Running a highly diverse enterprise keeps contracting business Willyung Farms' owners Sandy and Narelle Lyon busy all year dealing with minimal downtime between jobs.
As well as hay, the Albany property comprises a 1000-head capacity feedlot, 3000 avocado trees and supplies straw to multiple, local free-range piggeries and chicken farms.
Mr Lyon, a second-generation farmer, said the hay contracting side of the business had just wrapped up for the season, about a month earlier than usual due to the seasonal conditions.
"We normally start late September and finish about December, but it just stopped raining which shortened the season," Mr Lyon said.
"We had good conditions for baling though so we got through it pretty quickly."
Willyung Farms employs up to six people during the season and runs two current-model CASE IH LB 436 HD balers pulled by a pair of CASE IH Optum 300hp tractors.
They also use the machines at home to bale silage.
"We've used CASE IH balers for 25 years and they've been great," Mr Lyon said.
"When we went from a standard baler to high density, we really noticed the quality and increased weight of the bales and the improved capacity of the balers.
"Going up to the larger balers, we needed a higher horsepower tractor, and the Optum 300s have been really successful - we've had a great run with them."
Willyung Farms' balers and tractors will now be used during harvest to fulfil their straw supply contracts.
"Straw is used more and more since limits were introduced on logging and sawdust has become limited," he said.
"We buy it out the back of a header and then bale it, stack it, cart it, so that keeps us busy during harvest season.
"Harvest has just started down our way and that's about a month ahead of usual, too".
Back on their own farm, the Lyons have also begun harvesting avocados from their trees, although Mr Lyon said it was a lighter crop this year with average prices.
