clean the tank out when not being used.

• A costly lesson – baling dry hay we had always been able to sell hay immediately after baling. We had baled and stacked a few hundred preserved bales. We told the customer about the hay being baled with Hay Guard; we did not know to tell them to make sure to closely stack the hay when they got it home. They stacked it to 'air' it out, even Coke cans between bales to bales from touching. The hay basically rotted. The rest of that hay that we had here in the stack went through its sweat and kept fine. Customer understood their mistake and we understood our mistake and we made it right.

• Our established 'horsey person' lady customer was very satisfied with the treated hay. We ask her to report back to us; she was pleased, her animals were pleased; the only problem she found was a small amount of damage around a box turtle in the bale. Hay Guard does not have a recommendation for box turtle preservation and we aren't planning for that expansion.

• We had not previously used any preservative in our baler, but be aware that if acid has been used the baler must be completely cleaned of any residue.

• There is a learning curve. Trying to get the right application rate takes a lot of trial and error. Timing bale formation and weighing bales are a factor but as with all of hay making it is more art than science.

• The hay baled with Hay Guard has a different smell than hay baled dry – difficult to describe – not unpleasant in any way but not the normal 'cured' smell.

• Hay Guard may be increasing their recommended application rate. Inquire with your representative for best results.

 

 

Shelia

 

 

Hay Guard -- RockyHill's First Year Report