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When testing and demoing our equipment here at Tractor Tools Direct, we often look for grassy city lots that need attention and then donate the harvested bales to local charitable organizations. In this way, we turn our passion for small-farm hay production into compassion for those in need. Ibex TX 45 Drum Mower,Ibex TS130 2+2 V-Rake, and Ibex TX31 Mini Round Baler with Net Wrap on a city lot and donated the hay to Peacefield Equine Sanctuary. Peacefield is operated by Bruce and Elizabet …

As the old adage claims, prevention is worth a pound of cure. More applicably, in the world of hay production, prevention is worth pounds of curing hay--and the best way to prevent problems in the hay field is through regular maintenance of your equipment. Several of our previous blogs have discussed maintenance to prepare for the hay season and maintenance to close out the hay season. This blog will provide a check list of maintenance that should be performed each time your equipment is us …

Over the past few months we have been covering the basics of hay production. We have already discussed mowing and tedding. In this blog we will discuss the raking process. Once your fields have cured, it’s time to rake. Though by this point in the process your sights are set on a field full of sweet-smelling bales, raking should never be overlooked in its importance to the final product. Raking done well can increase the quality of a bale while raking done poorly will surely decrease it. …

April’s blog discussed the first step of the baling process--mowing. This month’s blog will give tips for the next step--tedding. What is a tedder? A tedder is an implement that is used to fluff and spread hay to decrease drying time. Tedding is typically done after the hay is mowed and before it is raked into windrows for baling. Many hay mowers, unless they have a built-in conditioning system like our Ibex TS51C and TM67C drum mowers, tend to windrow the cut crop into a tight pile that …

The following is a blog we posted to our website and social media account in October of 2018. It is our most shared blog post ever. When we updated our company website, it was removed due to its incompatibility with the new platform. However, enough people contacted us asking for it to be replaced that we took the time to redesign and update the calculator to make it even better. Here it is!Livestock Winter Hay Needs With winter coming on, it is time to make sure that you have enough hay in th …