Alfalfa Field In Fall
I (Scott Reuss, Crops and Soil Educator) started the First Crop Alfalfa Quality Monitoring program this Monday, May 11. I only walked the five fields that are going to be part of the other projects going on along with this program, as the alfalfa is certainly a ways from being ready. The alfalfa I walked was all one foot tall or less, with one field near Bonduel being a slight exception, in that I found a couple areas of the field that were 13 to 15 inches tall. This height is to short to really even use the PEAQ (Predictive Estimated Alfalfa Quality) method, as that starts at about 16 inches. Samples were submitted for laboratory analysis from these fields, and I expect to see RFQ values of 300 plus on all five of them. Thus, I expect to see most first crop harvest occurring after Memorial Day this year.
I will be walking and sampling these five fields and about 15 or so more at least the following days, after which I will send out additional notes regarding alfalfa status:
+ Monday, May 18
+ Tuesday, May 26
+ Monday, June 2
+ And possibly one other day in there if growth conditions merit having an in-between reading.
If you have what you consider to be a representative alfalfa field for your area and want me to walk it as part of the program, please let me know. Right now, I have the five project fields (Deerbrook, Bonduel, Crivitz, Lena, and Bowler) plus Town of Beaver, Green Valley, Polar, and Stiles Junction area fields identified.
You can look at the entire set of data for Wisconsin and Minnesota by clicking on the website linked below. Select dates of harvest or counties, etc… to narrow your search.
If you have any individual questions or informational needs or other assistance, email me at
scott.reuss@wisc.edu or call/text to 715-701-0966.