I last waffled on about scything a few weeks ago, and I'd had to stop as my scythe was cutting the dry grass, but not the green underneath, and it felt very inefficient. I've made lots of progress since then though. First of all, I bought a peening jig, and learned how to peen my scythe to make the edge properly sharp again. I shouldn't have been surprised, but I was amazed how much of a difference it made. Once the scythe was sharp, I could cut right down to the ground with ease, and scything became an enjoyable, meditative task rather than a chore. I also bought a holder for the sharpening stone to clip onto my belt - this has been revolutionary as I no longer have to prop it in a pot of water on a wall and walk back and forth all day. The sharp scythe and the stone holder made me quite efficient, and combined with a window of good weather, I got quite a bit of hay cut in a relatively short amount of time. Raking and turning isn't quite as much fun as scything, but it has to be done to dry the hay out properly. Eventually some of it was dry enough to make bales, which we did in the wheelie bin, same as last year. We made four, and stored them in the garage, and turned the rest of the hay one more time. Then our brief window of sunshine disappeared, and thunderstorms were forecast. There was no point making damp hay bales, so I decided to experiment with a hay rick, having read some interesting things here and here. The hay still wouldn't dry out properly, but I reasoned that most of it wouldn't get any wetter, and I could do this by myself, whereas bin bales takes a couple of people and is rather more labour intensive. I built it up in layers, stacking each one carefully at right angles to the previous layer, and was pretty pleased with it when it was finished as the sun was setting. Then the rain came... And then the strangest storm I've ever witnessed, no rain, no thunder, just lightning flashing constantly around the sky for several hours. We've had a fair bit more rain since then too. The hay stack is still standing, but looking somewhat slumped, and is now more of a hay sponge, having soaked up quite a bit of water. I'm going to leave it standing and gradually use it for mulch in the garden.
I've still got most of the field left to mow. I'm off work for a fortnight now, and the forecast is rain, rain and more rain. I'm hoping to get it cut between showers (the grass is easier to cut when it's wet), but it's unlikely to dry out. I think there's going to be quite a bit of hay mulch this year.
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Hello!Sit down and make yourself comfortable. I'm Jenni, and I write here about our new foray into country living, which includes growing food, knitting, baking, wandering around the fields, and seeing which local cafe serves the best cake. Categories
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