In many parts of TX the humidity is high and that
means increased risk of molding. Some go to OK to get Alfalfa. I
found dehydrated alfalfa in plastic bags to be handy and fed it in their feed
buckets by the handfuls, especially when the green grass was gone. It is a
bit messy but it is ALL edible, no hard stems left on the ground. It adds
nutrients and protein. I ALWAYS feed free choice bermuday. Once
again the bale sizes are smaller, unless you get the big round ones which weigh
hundreds of pounds and you need a tractor with fork to move around.
One just needs to be flexible. One yr TX hay crop did not happen and the
guy I got hay from drove to AR and brought back oat hay. Just my
experience. In TX only the round bales are left uncovered. Have to
cover the sq bales or you loose a lot of it to the rain and
humidity.
>>>I still get a jolt whenever I see hay prices
discussed as "by-the-bale" prices. Except for buying the occasional
bale from a feed store, where one expects a bit of a retail markup, I've
always bought hay from either the producer or from a hay broker, by the
ton. <<<<
The problem of course for many folks who live in
urban areas such as So. Cal., is that buying from a broker or producer is
next to impossible, unless you buy a whole tractor trailer load. The
average horse owner does not have the space to store often more than a ton.
Sometimes only 4-8 bales at a time. To drive TO the fields, is usually not
cost effective, as the closest for those in Los Angeles, such as the San
Fernando valley, is you have to drive out to the desert communities, or
Bakersfield. By the time you add in fuel, and then the time to go get it,
and then unload it yourself, most would rather pay the local feed store to
bring the hay out, and unload it and stack it for you. I had a storage
place that required the delivery guy to have to drag the bales about 30'
from the truck to stack it. No extra charge. Saved my back!
I have
calculated hay prices per bale, breaking them down into the per
pound price, and CA is usually not much higher than TX. I do miss the
selection of hay types in CA. There were the different grain hays, such as
Barley, Oat, Wheat, and then different grass hays, such as Rye, Orchard,
Bermuda. Then of course, if you wanted to feed alfalfa, you could find it
everywhere. The last was the mixed hay, where they would have alfalfa and a
grass hay, or a mixed grain hay. Here, we grow some Coastal Bermuda
ourselves, which seems to be the main hay in No. TX.
Here is a web
site for searching for hay in different areas. I am always amazed at the
different types of hay, and how the vary regionally.
