News-- July 1999 -- Oklahoma Alfalfa

368 Ag Hall OSU Plant & Soil Sciences Department Stillwater, OK 74078
July 1999	Volume 23 No. 7

We welcome contributions and suggestions. Comments about and contributions to the NEWS are welcome and can be submitted to any of the directors.

Everyone interested in alfalfa is welcome to join the Oklahoma Alfalfa Hay & Seed Association. To become a member, copy the Membership Form and mail it with your dues to the address above.

Good planning (along with generally good farming practices, some art, and a bit of luck) is critical to reliable alfalfa stand establishment. The exact steps required for success vary from farm to farm and from year to year. However, the 12 Keys in the Alfalfa Establishment Checklist below include most of the critical activities.

Alfalfa Establishment Checklist

Site Selection - Choose a deep, fertile, well-drained soil with no herbicide carryover from the previous crops.

Soil Test - Fertilize and lime according to a reliable soil analysis.

Land Preparation - Plow, level, and drain low areas well before sowing.

Seedbed Preparation - Develop a level, mellow, firm bed with small clods.

Variety Choice - Select adapted, pest-resistant varieties.

Seed Quality - Use weed-free, clean seed with good germination.

Planting Date - Sow during Aug. 20 to Sept. 15.

Seed Placement - Cover seeds with 1/2" soil and press.

Sowing Rate - Plant 10-12 lbs./ac. of good seed.

Equipment - Calibrate and adjust planters to place seed correctly.

Seed Inoculation - Use rhizobium bacteria, specific for alfalfa.

Pest Control - Scout fields frequently. Control of weeds, insects, and diseases is especially important in seedling stands.

The objective of alfalfa stand establishment is to obtain about 30 vigorously growing seedlings per square foot before extreme weather conditions prevail. Most producers should plant in late August or early September. The first three KEYS should be completed, and many of the other keys should be underway.

Most frequent causes of stand failures last year

not applying lime or fertilizer

poor seedbed preparation

not controlling volunteer wheat and cheat

not controlling insects during the fall and winter

poor seed inoculation

using inferior seed

Additional Information:

Alfalfa Stand Establishment Questions and Answers. OSU Ext. Circular E-949
Alfalfa Stand Establishment. OSU Extension Facts F-2089
Alfalfa Production Calendar on the web alfalfa.okstate.edu
see August - Stand Establishment - Production Tips

We are making several major additions to the Oklahoma Alfalfa Production Calendar. Among the biggest efforts this summer is the addition of weed pictures and descriptions along with control measures. We started out with very few and their quality was only mediocre. By the end of the summer we will have several hundred weed images on the web to help identify weeds. Below are two examples of weed description pages. Users on the web may click on the small images at the bottom to see enlargements.

If you have not checked out the web site in a while, try it to see what is there
alfalfa.okstate.edu
Let us know if you have problems or find things that we did incorrectly. Thanks.

Buffalobur

COMMON NAME:	Buffalobur
SCIENTIFIC NAME:	Solanum rostratum
TYPE:	Annual Warm-season Broadleaf Weed
DESCRIPTION
Germination:	April to June.
Reproduction:	By seeds July to October.
Stems:	Erect, branched in upper portion, 6 to 24 inches tall, hairy, densely covered with long stiff yellow prickles.
Flowers:	Yellow with 5 lobes, 1 to 1 1/2 inches across.
Leaves:	2-5 inches long, alternate, petioled, density hairy, cut into deep rounded lobes: veins, midribs, and petioles very prickly.
Fruit:	Berry enclosed in a rough-spiny bud.
Found:	Buffalobur is primarily found in fields, overgrazed pastures, yards, roadsides, and waste areas. Occasionally it is a weed in spring planted alfalfa in an area that had not been cropped for several years.
Control:	Some selective control of buffalobur is achieved in seedling alfalfa with BUTYRAC 200, but it is critical to spray while weeds are very small.

Cheat

COMMON NAME:	Cheat
SCIENTIFIC NAME:	Bromus secalinus
TYPE:	Annual Cool-season Weedy Grass
DESCRIPTION
Germination:	August to November.
Reproduction:	By seeds late May to mid-June.
Stems:	Erect, 12 to 24 inches.
Leaves:	Both blades and sheaths, smooth or slightly hairy.
Seeds:	Bearing a short beard (1/8 to 1/4 inch) or none at all, broader shorter than Japanese Brome.
Found:	Cheat is primarily found in wheat fields and fence lines. Major problems develop in fall planted alfalfa following wheat. In established stands, cheat is not a major problem. Seed production is limited since the first cutting of hay removes the cheat before it can mature seed.
Control:	In seedling stands, good control of cheat can be obtained with early fall application of KERB, POAST PLUS, and SELECT. In established stands, treatments with residual herbicides like VELPAR and SINBAR (0.5 lb/A active ingredient) have been effective when applied January to February.

Anyone wanting to list alfalfa meetings may contact John Caddel with the particulars. His mailing address and phone are listed below. Fax 405-744-0354. Email- caddel@okstate.edu

Alfalfa Stand Establishment	Alfalfa Production Calendar on the Web	Meetings in Oklahoma
Buffalobur		Cheat
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