When are fields harvested for hay in Ontario? Is there a common month and week?

The ROC

The ROC

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Hello,

Did some searches and Googling but didn't get exactly the info I needed.

I read hay harvesting is done during spring and early summer and there is a two-week "window" when it's the ideal time to harvest.

My question is, in Ontario, what time of the month and week do 99% of this harvesting is done?

Thanks for the info.
 
Hay harvesting can be done 2-4 times a year depending on the weather. A good combination of sun and rain makes for more cuts. First cut can be late May or early June. Last cut can be in early Fall.
 
I'm not a farmer myself, but having lived in a rural area all of my life I'm pretty familiar with hay harvests.

Basically there is no set "date" for hay harvests as it depends on a huge number of factors, namely the date at which the last of any given farmer's field dries out during spring, how much rainfall there has been, and some farmers are also supersticious enough to wait for certain phases of the moon.

A good rule of thumb seems to be that the first harvest happens about 8 weeks from the date that the last field dries out. That makes it late june/early july typically for the first harvest, and mid september for the 2nd harvest.
 
The field near where I race does a harvest beginning of August, don't know if it's the only one they do
 
It will depend on what part, south or north. Even 150 miles makes a difference in hay harvest timing. I'd guess in the south early June for a first cut and in early July further north. Go out and talk to some hay farmers they'll give you a pretty good estimate. I assume you want to pop prairie dogs. I know very few farmers who are against that.
 
The ROC said:
Hello,

Did some searches and Googling but didn't get exactly the info I needed.

I read hay harvesting is done during spring and early summer and there is a two-week "window" when it's the ideal time to harvest.

My question is, in Ontario, what time of the month and week do 99% of this harvesting is done?

Thanks for the info.
Click to expand...

You have to keep your eyes open....and your nose.
Farms around my place usually get three cuts per season, First cut around the end of May....weather permitting. Right after the bales are picked up they spread the manure.....;)
I'm assuming you are trying to time some groundhog hunting with the cuts. Well once the snow melts the little suckers come out. Some hunters leave the spring ones alone so they can mate and produce a target rich enviroment. If there is plenty of rain mixed with sunshine hay will grow FAST, a couple of weeks and the hogs are invisible again. Soy fields can produce some good oppertunities as it grows a little slower then hay.
The reason hay fields are so furtile with earth pigs is that they don't get plowed. The little suckers just dig a burrow and unless a hunter works those fields or the predators are plentiful, they will live in that burrow for a long time. I usually pack the burrow once I shoot them and place a marker that mister farmer can see so he can pass the grader over the hole.
 
That is a tough question to answer.

Usually 2-4 times a year. ( once a month if conditions are good ) Like Southwest Maddog said.

They usually want to get the first one off quick ( Mid Mayish ) to get using as feed.

The best time is a period when it is sunny and Dry ( so not may24 weekend) Where they can cut it , let it dry for a day two or three then pull it in. So they do not plan to cut and bail in the rain. The idea is not to store it wet in the Barn. every area is different.

If you had to pic a time the last week of May will give you a good chance of getting critters in the open.
 
If your talking about Corn, then it depends on the weather. After the frost usually I think is common, but some farmers are busy, and don't get around to every field right away, so some stays out there for a long time before harvest.
 
The ROC said:
Hello,

Did some searches and Googling but didn't get exactly the info I needed.

I read hay harvesting is done during spring and early summer and there is a two-week "window" when it's the ideal time to harvest.

My question is, in Ontario, what time of the month and week do 99% of this harvesting is done?

Thanks for the info.
Click to expand...

there is never really an exact time, the weather has to be right for a week or so in a row for the hay to be cut, dried, and bailed. first cut is normally just after school lets out in the summer (being a farm kid, haying has stuck in my head quite boldly, you get to know where the meaning from "chaffs my @ss" comes from.
 
By mid-June, hay is being cut virtually everywhere in S.Ontario.

Some (multi-cut) take the first as early as mid-May, others, who cut only once or twice, not until early July. Much depends on the type of farm operation and how hay fits into their overall plans ... square or round bales, inside/outside storage, feed requirements, etc.

100 k or so north of Toronto, the first cut on average is usually early to mid-June.
Last year, on the home farm, the first field cut was as far as I can recall, June 12.
Dry, sunny weather and enough heat "to make hay" are prerequisite. A day or two of rain can back things up by a week.
 
Thanks for the replies. This should give me an idea as to when to visit my groundhog hunting sight. It's been a looooooooong time since I've been up there.

And it being a 2.5 hours drive from home I'd like to be there after the first hay harvest and not before.
 
My family farms 20 minutes southwest of London and we used to have cattle so I am very familiar with haying. First cut around here happens around the first week of June (give or take a week depending on the weather) and then every 4-7 weeks thereafter depending on the amount of rain and heat.
 
Depends what is in the hay. If legume dominant earlier and more cuts. If grass later and less cuts. Legumes grow back quicker,and are less water dependent for succeeding cuts than grass. Dairy farms will take an earlier first cut than beef farms.
 
The ROC said:
Thanks for the replies. This should give me an idea as to when to visit my groundhog hunting sight. It's been a looooooooong time since I've been up there.

And it being a 2.5 hours drive from home I'd like to be there after the first hay harvest and not before.
Click to expand...

If you are shooting in someones field you must be talking to them at least occasionally. Give them a call and ask.

A good township map should be available with the owners name if you don't remember it.
 
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