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When baling hay, one of the decisions a producer must make is what type of bale binding to use. Hay binding materials include hemp twine, polypropylene twine, sisal twine, net wrap and others. This blog will discuss hemp twine. What is hemp? Hemp is a plant with thin stalks and compound palmate leaves. Its flowers are small and greenish yellow. Though hemp originated in central Asia, it is now grown in temperate regions throughout the world. Not to be confused with cannabis, the source of mari …

Maybe you’ve invested in our own hay baling equipment and, having met your own farm’s hay needs, have excess hay. Or, maybe you’ve purchased your own equipment and only want to produce hay to sell it. If so, it is time to find a market for your hay. Marketing your hay is going to be the best way to sell your hay. And the best way to market your hay is going to be to know your market. Here are some important considerations: What animals do your potential customers need to feed? Milking cows …

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 …

Last month in our blog "Haymaking Equipment for Sheep and Goat Owners" we discussed the ways our compact hay equipment, especially our mini-round balers, can increase the efficiency and productivity of sheep and goat farms. This month, we would like to share the first-hand account of one of our customers, Ron Klein, who with the help of TTD, has done just that. Ron is the owner and operator of Windshadow Farm & Dairy, LLC in southwestern MI—a Grade A goat dairy milking 160 does. The f …

"You can bale when your pasture is at its nutritional peak—not when the farmer down the road gets around to it." Do you operate a small farm? Do you own a little livestock and a few acres of hay pasture? Are you tired of waiting until the farmer down the road gets around to baling your hay—usually long after it has reached its nutritional peak? Then maybe it’s time for you to make the jump to haying independence. Fortunately, we at Tractor Tools Direct have developed a line of com …