By Jordan Penrose
As hay season kicks into gear, now is the time to assess your fields and plan ahead—whether you’re facing a shortage or sitting on surplus.
We’re seeing mixed results across hayfields this season. Some look promising, others less so. But here’s the good news: it’s still early enough to develop a solid strategy. The sooner you plan, the more options you’ll have when it comes to managing your hay supply.
Running short on hay?
Before you panic about a potential shortage, take stock of what you actually have. You might discover you have enough to get through after all. But if you are coming up short, ask yourself: Why?
Common culprits include:
- Depleted stands
- Poor field fertility
- Weather-related stress (and we’ve had plenty of that)
When we look back on the past couple of years that we have had the weather has not been nice to us. In 2024, Southern Ohio had severe drought conditions in late summer and throughout the fall, and Northern Ohio also had drought conditions as well. In 2025, we started off wet, and it was hard to make first cutting hay; then we had more drought conditions. These weather conditions have not been easy on the hayfields.
Depending on the time of the year, you could have many options to handle having a low supply of hay. You could buy the hay that you need to make up for your short supply, or you could sell some livestock. I bet these are the first two that come to mind. But there are a few options if you look at your outlook early enough. You could graze corn stalks, stockpile fields, graze hayfields, plant something, or do a combination of these.
Source : osu.edu