The pasture grass was cut for hay yesterday evening. It’s been left to cure in the sun. In a few day, they’ll come back and turn it into round bales.
No photo-heavy post on this blog would be complete without a few of Miley.
So here are two of her in the newly cut hay:
The blades on the mowing machines cut the grass stalks very close to the ground.
When the stalks are made into round bales, the ground will look quite denuded– almost like it does in the middle of winter when there is no snow on the ground.
The grass will then be allowed to grow again for a few months, and the whole process will be repeated, probably in the middle of September.
Cool photos and beautiful dog!
Yeah, but don’t you just love the way those big old rounds of hay look staggered across the fields?
What I like the most is the smell of newly cut hay.
Plus, this cutting has already brought out the crows. Soon, the turkey vultures, ravens, foxes, raccoons, and coyotes will be coming through, too. They come along to eat any little critters that have either been cut up by the cutting or are now exposed in the newly shortened grass.
You remind me of an old fashioned naturalist.
I play one on the internet.
In the line of nature notes: Wow, I just came inside from admiring the best display of fireflies I’ve seen since the early 70’s when we were up at Cacapon State Park for a family reunion. Its like a fireworks display (w/ the sound turned off) out there.
They’ve been out just about every night.
I’m on the other side of the Alleghenies. I’ve actually never been in the region between the Alleghenies and the three “Eastern Panhandle”/DC Beltway/ “Lower Shenandoah Valley” counties (which were stolen from Virginia). We call that the Ridge and Valley Appalachians or the Potomac Highlands. I’ve never been over in there.
Its my wife’s family that used to meet at Cacapon. Her Dad’s people are all over Central and Western VA. My Dad’s people (the Straights) live primarily in and around Wayne Co., WV and neighboring Boyd Co., KY, as well as in Lawrence & Gallia Co.’s, OH.
[…] The hay that was cut last week has since been baled and hauled off. […]