Alfalfa, Medicago sativa, a legume forage
plant belonging to the pea family Leguminosae, has been an animal feed longer than any other forage crop.
Alfalfa was planted in hot, dry regions of Mesopotamia before recorded history. The seed was taken to South America by Spanish explorers during the 16th century.
The first attempts to produce alfalfa in North America were made in Georgia in 1736, but the
crop did not become important until it was taken from Chile to California, where it flourished in the favorable climate. Alfalfa now is grown throughout the world under extremely varied climatic conditions. The United States produces, on the average, about 73,000 metric tons (80,500 U.S. tons) annually. Leading producers include California, Minnesota, Wisconsin, Michigan, South Dakota, and Nebraska.
The Plant
Alfalfa is a perennial plant and will under normal conditions live for six or more years. Its shoots may grow to stems of more than 1 m (3 ft). The plant produces compound leaves and yellow to purplish-blue flowers, and kidney-shaped seeds develop inside the curled pods. The roots are extraordinarily long, often extending more than 7 m (23 ft) deep, which makes alfalfa an ideal crop for dry climates. It also enriches soil with nitrogen.
Alfalfa will grow in a wide variety of conditions, but it does best in deep, loamy, well-drained soils. It responds well to irrigation and to fertilizers. Alfalfa seed is
generally planted with grain drillsÑin the spring in cooler
climates or in the fall if winter temperatures are moderate. Alfalfa can be
sown with other grains, such as oats, to reduce weed growth. When sown for pasture, it is sometimes mixed with rye, bromegrass, bluegrass, timothy, or fescue.
Harvesting
Procedures used to harvest alfalfa depend on the yield, nutritional quality, and physical condition desired. The maximum yield occurs when the plant is cut at full bloom, but other considerations such as stem size, moisture, and vitamin content may alter cutting time. Cuttings range from two to seven or eight a year, depending on the environment.
Harvesting procedures differ throughout the world. Generally, however, alfalfa is cut with a mowing machine and windrowed to permit drying. Combine cutters and choppers are used to collect the alfalfa for either silage or dehydration.
Uses
Extremely nutritious, alfalfa is valuable for feeding all kinds of livestock. It is used for pasture, soil building, for dehydration, as meal, or as silage. Dehydrated alfalfa is a common ingredient of feedstuffs and supplies vitamins, protein, lipids, and minerals.
More abstracts about the ALFALFA-A WONDER HERB