Bale with net wrap, irrigation pipes, and Toby

Today I unrolled the bale I had made filled with net wrap. It was really filled with net wrap!  I started from the SW corner of the hayfield, unrolled to the north end, then east, then finished up midway back to the south end.

Then I had to turn the net wrap over and dump the hay out to the ground.

I had a lot of net wrap.  I think I could have wrapped all my bales I had just made with what was wasted.

Then I went to re-bale the hay I just unrolled.  As I had most of a bale already in the baler I quickly made another bale.  After ejecting the bale I discovered it was another one of those bales that was partially wrapped.    I have to figure out why this happens sometimes.  This is my third partially wrapped bale out of 20 bales made.

I unrolled this bale.  The core was warmer than I expected.  The very start of the bale was wet hay.  ???   I decided that since it was too late to wrap the bale and then move all the bales into the hayshed this evening I would wait to re-bale this bale till tomorrow.


I went to re-start laying my mainline irrigation pipe into the hayfield.  Last evening I worked with Myron on a few pipes.

One pipe had a small leak so we cut it out and replaced it with good pipe.

The pipe I had cut a leak out of last year was shorter, which was fine.  But I plan to replace my steel pipes in the hayfield and I now want the 40 foot aluminum pipes in the hayfield to be 40 feet.   First, I want to change the length of the pipes that go from the pasture to the hayfield.  What were the odds of laying 50 or so 20 and 21 foot steel pipes and the last pipe's valve would end up directly underneath the gate to the hayfield?  So I had to have two 40 foot sections between valves to get around the gate as 80 feet is too long between valves.  I had Myron lengthen my shorter than 40 feet aluminum pipe to 44 feet.  That longer pipe now moves my valve four feet into the hayfield past the gate.  65 feet between valves still should allow for sprinkler overlap.

To replace the hayfield 40 foot aluminum pipe I just lengthened I bought a used 40 foot aluminum pipe from Myron.  Well, it was 40 feet after we added a three foot pipe to it.

I brought one of my valve openers to test on the valves Myron had bought for my planned steel-to-aluminum upgrade.  The opener doesn't work on the valve.   The valve size is correct, but the valve's collar doesn't fit around the valve.  My steel valves from pre-1945 have a smaller bulge the collar wraps around than what the newer aluminum valves have for a bulge.  I'm not going to replace all my steel valves as I have lots of them in the pasture.  I'm not going to modify my valve opener's collars as they need to work on my steel valves.  It appears the only option is to buy new valve openers for the planned valves.  Myron thought they would cost over $100 each.  So my planned valve upgrade is on hold for now.  Anyway, with harvest in full swing Myron doesn't have time to work on my valve upgrade.  I was happy he found time to fix my few pipes Friday night.

So this evening as I was adding a collar and hook to my 21 foot steel pipe so it would securely attach to my 44 aluminum pipe Toby came to see what I was doing.  He had been in the middle pasture mooing for Diamond and Maria over in the corral.  So I was leery when he came over.  I picked up my tools and walked to the nearby gate.  When he started to come faster and put his head down I tossed my tools towards the gate and ran and jumped up on the gate and over it.  Toby stood at the gate and shook his head at me since he was not happy I wasn't opening the gate so he could go visit the two in the corral.  After a bit he wandered off slowly eating grass.  Now, when I had the mainline pipes in the hayfield the cattle weren't interested in the grass growing where the pipes lay.  Since I removed a few pipes to work on them with Myron there was a small gap in the stack of pipes.  Of course Toby was now interested in the grass in the small gap.  To reach all the grass he would push some pipes around.    Don't break them Toby!!

After he moved off I gathered my tools and parts.  I found everything but my screwdriver.  It has a red/orange handle and it is easy to see especially as the grass is not tall.  I looked and looked and cannot find it, which is infuriating as the area is less than 20 feet to the gate and about five or six feet wide.

Finally I gave up looking for the screwdriver.  I decided to move the sprinkler line in the middle pasture over the fence to get ready for when I hook it up after I finish laying the mainline pipe.  I was not quite halfway across the middle pasture when Toby noticed me and came from the south pasture.  Not wanting to be between gates when Toby is in this kind of mood I quit moving pipes.  I walked to middle/north pasture and brought that pipe with me into the north pasture.  I moved it over to the hayfield.  Toby walked over to the fence by where I was laying the pipe and looked at me and shook his head.  He still was not happy I wasn't opening the gate for him.  I am glad he doesn't realize that with some effort he probably could break the fence down.

Most everyone was frustrated this evening.