Establishment of dense vigorous stands of alfalfa is essential for long-term profitability, but establishment can be challenging because seedling alfalfa is vulnerable to competition from annual weeds and wind and water erosion. Roundup Ready Alfalfa was re-introduced last year as a new tool available to farmers growing high-quality alfalfa. While not for everyone, it will be useful for many alfalfa growers.

Step 1:  Choose a representative 2-square-foot area in the field. Step 2:  Determine the most mature stem in the 2-square-foot sampling area using the criteria shown in the table to the right. Step 3:  Measure the length of the tallest stem in the 2-square-foot area. Measure if from the soil surface (next to plant crown) to the […]

Stress in the seeding year reduces future yields of alfalfa. This occurs because the seeding year determines the stand plant density as well as individual plant size and vigor. The following paragraphs will show that autotoxicity, potato leaf hopper, cover crop, and, possibly, drought stresses in the seeding year will reduce alfalfa yield in future years, even when the stress is gone.

Winter Injury occurs someplace in Wisconsin every year. Being able to diagnose and manage winter damaged stands may help prolong stand life and increase production. Below is a brief discussion on diagnosing and managing winter damaged alfalfa.