September 5, 2017 at 3:32 p.m.
One-on-ne with Gary Freeburg, hay grower
Gary and Amy Freeburg own and operate Freeburg Hay in Gayville, S.D. They have 2,200 acres of alfalfa.<br /><!-- 1upcrlf -->PHOTO SUBMITTED
What type of alfalfa seed/grasses do you plant? Pioneer for alfalfa and Byron Seeds for grasses.
How long does a stand of alfalfa typically last? We do 20 cuttings, or four to five years.
How many cuttings do you try to harvest each year? Four to five cuttings.
What kind of field preparation do you do before planting? We use a field finisher.
When do you fertilize and what do you use? We fertilize in the spring, summer and fall - based on the soil and forage samples.
How do you determine cutting date? We cut in the bud to pre-bud stage.
What are some of the common challenges you have raising alfalfa? Weather is the biggest factor. Next is the heavy soil we farm here in the Missouri River bottom.
What is the best harvest you have ever had? This year's first cutting averaged 1.61 tons/acre. It went up beautifully with a great test. We are not after tonnage, we strive for quality.
What do you use to cut your hay? How many acres do you like to cut each day? We use two New Holland discbines and cut an average of 240 acres per day.
On harvest days, tell us about the routine for that day including staff and equipment and how many acres you will put away? We would typically bale the 240 acres we cut in a day using four rakes, four balers, two loaders and four semis to put it all in the barn before we quit for the day.
What kind of crop rotation do you do with your alfalfa? We plant soybeans, corn, and then soybeans before putting it back into alfalfa.
What area does your hay get sold too? Our hay goes anywhere there is a demand for it. We can arrange for it to be delivered anywhere.
What is your most unique experience while harvesting alfalfa? The unique experiences come when conditions are exceptionally favorable for making hay. Everything with haying is in the timing. If the weather is perfect, the hay doesn't get any more perfect - beautiful to look at and delicious to feed.
The opposite is also true, when one cutting is laying on the ground and it won't quit raining, and the next cutting grows up in the prior cutting. That makes for some ugly hay.
What are some of your secrets in being a successful hay grower? Luck, stamina, and putting the hay first really helps.
What sized bales do you do? Our favorite size is the 3- by 3- by 8-foot bale to truck to the other end as well as store in the barn.
If rain is on the horizon what will you do to speed up the drying? Take a nap. Anything else is a waste of my time.[[In-content Ad]]
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