Grand Forks herald. [volume] (Grand Forks, N.D.) 1916-1955, 1921-01-21
Farming in the N orthWe st
ALFALFA IN THE HEART OF THE NORTHWEST
Cuttlng Alfalfa.
ARTICLE MN N HAY.
By ]. G. HaneyJN Agricultural Extension Department,
International Harvester Co.

The making Of alfalfa hay 10 no
more difficult than making any other
kind of hay. There seems to be =
general impression that for 'ome rea-
and is harder to. make. The first crop
Of alfalfa which comes on about the
goth to 25th Of June may give more
trouble in getting it up in good shape
than the later cuttings, because OF
the fact that usually at this time there
is apt to be more wet weather. How.
ever this is not the fault Of the hay.
much. or nor rain than some other
common hays, and not sbes damaged to
as great an extent. Rain Of course
Is a detriment to any hay crop.
As stated in a previous article, tho
time Of cutting alfalfa for hay is deter
mined entirely by the stage OF growth.
and this can best be ascertained by
which starts at the crown Of the plant.
For the first cutting especially, the
blooming period is apt to be greatly
delayed, especially If there happens to
be some frost after the alfalfa has
made considerable growth. tits we'll,
however, to watch for both tillers and
bloom, for it has been known that
when the weather was very dry. the
new growth or, tillers. may be, delayed
until after the crop has been gut. in
which case it would be. well to note the
blooming very carefully. -
Cutting Alfalfa Hay
Alfalfa hay is relatively easy to cut,
n In ordinary team will handle a
eft. mower and there is a big advan-
tage in using az large a machine as
possible, SO as to cut tho field quickly.
the alfalfa was sow1. the mower may
be run close to the ground, although If
the -tillers have made considerable
growth It, is advisable to cut above
them. The bottom part Of the alfalfa
stems are more woody, and for this
reason there is little advantage in cut
ting low. In fact, there is some adj
BILE of 3 or 4 inches, which will help
to hold the hay UP off the ground, and
allow 1t to cure more readily.
AS it is the big problem to get the
moisture out of the hay quickly after
1t Is cut, it is desirable to cut the hay
at a time when theresis az little mois-
ture. in it as .pqssibles This would be
particularly after the dew had gone
off in the morning. The alfalfa will
dry off much more rapidly when
standing h when lying in the swath.
and especially if the ground is full Of
moisture from a recent rain. When
possible, it is better to cut the alfalfa
during the very hottest part Of the
day. This would probably be between
noon and three or four o'clock. Or
il there were a great deal to be cut
the mower might be started at ten
o'clock; and run somewhat later in
the evening.
If the growth is light and the
ground rather dry it may be possible
to rake what was cut in the morning,
late in the evening. 1t does not hurt
green hay to lie in the swath over
night, but if the hay has dried CON
siderably, and a heavy dew falls, it
will bleach to q certain extent. How.
ever, il the growth is heavy and the
weather not very dry, it is probable
that It will be necessary to let it lie
over from n day until the next. The
rake should be started just as soon as
the hay has wilted, and before any of
the leaves become so brittle that they
,',"'d rattle off when the hay was
Eaked.
Cure The Hay-Don't Dry It.
The alfalfa hay perhaps more than
any other. should be cured instead Of
dried. The moisture passes out Of
the alfalfa> plant through the leaves,
naturally. That is, it is TRANSFERRED
the same as moisture taken from tho
soil during growth. II the hay is cut
ind left in the hot sun the leaves will
often dry up sbefore the moisture has
TRANSFERRED. When the hay is raked
into a windrow. or thrown into small
narrow cocks, the hay goes on trans.
pirtng moisture in the natural way,
until 1t 10 thoroughly. dry. For this
reason it is essential that the hay be
'raked before It becomes too dry, and
allowed to go through the curing pro-
cess in the windrow or cock. Cock
covers OF various kinds are often used
to protect the hay while curing. but
we have found them--more bother
than they are worth.
In handling Alfalfa hay on a rather
large scale 1t Is. often desirable to put
windrow. In fact, in using the hay
loader or sweep rakes 1t In necessary
to do the curing In the wtndrow. It IL
q TACT; however. that II the helm IL
available, . better quality Of hay can
be made II 1t is put into small cocks
and allowed to cure for q day or two
NOV.
II will be noticed by the accompany
ing cutAhat the greatest food value Of
the alfalfa hay IL In the leaves. ana
for this reason It is very essential that
the hay be handled In such q way In
to save the leaves. Those not familiar
wAsaA 1AAaAAa VIII % surprised at how
eaay,tt 10 to lose q large part Of the
feeding value BY handling this hay
when It IL not in the proper condition,
Handling Hay on the I. II. O.. Fnsn
The cat showing the making Of h.~
on the !. q. e. Farm gives a good idss
OF how We handle this o A.
general thing we were able to cut tha
= day. rake i into the windro~
vi, wsite Ss1. ana a sSon 2. 4 had %thoroukhly
~ the stack with the sweep raj. .,a
From this picture It will be- no.,...
that there are four teams ana v,.a
men. At no time did We e ever l nse
more N, handing more than 60 .c rss
q Alfalfa, md an equal area ~ othes
hay; With this outfit we coni "a otnsr
saS ~ To- ls acres Of hay in az.
10 ioa Or - II Ie o.c'not began g stacking 1efos:
Y believed that such an o,tSat =
nandle alfalfa at the very iea.. w.M
nomieal to stack the hay ~ more ths sco.
saa Aeni y. IN the tail. snA ~. sleld
~ ~ AAA> :. ~ go EE I'm ~ ~ ~