Do you think the lack of rain and poor hay/hayledge crop.......

Thank god we are now in a position of too much grass and worrying about lami, the horses are at last putting weight on after the hard winter. Our YO's yield was down but he has enough for us over winter and for his business with a very small margin for extras needed. Thanks to all the rain over the last few weeks it is looking likely that he will get a second crop off and we will be able to start managing grazing carefully in a week or so to ensure we have enough grazing through most of the winter if not all of it. We have 13 and last year was the worst I have ever known, they lost more weight than we wanted despite being on constant haylage or hay and we were spending well over £100 per week on it. I don't ever want to have that worry again and we are planning carefully for what this yeear might bring.

Our local feed merchant was telling me yesterday that they have sent out more hay this last couple of weeks than they did over winter. Word of warning.......apparently feed is the latest target for theft with 3 local yards being hit last week and all the feed bins being emptied! As if we don't have enough to worry about!!
 
The guy on the farm where I live is down around a third of the hay quantity he would usually make and that seems to be the same for everyone around here in Sussex. He does normally take a second cut but so far the grass just isn't growing BUT it does look like the storm clouds are gathering so perhaps we might get some rain tonght.

One of our local dairy farmers has brought his herd in as he has no grass and they are eating what should be next winters silage and one of our contractors is desperately advertising for straw to bale as the actual stalk on the corn crop is very short this year due to the lack of rain.

I'm glad Mike007 made the point about the price of hay not going up realistically. Given how much diesel and other related costs have gone up I don't see why the farmer should be slated all the time for trying to make a living. Most farmers only make small bale hay and straw for horsey people as with modern machinery it is much easier for them to use big bales for their own livestock. Decent haymaking can't be done in a couple of hours and with our changeable weather it is not always easy to find the right days to cut and make the hay. Also, alot of farmers will store the hay for you and deliver it out to you in small quantitites - how many other businesses would offer you that sort of service?
 
We are desperately short around here (Essex/Suffolk Border) our normal hay supplier has none to sell, all of my friends who have cut their own are down 50-60% on their normal yeild. One of the liveries has driven to Epping today to get round bales as we can get any around here. I've now put my neddy on haylage as I can get hold of that fairly easily. There is no scaremongering in this area, its a fact that hay is in desperate shortage. I am going to pre buy my haylage for the winter in the next month so I know that I've got plenty to see me through :(
 
with regards to the price of hay I can see why its more expensive, it costs the same amount to plant the crop, cut and bale it. Its no different to veggies going up in price at Tesco as the yeild is down.
 
As with so many things it really depends on where abouts in the country you are. Here we have half an inch of rain in the last 3 months so the grass just is not gorwing for hay or for grazing. Our local hay supplier - does lots of yards, hunts etc - is a 1,000 bales down already from the first cut - no rain at the moment so there may not be a second cut.
 
We've had no proper rain here for a long time and there is no grass anywhere. My field has had a good 5 weeks total rest as my horse has been elsewhere and it has grown about an inch, if that. Not what I'd hoped for at all!
Hay shortage definitely not scaremongering here in the south.
 
moneypit1 said:
Have to say I haven't read past page one! BUT, we have had a bumper year here in Devon. My friend has taken over 300 large (D100?) bales off her fields in June and has cut one lot of haylage with the second cut well on they way. Can't understand what the problem is, the best hay is made in June and we had a beautiful June! Last year we had taken no hay at all until around now and the haylage was so late it was pitiful.
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That surprises me as our hay supplier in Oxon sold all his surplus to Devon when the feed merchant couldnt get any locally :confused: we are grateful we got some big bales- couldnt get little ones anywhere
 
moneypit1 said:
Have to say I haven't read past page one! BUT, we have had a bumper year here in Devon. My friend has taken over 300 large (D100?) bales off her fields in June and has cut one lot of haylage with the second cut well on they way. Can't understand what the problem is, the best hay is made in June and we had a beautiful June! Last year we had taken no hay at all until around now and the haylage was so late it was pitiful.
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Perhaps you should have read past page one to get a better understanding of the national problem instead of thinking locally. :)

A haulier was telling me the other day that he'd never seen such a clear out of last season hay as he has this year. Last winter put a huge burden on feeders of hay, and the lack of grass well into May in some places, plus the lack of rain overall, means that lots of people have had to buy hay before the new crop was available.

Although there was all that snow in the winter, the land underneath was wet, so when the snow melted, much of it ran off and away. The subsequent lack of rain during the grass growing season means that crops are down in bulk, and the farmers are cutting later in many areas. Cutting later means risking unfavourable weather.

The straw crop is down this year already as there is not the length on the stalks, so therefor the bulk is less, as someone already mentioned.

On a national level, there has been a lot of movement of last year's hay with consumers buying in from other areas. The new season hay has been similar, with lots being bought off the field and transported out of the locality. Farmers are well aware of the economics and availability of fodder,and can't be blamed for supplying the market.

Hay prices in Scotland are bound to rise. We had a long dry spell which affected virtually the whole country. England has been much worse off for rain at the time when the crop was needing it to bulk out and produce leafy hay. Nationally, that means that hay will move around the country to meet demand, so don't be lulled into a false sense of security just because your neighbour seems to have done well.
 
A good friend of mine bought 500 bales off the field in Wales for £1.50 per bale.

Then whilst it was still loaded on the lorries, sold it to a feed merchant in Essex and sold it for £5.50 a bale.

Supply and demand.

I agree with Mike though, Hay was around .80p - £1 per bale 30yrs ago so it's still pretty cheap at £5.00 a bale in real terms.
 
im in the south east , and we are really stuck this year , hay is near non excistent and what we can get is nearer £5-6 a bale , my friend owns her own yard containing a livery of 50 horses , her husband cuts there own hay , this year they have only managed to get aleast 300 bales off ,they are having to go out and bring it in , i was think going futher a field this year and bring home what i need to last me throw winter . i have three young friesians to feed so finacialy it would or will be a strain but we get throw it .
lets just hope we get not such a dry summer next year i know we all hate rain but its either that or finances go up even more
 
My friend bought his hay in Devon for £1.50 a bale and my old yard in Sussex where I used to be on DIY is selling between £6.50 and £8.75 a bale. The max my friends can store at a time is about 10 bales so it makes it hard to plan ahead. Even if you can bulk buy and store presumably there is a finite amount of hay and when it runs out many are going to suffer even if you can afford to buy it you can't buy it if its not there.

I was considering going back on DIY to save money but as my horse gets through at least 4 bales a week in the winter and at least 2- in the summer my part-livery with a guaranteed supply of hay is the better option at the moment. It's a real worry.
 
I think the fact that everyone is panic buying is not helping the situation.

Last year it was still really warm in october, there is plenty of time for another crop providing the weather is right.

I have spoken to a local farmer who is more than willing to sell me haylege, hay and straw at a very reasonable price. He was even trying to justify his prices to me as though he felt bad, but it is cheaper than what I was paying last year.

The only problem I have is storage. I have no where to put it as I am on DIY livery and the YO buys it in. She makes a large profit on hers and so will not let us store it in her barn. I can store straw in my horsebox which isnt being used but unless I can persuade the farmer to deliver a few bales of hayledge at a time I might end up paying for the YO's.

Once prices go up they never come back down.
 
moneypit1 said:
Have to say I haven't read past page one! BUT, we have had a bumper year here in Devon. My friend has taken over 300 large (D100?) bales off her fields in June and has cut one lot of haylage with the second cut well on they way. Can't understand what the problem is, the best hay is made in June and we had a beautiful June! Last year we had taken no hay at all until around now and the haylage was so late it was pitiful.
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Is she selling and would she deliver to Somerset??! Lol :)
 
The farmer that we rent one of our paddocks from has been fine- two cuts so far this year of haylage and another to cut- but we are in quite a wet region of shrops tbh- up on the hills
 
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