Workshop 6: Making a Hay Rack

Making a Hay Rack

This hay drying rack was built by our friend Botan Anderson at Mystic Prairie Eco-Farm. He sent us these wonderful photographs and a written description to share with visitors on our website.

Attached is a photo of my pyramid haystack with hay and covered with a tarp. I could have actually piled a lot more hay on it. This stack consisted of my second cutting and I didn't get my third cutting in. The nice thing about the tarp is that you can take it off and pile more hay on top from subsequent cuttings. The tarp ruins the romantic "Monet" look of the haystack, but for those of us scythe enthusiasts without a hay barn it's essential for storing hay outdoors.

Attached is a picture of the frame of my "Pyramid Haystack". It's made of 6 8ft. 2x4's, 6 2x2's, and 3 1x2's all held together by 5 loops of nylon rope strung thru pre-drilled holes in the four uprights. It's very strong, portable, easy to set up, holds a lot of hay, and can be covered with a 10'x10' square yard tarp (The kind with a rope strung through the perimeter seam.). It's the only haystack that I've tried, that has kept my red clover hay palatable all winter. The hay has to be dried in windrows on the ground before stacking though.