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Superintendent
David Davis
21262 Genoa Road
Linneus, MO 64653
Phone: 660 895-5121
FAX: 660 895=5122
Email:
DavisDK@missouri.edu
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April 1, 2002
Forage Systems Update
Vol 11, No. 2
Field Notes from Valerie Tate
What variety should I plant? That is a question we are commonly asked. So we are addressing that question with several variety trials including many other species than just alfalfa. We will evaluate both grass and legume varieties for productivity and persistence. The first year's harvest will be adjusted to ensure establishment.
A grass variety trial was established last fall and most cultivars appear to have survived the winter despite the late planting date. There are two harvesting regimes to represent two management systems. One group of plots will be harvested three times during the growing season to represent hay harvest. The second set of plots will be harvested five times during the growing season to more closely represent a management intensive grazing system. Each set of plots will receive a total of 240 lb N/acre annually in split applications prior to spring green up and following each harvest. This is much more N fertilizer than we would commonly use in pasture production but we do not want fertility to be limiting production in the variety comparison.
There are 18 varieties of tall fescue, ten varieties of orchardgrass, one variety of meadow fescue, 11 varieties of perennial ryegrass and two varieties of festulolium, a cross between tall fescue and perennial ryegrass, included in the trial. The grasses were seeded into a worked field on October 3, 2001. Tall fescue was seeded at a rate of 20 pounds of seed per acre, orchardgrass at 15 pounds per acre, and the perennial ryegrass and festulolium were seeded at 30 pounds per acre.
Two clover variety trials were established this spring. Included in that trial are seven commercial varieties of red clover, four locally produced lots of common red clover and two out-of-state lots of common red clover, and alsike clover. The clovers will be evaluated under both mechanical harvest and grazing. The two mechanical harvest regimes of three and five harvest dates per season will be completed. A second set of plots including all of the same clover entries was established and will be grazed to evaluate productivity and persistence under grazing. Grazing will occur at 1/10th bloom and then every time the majority of the varieties reach 10 to 12 inch sward height. Two commercial varieties of lespedeza as well as Korean lespedeza will also be evaluated in the hay harvest regime.
The clovers that will be grazed were frost seeded into a wheat sod on March 8, 2002. The legumes to be mechanically harvested were frost seeded into a frost killed oat mulch on March 12,2002. Red clover was seeded at a rate of 10 pounds of seed per acre, alsike clover was seeded at six pounds per acre and the lespedeza was seeded at 20 pounds per acre.
We will keep our readers posted as these trials progress.
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