This year’s unusually wet spring and early summer has led many farmers to putting up hay wetter than they would like to. Often, farmers have reported that they know the hay they are baling is wetter than they’d like, but with additional rain forecast, they are taking a chance, hoping to save a better quality product versus letting the rain cause the crop to deteriorate in the field. We have seen an increase in barn fires during the past few weeks with at least some of the causes related to hot hay causing a fire through spontaneous combustion.