Alfalfa stands last for several years, so it’s worth the time and effort to do a little homework before choosing seed varieties. Choosing the wrong seed can reduce your bottom line significantly during those years. Tremendous profit opportunity exists if you treat alfalfa seed decisions like you would corn or soybeans and look at yield potential first.

Yield is what drives profitability, so search out those varieties that deliver the most yield potential. It’s not unusual for yield potential to vary as much as 20 percent or more between top-performing hybrids and the lowest-performing varieties.

Four years of data from the University of Wisconsin show a 21.2 percent annual difference between alfalfa varieties. If an average on-farm yield is 5 dry tons/acre that’s a yield difference of 1.06 dry tons per acre per year.

Check out test plot results and get input from multiple sources. Look for data from situations that most reflect your growing conditions so you can use this information to set realistic yield goals.

“A 5- to 10-percent yield increase is something I look for; even a 2-percent increase will swing my decision, everything else being equal,” says grower Josh Schmidt of Sioux Falls, South Dakota. He also grows his own test plots to determine how well varieties perform under his specific growing conditions.

Lyle Schefers, Rice, Minnesota, agrees that yield data is the first criterion to use. Schefers says his decision is always based on which seed is going to yield the best.

Match to your conditions

Once you’ve established yield potential, the next step is to match varieties with your specific field conditions.

“You have to look at fields and conditions on an individual basis and go from there,” Schefers says. “I look at how long I am going to keep the stand, what the soil type is and whether the field is irrigated or dryland, as well as the end use for the hay.” Milk-per-acre potential is a key driver for which variety he uses on these differing conditions.

Stand persistence is also important. “I have one field where the stand has lasted for seven years. Obviously not every stand is going to last that long nor do you always want it to,” Schefers says, but this matters in the big picture on Schefers’ farm.

Meanwhile on rented ground, Schefers looks for the quickest payback on the shortest time period. In other words, he selects seeds that will deliver the most tonnage at the most cost-effective price; persistence is less important in this case.

A similar goal-matching philosophy guides Schmidt.

“On my best ground, I’ll pick a hybrid with proven yields,” he explains. His goal in these fields is to capture all the qualities this technology brings, like plant uniformity, even flowering for timely harvest, and significantly higher yields.

For fields of lesser quality and leased acres, Schmidt chooses lower cost, but still improved-yield-potential varieties.

Additional factors

Yield potential and field conditions are the biggest factors to consider, but there are several other aspects to consider.

• Disease resistance. The latest genetics available will help reduce disease challenges. Look for the highest DRI (Disease Resistance Index) rating.

• Winter hardiness/dormancy. Look for winter survival ratings of WV2 or under if you are in the northern U.S. Also check out the variety’s ability to withstand wheel traffic, cutting recovery, spring green-up and drought stress.

• Forage quality. Choose alfalfa with dense, uniform and fine-stemmed stands. Then manage accordingly with proper cutting schedules to maintain feed quality.

• Germination. Be sure to check seed bag tags for germination information. The informal industry standard is 90 percent.

Bottom line is ROI

 Ultimately, look at the cost and reward of your decision. Remember that planting a lower-yielding alfalfa variety means that your long-term cost of production is actually higher per ton of forage produced. Give more weight to the value of your total investment like Schefers does.

“I don’t look at the cost per bag,” Schefers says. “I look at the cost for the duration of the crop; at what is going to give me the best return on my investment.”  FG 

Chad Staudinger
Forage Product Manager
Dairyland Seed