Layer and layers of waste hay

When it gets warmer I need to clean up a mess.

Literally have a out 2 feet of waste hay on the ground that needs to be cleaned up.

We have a Kubota. However in the past this is fruitless as it is literally in mats. It rolls and impossible to scoop with the loader.

I've considered buying a grapple bucket, but was told that will not work either.

We have a backhoe for the tractor and could use that, but again I see scooping a problem. Could get a thumb for the backhoe, not sure if that would work or not.

Anyone have any suggestions.

We run into this every year, the best solution (especially if you have a tractor) is to get a couple pigs. Get big bacon pigs (not AGH) that are good tillers. Throw their feed on the ground, and they will till it up and turn it into amazing compost. Then scoop it out with your bucket

Essentially it is the Joel Salatin pigerator....cheaper than tractor parts and you can eat it when they are done

What is your rationale for "cleaning it up"? Have you considered using something like Wine cap mushroom spawn to "compost it in place"?

You say the Kubota "rolled it" - can you  start near an edge and roll that section all the way to where it will decompose? Then go back and roll another part? Sort of taking nibbles out of it that are small enough to manage? You might need teeth on the bucket so it can bite into the section. The backhoe might be able to nibble at the edge even if it can't pick the material up.

It's been years since I read, "Holy Shit" by Gene Logsdon, but I recall he used a manure fork and hand moved it when it was matted like that.

Is this likely to be an annual thing - or once in a lifetime?

As suggested above, if you can leave it in place you can make amazing compost.

That's not always a practical suggestion, though: it depends on how your operation is laid out.

Are new attachments really needed? I grew up operating round balers. If you can roll the hay onto a few long, wide ratchet straps and then "bale" it, you can move it anywhere. For a tiny fraction of the price.

That said, buying (or having made) a set of forks is just about indispensible IMO, and a top notch investment. I move entire piles of anything you care to name with the 4-foot forks on my little Kubota.

 Ideally this gets cleaned up every couple weeks, but we live in a not perfect world.

It can't stay where it is. Just can't. It must be removed.

It goes in to raised garden beds and my neighbor runs a plan nursery it goes there.

The tower thing that hold the round bales mist be rebuilt. There is so much build up I can no longer lift the bales off the ground with the hay tower.
 Besides if it keeps building up the goats will be able to jump the fence. It's a solid 18 inches up the fence already.

  I really don't have time to deal with it. I want the most effective and effecient way to get this shit out.

You can rip that up with a 4 tine pitch fork.  If you are not able, get a couple teenagers and pay them well to rip it apart so you can get at it with your loader bucket.  

In the future, try to keep the feeder moving, or just put the hay right on the ground, and keep moving.  That's a great way to build soil, and then you've never got a manure problem to clean up.  

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SJpIvxxVruY

Hmmmm....I use a tootbar attached to my bucket for this kind of material.  After my wife has removed from barn stalls mounds of straw/hay thats been matted and wet from use as bedding, it gets piled temporarily during winter -- and it's not decomposing in our cold temperatures.  So in spring, it's still in mats and the toothbar-on-a-loader-bucket does a pretty good job of digging into the mats and holding on while scooping and raising the bucket with the load.  If your Kubo has the loader that can take skid-steer attachments, you could borrow a skid=steer tooth-bucket from a rent-all to try it out and then get a toothbar or tooth bucket later if you decide it will work for your needs.  Good luck

John Weiland wrote:Hmmmm....I use a tootbar attached to my bucket for this kind of material.

That's exactly the bolt-on thing I'm looking for. Thanks for the pics.

Yup on the pigs comment.   Every spring I pulled my sheep out of their winter shed after lambing, and put a couple piglets in there.   They do a GREAT and happy job digging and turning it all up and making it light and fluffy.   Easy to clean even with a hand fork and wheelbarrow.   Could never have done it by hand otherwise!   It would not have composted on it's own before I needed to bring my sheep back in for the winter.

Offer it on CraigsList  as a "you move" item. I've done this with large plants and banks of ferns and had no problem getting rid of those. If I saw your post on my CL, I'd  bring my small pickup and load your hay for my garden. I'm sure others would want it, too.

My old ford tractor has hay bucket just for this  Its is basically a giant pitch fork that mounts where bucket is on tractor

Do you have room for rotational grazing?

Electric fencing could be used to move the goats to another area while the tower thing that holds the round bale is fixed.

Maybe even build the new tower thing in a new location.

Here is a thread about using rotational grazing management techniques:

https://permies.com/t/151499/Observations-comparison-degenerative-regenerative-pasture

Then you would be able to take some of the suggestions that you have been given.

Regarding pigs: I read somewhere about dry corn being mixed in with cattle bedding piles so the pigs would root up every last morsel. I imagine that would work with hay as well.

There's a lot of good ideas here. Honestly, a Craigslist post is probably the easiest, lowest-cost solution to clearing it out, as long as you're ok parting with as much of it as the laborer wants to take. I've been that guy, mucking out a friend's goat barn in exchange for a trailer load of the stuff for my garden.

Here's an idea...take a pitchfork, and strategically cut the mat like a pan of brownies, then roll them up with the Kubota, tie it up with some twine, and drag 'em out. If you make the pieces small enough you could probably get them to bucket size chunks that you could just scoop out.

Pigs are a great idea, if you have a place to finish them, and want to raise some bacon...

I cannot recommend highly enough the Wicked Tooth Bar from everythingattachments.com.   They are about $500 depending on tractor bucket width, but are worth twice that much.  My tractor used to bounce off the hard rocky ground here in the Ozarks, now it slices through it. Instead of sliding over roots, it rips them out of the ground.  Plus the bucket holds about 25% more material.  Unlike the other tooth edge shown in this thread, this edge does it all.  It does not affect back dragging smoothness, digging and leveling, etc.  I loved it so much I had it welded on to the bucket.  My tractor does soooo much more productive work than before.

Sincerely,

Ralph

Nice design!

Define "waste hay". Is it wasted because of rodents/ goat manure etc. and not suitable for fodder? Or because it got wet? Or because you need to move it so as to do something else there?
I would give my eyeteeth for waste hay to spread over bare ground but I would have the same problem to move it where I want it.
Could you "rent a hog"[or two] if you don't have one? Make a neighbor happy, maybe get a ham out of it?
Think of it as an opportunity: It will cease to be a problem.

You might be able to “double dig” it with the back hoe first to break it up. Then use the loader to scoop? Or scrape off the matted stuff to the side, excavate your compost, then spread out the mats to continue composting.

brian Vick wrote:

When it gets warmer I need to clean up a mess.

Literally have a out 2 feet of waste hay on the ground that needs to be cleaned up.

We have a Kubota. However in the past this is fruitless as it is literally in mats. It rolls and impossible to scoop with the loader.

PIGS, PIGS, PIGS, ... !!! The Joel Salatin route as described by Jt Glickman. Joel has deep bedding as in way way deeper than what you got that has been the cows bed all winter. Get some bags of soured corn and then PIGS, PIGS, PIGS, ... !!!

I ONCE shoveled my barn straw, poop, ... out and then saw Joel Salatin video/plan. Nothing and nobody is better than PIGS, PIGS, PIGS,  who will leave you with beautiful compost material. I think Joel's stuff was about a yard, as in 3 feet, 36 inches deep. PIGS, PIGS, PIGS, ... work way cheaper than anybody or anything. Trust me!! It works like magic.

brian Vick wrote:

Anyone have any suggestions.

Joel Salatin LOVES the PIGAERATOR | Interview at Polyface Farm |



Just do a search on YT for 'pigerator' there are lots of videos.

You're welcome. Okay, 10 pounds of bacon and a side of ribs is okay for my help.  :-)

ONCE you get it where you want it to go, don't forget it can be made into valuable charcoal.

Bio char

I see that you considered getting a thumb for your backhoe.  Depending on how large the hoe is, that would be a great investment if you also need to move logs or other large, solid items such as rocks in the field.  First. check how much hydraulic force your backhoe develops.  I notice you mentioned that you would be composting.  Moving the hay to a separate location set off by temporary electric fencing would allow use of the hogs as a much more efficient composting system.  They will eat some hay, root more and then return digested material to the pile that exponentially makes it more useful.  That way, you get it out from under the roof, keep your goats in the pen and can even use the temp fencing to compost in place with the hogs.  Get two at a minimum so they do not get lonely and make sure they are stoats or neutered to keep things safer.  Not much worse than a rogue boar.

I did like the wicked edge bucket cutter.  That would be great if one does not have large boulders in the soil.  Up in my area, I have seen soil run from clay to boulders that took two bulldozers to move out of the way.  Of course, use of common sense is always a good idea.  Don't bring a pocket knife to a sword fight.

You have a backhoe.
On my backhoe i have a two shell grapple. It is original a fork with a kit to shovel.
Or you use a frontloader-manure- fork on the heck of the kubota. It works better than a grapple bucket.

Isn't there a kind of tractor implement that has a bunch of parallel rods, projecting forward, so that the angle can be adjusted to make the rod tips just graze the ground?
I don't know why I think this implement exists, if it doesn't, it should! (Maybe have a welding shop make one up, with bolt holes to attach it to something you can control. If it works, patent it!)

...Jerry Brown, southern Oregon

Jerry Brown wrote:Isn't there a kind of tractor implement that has a bunch of parallel rods, projecting forward, so that the angle can be adjusted to make the rod tips just graze the ground?
I don't know why I think this implement exists, if it doesn't, it should! (Maybe have a welding shop make one up, with bolt holes to attach it to something you can control. If it works, patent it!)
...Jerry Brown, southern Oregon

Like this?
https://www.palletforks.com/mini-skid-steers/grapples/42-inch-mini-skid-steer-root-grapple/114050.html?utm_source=google&utm_medium=cpc&adpos=&scid=scplp114050&sc_intid=114050&gclid=CjwKCAiAg6yRBhBNEiwAeVyL0MMVKR1pUuc8rG8vR1Kq4H8ZZfOqtIll1MZ8SM0fewT4klb-kwGPDhoCn7UQAvD_BwE
At the price they say and assuming you get it on installments, it would take about 16 to 17 months to own it.
Add shipping and sales taxes for your area, of course. but that is doable if you have the skid steer.
If it can be rented, that would save a great deal but I'm assuming that this is one time and done. If it is repetitive, how frequent would the renting be?
For some things, you are better off buying and for others you are better off renting. Yet for others, like a one time deal and you don't have the skid steer, you may be better off getting someone [maybe a neighbor friend] to do the job for you.
Since I do not have a skid steer, I'd have to pay someone to do it for me or mess with a wheelbarrow and a fork for... a long time.
Where there is a will, there is a way! Courage!

Jerry Brown wrote:.......... a bunch of parallel rods, projecting forward, so that the angle can be adjusted to make the rod tips just graze the ground?
I don't know why I think this implement exists, if it doesn't, it should! ...........
...Jerry Brown, southern Oregon

Pre-fab examples exist..... ~ $800.00 USD.

Source website:  https://production-na01-titandistributors.demandware.net/tractors/jd-hook-and-pin/hay-equipment/tine-buckets/72-in-tine-bucket-with-hay-spears-fits-john-deere/JDTB72.html