Haymaking time – a challenge between nature and timing!
Success depends on many factors, but timing the cut remains the most crucial. Only by choosing the right moment can we obtain hay that is nutritious, fragrant, and easily digestible.
When to cut the hay? Nutrients and weather at the heart of the decision
Forage plants reach their peak nutritional and aromatic value at the beginning of flowering. For cereals, the ideal time is during heading. In these stages, hay retains its best properties for feeding livestock.
However, the weather often influences this choice. If there’s no window of stable weather long enough to cut, dry, and bale the hay, it’s better to wait. Cutting too early or too late results in poor-quality hay—woody, low in nutrients, and hard to digest—especially for sensitive animals like sheep.
Hay Processing at Podere Il Casale: From Bales to Preservation
After cutting, the hay is collected and compressed into compact bales. These are then wrapped using a special machine called a bale wrapper (see video of the bale wrapping process).
Wrapping the bales means covering the forage with plastic film, a process that:
- prevents air and moisture from entering,
- protects the content from rain, sun, mold, and pests,
- creates an oxygen-free environment.
This type of wrapping promotes the anaerobic fermentation of the grass, also known as silage.
Fermentation occurs because the grass is harvested while still moist, then compressed and sealed (in wrapped bales) to prevent exposure to air. In these conditions, lactic acid bacteria convert the sugars in the grass into lactic acid, which naturally preserves the forage.
The result is a feed that is rich in protein, energy, and digestible fiber, ideal for feeding sheep, especially during the winter months.
A tough year for hay: the impact on forage
This year’s unstable weather has slowed production. Since last October, there hasn’t been a full week of stable weather. As a result, the hay has grown coarser and more fibrous, with hard, less palatable stems.
Sheep, in particular, struggle to digest this type of forage, which is high in lignified fiber—a plant component too tough for their digestive systems. For them, hay makes up nearly 100% of their diet and is the foundation of their nutrition.
Dietary differences between sheep and goats
Sheep are strict herbivores. They feed mainly on grass, hay, and other herbaceous plants. The quality of hay directly affects their health and productivity.
Goats, on the other hand, are folivores. Only 20% of their diet consists of grass; the remaining 80% includes leaves, bark, branches, and other fibrous, woody plant materials. They feed much like roe deer, selectively browsing to meet their nutritional needs. This means hay is just one part of their diet, which must also include twigs and foliage.
Polyculture meadows for more resilient hay production
To cope with climate unpredictability, Podere Il Casale has adopted the practice of sowing polyculture meadows. These fields contain various plant species—legumes, grasses, and spontaneous herbs—with staggered flowering times.
This way, even if some plants mature too early or too late, part of the field is always ready for cutting. It extends the optimal harvesting window and ensures a steady production of high-quality hay, even in challenging growing seasons.
