I can't believe how stressed out I've been for this hay... and for people I don't know, will never meet. I keep checking the weather and webcam, and about had a heart attack when I heard storm chasers were headed to this neck of the woods. I can't wait for the last bale to be safely stowed in the hay yard. Born, raised and lived in the 'burbs my whole life - this channel has been so very interesting learning about the ranch life and all it involves. Thanks for sharing your story. 😀
Really enjoyed this video..brought back memories of the 60's & 70's ' putting up hay. My dad had 5 daughters, no sons, so daddy would cut, then rake the hay using a very old tractor and rake. He did have a square baler. One sister would drive the tractor with the hay wagon hooked up. Daddy would be on the wagon, stacking the hay as, another sister and I threw the bales on the wagon. Hard work..bales weighing about 60 lbs. Then we'd put the hay up in the barn. If we got too hot, we'd jump in the creek to cool off! My dad had a small herd of cattle, around 45-50 head . After we all moved out, he could finally afford new tractors and a round baler..Life was good! He was also a deputy sheriff at that time, so he was limited on farm time, but successful! Thanks again!! Appreciate it🇺🇸
This gives me a whole new appreciation for what my grandfather had to do a little over 45 years ago. I love this channel is seems to always take me back to the best part of my childhood
Every time I heard those 3 beeps, I said, Thank You, Lord! Farmers and ranchers need all the support we can give. They are the backbone of this country. I am extremely happy that this is going to really help you during the next winter. Be Blessed!
All your equipment is a real plus. I remember helping with hay when I was a child. It was exhausting stacking it onto the hay cart and then unloading it, so it was moved twice. It was stacked very carefully into a hay stack and then thatched with straw. My job was to rake up any hay which had been missed by the pitch forks, they had three tines. The best bit was riding back to the farm on top of the pile of hay. My mother was useless with a pitch fork. She never seemed to get the knack of picking up the hay and tossing it onto the wagon, it seemed stay on her fork. Later I learned to drive the tractor so that was better than the raking job. Getting the trailer through the gate and backing it round was the real fun bit. Here in the UK when you pass your driving test you have to turn the car round in a narrow street. It was so easy in a mini compared to a tractor and cart. How do you fertilize your hay meadows? Do you spread manure? I remember watching an old guy with a scythe in Austria, and he was amazing, but he sharpened it frequently. His job was to get all the edges and corners and steep bits missed by the tractor and babysit the toddler. His scythe had another handle but he could sweep it round and cut all the grass.
I have pictures of ancestors from the 1900's-1940's all were farmers in the Midwest. Loose hay was put in high sided hay wagons pulled by horses. Hay was then taken to the hay barn to be put up loose. So happy for your ranch to have a good supply of hay for the winter!
I lived on my grandfather's farm when I was in Jr high and high school. We had square bales we harvest and put in the barn on the north side. The south side was where the black Angus would come in for the worst weather. The round bales were stored outside for the ok weather in the winter. Grandpa always told me waist nothing . Even the wheat straw was baled for bedding. You guys are GREAT!!! ITS SOO GOOD TO SEE A FAMILY THAT IS DOING WHAT YOU DO. My son watches you videos. So do my nieces and nephews. Farming is hard work. And you guys are doing a STELLAR JOB.
Really happy you've had a successful harvest. I remember when you were bringing hay up from several states away and I remember seeing how much it was stressing you. Hoping this season gets you over the hump towards building up your herd.
I'm "kicking" my heels up for you and all the other Ranchers/Farmers that can produce their own food for their livestock. People might not realize our livestock is the driving force for food security and sustainable development. Very important to see all Ranchers/Farmers produce their own food . Good job ! Mike, Jeff and Erin and kids too.
Hey Mike, keep up the good work brother!!! Whatever thing you can do yourself will keep you ranching!! Ever little bit helps! We need every rancher and farmer to hold the fort!!! All the struggles you have been through has prepared you for todays event!! America needs it ranchers and farmers more than ever!!!
Great Video! I am just so thankful it rained/snowed earlier this year! Nothing better then harvesting your own hay! Every bale made is money in the bank!
So very glad you were able to bale that much hay. Hopefully, PRAYERFULLY, you'll get more than enough rain to bring back those parched roots to get even more bales.
I am very happy for you that you are able to hay this year. With all the terrible prices of gas and everything else this allows you to keep going and producing wonderful food for us all. I want to thank all the farmers and ranchers for what they do to provide for for us .
Once again WOW HAYING.there are so many decisions ahead. And I am so pleased for you that you have the ability to analyze the situation as well as you can and have the support from the Wyoming agricultural Community helped you make that decision
That's great news Mike, I believe prayer works as I'm certain I'm not the only person praying for a successful hay season for y'all . Glad you can bale up winter feed! God bless yall's family and business!
Hi to Our Wyoming Life and all others too. You always doing a fantastic job out on the hay. Keep it up !😃Sending Prayers for you all to stay safe and have a bless day. Thanks for sharing
It’s so crazy to see all the price differences. Here hay goes for about $35 a bale to $85 for (horse hay). So glad y’all were able to hay. It makes such a huge difference.
Mike, you don't know the people that has been praying for y'all and y'alls family/ranch. God is still in the prayer answering business. Glad to see y'all back to baling your own hay. Take care ol son
"Hay" Mike! It's so good to see so many round bales out on your Ranch land! Your cows are going to LOVE eating all that good "homegrown" food!! AND you are going to keep a lot of cash in your bank account, where it belongs! $$$$$$$$$ Saving the Ranch money is AWESOME! Until your next video...Stay safe, healthy and happy! 🐃 🐃
Glad to see that you are doing everything you can do to save the ranch money . Without having to buy hay , you can put that money towards something else
I can't wait to see the final numbers. So far you have really saved on hay costs. I am praying you get more snow this winter. I look at where you have come from and seeing the awful drought in the south especially Texas and Oklahoma with their 3 diget temps and think how much livestock is going to be sold under what the farmers put in. Then the 2030 article from the UN and how it is being adopted world wide 😢 we are all going to be Sri Lonka in 2 years.
Usually, I buy my hay. This year, I dug out the sickle mower and the dump rake. The equivalent of about 300 square bales is going in loose . I hope your harvest is successful
I love this video today Mike it just shows people what a Rancher or a farmer goes through the winter or anytime God bless you and your family and keep it up button I hope the weather keeps going strong for you and no hell
Great video! So happy for you guys. Great kickoff to you guys owning the ranch and doing things your way. I truly believe God is looking out for the Galloways and he will make things happen in a positive way for your family. 👍🏻
Sooo cool to see you on the baler and Jeff out in the back ground raking. Really neat! Congratulations on a successful haying season. Time for a Yay Hay Party!
So glad you were able to cut hay this year. With the prices off everything. You all have saved so much money and saved the ranch at that. Hope you will be able to get a second cut also. Prayers for rain.
Old timers weren't making 1400lb round bales with horses. Usually it was loose hay forked onto a trailer. Even early 50-70lb square bales were mostly after tractors replaced horses.
not unless you had a hay press barn ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-Ili5HAtN-xE.html I'm not taking that route I bought a 1921 turner 16/18 inch hay press along with two ihc Mccormick Deering sickle bar horse mowers and a new idea easy way loose hay trailer loader and a four bar horse drawn hay rake
So glad up were able to hay this year. I had no idea the cost of buying hay. Very interesting. Glad you will be saving money this year and hope it will continue over the years. Thanks for the lesson in Hayeconomics.
Such good news!! I've been anxiously waiting for some idea on how haying has been stacking up. Production is great!! Such good news Mike!! Thanks for the update and looking forward to more.
Great entertaining video. Love the information given, makes learning fun about what ranches deal with. So happy you are able to hay. It was a total delight to have met you this past week. Wishing you and the family ...including J and K....all the best ..stay safe!
I’m actually excited to see you bale hay! Being a long time subscriber I remember the years you had to buy hay. So this is very exciting!! Can’t wait to see how much you end up getting!
Just love your work and very informative! God is blessing you now and always.... God made farmers.... Hope next year is as good to you as 2022.... Love your channel. Educational!
Happy for you guys great videos really enjoy watching and great machinery I am a Deere man also from Australia keep up all the great work and best wishes to you all
Its so cool to look out over the fields and see the bales. Everyday on my way to and from work I enjoy that sight until they are picked up. So glad you are able to bale. Keeping my fingers crossed you'll get all you need from your ranch fields. More rain might make hayfields not cut grow taller.= more bales🙌🙌🙌
Mike it is certainly about time things start looking up for you out there, I believe your droughts moved east to our part of Pa. this year,less than an inch in two months
Bales were a lot smaller in the past, small enough 1-2 guys with rakes could pick them up and throw them onto a wagon or cart. Or the hay was collected loose and stored that way in hay barns. As equipment size grew so it could handle heavier loads, the size of bales grew as well, speeding up the collection process.
Good job your hay. Work in general is usually more economical when you can provide for your own needs on a farm. Those numbers you shared proves the point of keeping a close eye on those bottom line numbers. Thanks for sharing, I hope you all have a great week.
Mike, it is priceless when you don’t have to worry about whether to slaughter members of the herd because you can’t source affordable hay or feed for them. An adequate supply of home-grown hay is a great stress reliever. Wishing you well and hoping for a second cut of hay this year if the weather cooperates, or the weather service does some cloud seeding.
It's good that you and your family can do this and know the economics of haying to make it possible. How do you pick up or move the bales or do you just leave where they sit? This is going to help the kids learn about economics in whatever field of work they go into later in life... thanks mike. pick up a clip on fan to help you along...
I love the day dreams . It sure is amazing what our fore fathers did what they did for corps, having and farming . Great video Mike. God bless 😊 ❤ you all.
So happy to hear you were able to lay up a good chunk of hay. Here's hoping you keep getting some showers and get some regrowth on those fields for a bit - let you graze them and stretch that hay...and get some nice cow poop fertilizer out on the "pure" hay fields as well.
That turned out reasonable. Good for you! I am worried what price I will have to pay this year, that's for sure. Grass is good, but fuel costs will mean prices don't move from last year. Luckily, I downsized a bit so won't need as many. Good job!
"What do you do while you're haying?" Reminds me of my father. He wouldn't allow any tractor to have a radio. He insisted that you should be listening to your equipment the entire time it was operating.
🤩🤩🤩 Even in the 60's, it was mostly square bales, small or large, and farmers paid high school boys to buck bales. We had friends who were retired and lots of the time my siblings and I, 4 of us, helped get the hay in the barn for a trip to A&W for burgers and root beer. Cheap labor!!!
Mike, I have a question. When I was a kid my dad would harvest the grasses in the margins of the road by our house for my horses… can you still do that or are you limited by your equipment? My dad used a windrower machine that put the cut grass directly into the neat rows…
The way you move them hay bails without a tractor is to put a steel bar though the middle of them, and the rope to each end of the steel bar . And you can pull it with 4 wheeler then . Or a horse will work . Unwrap them also that way too cows in winter .
If it had a cover over it, it would last longer. The more years it sits the more it rots from the bottom. By about 3 yrs. you better have used it or grind it with some good hay in the winter. Mother Nature plays a big part in it.
The scythe was great ha ha... I have one that looks about like that and after looking it up it was to heavy, made for weeds and thicker stocks so i kept hurting myself on the grass. Someday i'll buy one that is thinner but good exercise. Take care
The real cost accounting decision buy vs. hay yourself would be as follows. If you started from zero would you buy a hayfield and the necessary equipment for bailing or would you buy hay? Also, would you sell your hayfields and hay equipment and invest in things like more freezer space or a larger farm store that provides a better return on investment.
Good point. The return on investment is key. He has lots of machinery tied up for hay harvest, plus the land. What else could he use the land for, and what amount of cash would be released were he to sell off all equipment used for hay production ? And, then he can compare that combined saving with what he estimates the cost of purchasing hay to be. Otherwise, his economical basis for decision making lacks facts.
