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Oklahoma State University Stillwater, OK |
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Oklahoma Alfalfa |
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Oklahoma State University Stillwater, OK |
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Oklahoma Alfalfa |
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ALFALFA NEEDS A LOT OF WATER Irrigation during late winter or very early spring is the most effective for alfalfa. Soil temperatures are still cool; consequently, root rot is not a problem, even if water stands for a few days. Once we get into July with temperatures in the 90's and strong winds, alfalfa fields use over 1/3" of water every day. Most irrigation systems cannot keep up with that type of water usage -- to say nothing about trying to catch up and supply the needs during the summer. As you know, alfalfa requires much water to produce high tonnage. As a general rule, alfalfa needs about 6" of water in the soil, available to the roots, for each ton of dry matter per acre. If your soil can store 2 inches of water per foot of depth and roots go down to 10 feet, you should be able to produce about 3.3 tons of hay per acre. Stands sown last fall may be particularly susceptible to drought if this summer is not as rainy as the last few. If the roots are only 2 feet deep (the case of many seedlings stands), production will be limited to rains from now until late June because so little is stored within reach of the roots. |
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| John Caddel, Forage Agronomist Department of Plant and Soil Sciences Oklahoma State University |
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