Harvest Report: Coarse Timothy Hay

In 2019, we underwent a transformation in naming our Timothy Hay products. Shifting away from the traditional first cut, second cut, and third cut labels, we proudly introduced Coarse, Medium, and Soft Timothy.

Our aim was to ensure that every box of hay consistently meets your expectations. The previous naming system, although accurate, failed to capture the nuanced texture details that matter most. After a decade of using terms like soft, coarse, and leafy to convey hay textures, we realized the need for names that speak universally.

Coarse Timothy Hay is almost always harvested from the first cut. However, in the past we have inspected and rejected beautiful second cut hay because it was ‘too coarse.’ Which is extremely silly as we know you would’ve loved it! 

We now provide you with the highest quality hay we can find that meets the standards for what Coarse Timothy Hay should be, regardless if it’s from the first or second cut. 

Coarse Timothy Hay should have these qualities:

Harvest: First or second cut of pure Timothy Hay
Color: Described as a mint or olive green. Earlier in the season the hay grows quickly, resulting in a lighter green color. 
Stems/Stalks: The stems of Coarse Hay are one of the most notable features of the hay. It should have fully developed stalks (stems), many of which will be hollow. The hollow-ness will cause the hay to feel stiff and rough, which is why we are calling it Coarse. 
Leaves: The leaves should be broad and less than half of the total amount of hay.
Seed Heads/Flowers: The seed heads, also called flowers, should be fully developed and will generally be between 2-3 inches long on average with small purple wisps.

Our goal is to offer the highest quality hay, however, all naturally grown and harvested hay holds minor imperfections such as dust, weeds, leaf crush, and brown leaf. The ideal version of Coarse Timothy Hay would have none of these.