Hay, Straw and a Heat Wave...

Jim says that the week that the barley is combined is always the hottest week of the summer, and this year is no exception!

But first, there was hay to unload.  Jim's in the middle of 2nd cutting of hay this week, and with no rain in sight for several days, he was able to get several wagon loads of dry hay.  We pulled a small crew together and they got it unloaded this morning.  Oh boy, was it ever hot! I think the temperatures were close to 100% today.  Yuck.

Just a few short weeks ago, this mow was completely empty, and housed a puppy kennel for the chilly nights (which are but a distant memory)...

We'll see how full this mow gets this summer.  It's not quite at the half way mark yet.  I climbed up the elevator for a different perspective.

The crumbs left in the wagon got shoveled into the hay racks in the meadow, for an evening snack for the cows.  That's the first place they go when they're left out of the barn for the night...and if there's nothing in the racks for them, do we ever hear about it!

Then it was time to head over to the barley field.  Those windrows of straw are what was left behind by the combine...

Jim started baling around lunch time, but the straw was still a little tough, so he stopped and waited a few hours to try again. It was nicer (drier) by then, but still not as nice as he would have liked, so he left the rest lay for another day.

I'm glad today is almost over, and right now, I'm thankful for a shower, clean clothes, and for the cool breeze blowing in the window beside me.

A Challenge...

Finally...a good week for making hay!

So far this year, making hay has been challenging! 

We depend so much on the weather, and it has not been cooperative in the least...we've had very few dry stretches long enough to get the hay mowed , dried and baled for the hay mow.  We have more round bales of "balage"  (when the hay is baled and wrapped at high moisture) than ever before, and it's only mid-July! 

Jim is now a little more than halfway finished with 3rd cutting.  This week was just about perfect hay making weather...hot, sunny and breezy, with lower humidity.  This morning he and Eric unloaded a load that was baled last night...

Eric was on the wagon, tossing the bales on the elevator...

 Jim was up in the mow, just under the eaves, taking the bales off the elevator and stacking them...

It's wonderful to see the hay mow getting full again.  Although it's time consuming to get good qualtiy dry hay, there's nothing quite like it for keeping the cows well fed, healthy, and making lots of good, quality milk!