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Article: Fall-seeding alfalfa can be risky business.
- Article from:
- Agricultural Research
- Article date:
- December 1, 1995
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 1995 U.S. Government Printing Office. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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As many southeastern and south-central growers have come to know, establishing a fall stand of alfalfa can be a major headache when the fungus Sclerotinia trifoliorum lurks in soils.
In the cooler, moist conditions that follow summer's heat, this fungus can devastate a new alfalfa stand by causing rots that kill seedlings before they mature.
A legume that fixes its own nitrogen, alfalfa is grown as a high-protein hay and forage crop for livestock. But in such south-central states as Kentucky and Missouri, the very threat of a Sclerotinia outbreak can discourage growers from even attempting a fall seeding.
"There are plenty of growers who've ...