High Tech Hay

Needle Anyone?

When I was a kid, I don't remember much baled hay in Holt county. The hay there was stacked in huge piles called appropriately, a haystack, and for sure finding a needle in one would be pretty tough. I even recall a competition where a $100 bill was placed in a haystack and if the person looking for it could find it in an hour, they got it. Back in the 50's when my allowance was $.10, that sounded like a fortune to this little guy.

This weekend, I noticed that farmers in my neck of the woods have been rushing to get their hay baled before the current stretch of wet weather hit. For some reason, I've seen a lot more square bales than I noticed last year, and I'll get over to my neighbors in the next couple days and show my city slicker mentality as usual by asking why they are using so many square bales this year.

Pondering a field of baled hay, you could almost ask yourself what else could that hay be used for. Well, here are some interesting ideas some creative folks have come up with and I hope you enjoy 'em as much as I did...