September 05, 2002
Cutting Drought-Stressed Alfalfa During Winterization Is Risky
LINCOLN, Neb. — It's never wise to cut alfalfa while the plants prepare for winter and that's especially important this year, a University of Nebraska forage specialist said.
Drought-stressed alfalfa can be severely injured if it is cut during winterization, said Bruce Anderson, an Institute of Agriculture and Natural Resources forage specialist.
Alfalfa producers lucky enough to have received rain recently should be noticing their fields starting to grow again, but "check your calendars" before harvesting, he said.
Alfalfa does most of its winterizing from mid-September to mid-October. Cutting during this time will interrupt winterizing and increase the risk of alfalfa dying or suffering winter injury.
Alfalfa needs about six weeks of uninterrupted growth in the fall to become fully winterized. This begins about three weeks before the average date of the first frost, Anderson said.
"Most years we escape serious losses following harvest during the winterization period because alfalfa plants were very strong and healthy when winterizing began," Anderson said. "This summer will be different. The drought and heat may have tipped the scale the other way."
Many alfalfa plants are weak as they start to regrow. They may not be recovered from the drought's effects. This risk of winter injury is higher than normal.
Alfalfa growers should cut their hay either earlier than normal – just before winterizing begins – or when winterizing is completed in mid-October, he said.
Even though the hay will take longer to dry later in the season, plants should be well-recovered and yield and quality should be high, he said.
"Remember, the last cutting of alfalfa affects its winter survival and next spring's vigor," he said.
09/05/02-SA
Bruce Anderson - Ph.D
Agronomy
Professor
(402) 472-6237
Sandi Alswager Karstens IANR News and Photography (402) 472-3030
Department: Agronomy & Horticulture
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