Orchard Grass vs. Timothy (and Why We’ve Broken Up With Brome)
When people say “hay,” they often picture the same thing: a tidy green bale, tied tight and stacked high. But the truth is, not all hay is created equal, and the crop you seed determines everything from nutrition to appearance to how easy it is to sell. Around here, we’ve baled just about everything that grows in our zone, and we’ve got a few strong opinions.
Timothy: The Export Darling
Straight Timothy has a huge export market, especially to Asia. It’s high in fibre, which is great for certain feeding programs, but the downside is that it bleaches quickly in our humid nights and can lose value fast. Add rain at the wrong time, and even cattle farmers turn their noses up at it. Timothy also needs a lot of nitrogen and doesn’t bounce back well for a second cut.
Orchard Grass: The Reliable Partner
Orchard grass is aggressive, leafy, and works beautifully in a mix with alfalfa. It keeps its colour, regrows well for second cuts, and horses tend to love it. For us, it’s been the clear winner to replace brome in our mixes. If you’re feeding high-performance equine athletes, orchard grass/alfalfa blends are a balanced option: good protein, good energy, and still palatable.
Brome: Why We’ve Moved On
We baled brome for years, and yes, it puts out a heavy first cut. But here’s the kicker: the brown leaf. You can bale a mountain of the stuff, but once you stack it, it just doesn’t look as premium. For beef cattle? Sure, it works. But for horse owners looking for clean, green, leafy hay? Not so much. That’s why orchard grass has become our go-to replacement. It sells better, feeds better, and just plain looks better in a bale.
Why This Matters to Customers
Whether you’re buying hay for cattle or horses, knowing the crop matters:
Horse barns want low-dust, leafy, green hay with the right sugar and protein balance.
Cattle farms want volume and weight gain potential.
Easy keepers need lower sugar options (orchard grass blends fit well).
High-performance equine need protein and energy, often in alfalfa/grass mixes.
When you know what’s in your bales, and why we seed what we seed, you can match the right hay to the right herd.