Dan Undersander-Agronomy © Agronomy Update Dan Undersander Extension and Research Forage Agronomist

Dan Undersander-Agronomy © Alfalfa Yields at Arlington First cutting above average Second and third cuttings were average No August harvest due to drought

Dan Undersander-Agronomy © Alfalfa Yields at Marshfield First cutting above average Other cuttings were average

Dan Undersander-Agronomy © Alfalfa Yields at Lancaster First cutting above average Other cuttings were average to slightly above

Dan Undersander-Agronomy © Alfalfa Yields at Fond Du Lac First harvest 30% below average Second and Third harvests were 40% below average

Dan Undersander-Agronomy © 2006 Roundup Ready Alfalfa In 1997 Forage Genetics International and Monsanto began working to develop Roundup Ready® alfalfa. Roundup Ready® alfalfa was developed by incorporating the CP4 gene into alfalfa. This is the same gene used to develop all other Roundup Ready® crops.

Dan Undersander-Agronomy © 2006 Product Development Trait integrated into elite germplasm FD3 to FD10 dormancy types First generation Roundup Ready® alfalfa varieties: Forage yield > commercial checks Competitive forage quality, multiple pest resistance and persistence RR trait purity > 90%

Dan Undersander-Agronomy © UW Herbicide Study RoundupConventionalPursuit Herbicide treatments applied in establishment year (2000) May 2002

Dan Undersander-Agronomy © 2006 Product concept testing to evaluate efficacy relative to other herbicides.  Plot area infected with weed seed.  RR alfalfa seed used to establish plots  Various herbicide treatments applied  Only Roundup ® gave effective weed control Roundup UltraMaxPursuit + Select Roundup UltraMax Five days before first harvest Seven days after first harvest 2001 WI test

Dan Undersander-Agronomy © 2006 Conventional oat nurse crop July 15, 2003 Roundup oat takeout June 15, 2003 Roundup oat takeout Conventional oat nurse crop 2003 U of Minn Herbicide trial

Dan Undersander-Agronomy © 2006 Weed control during establishment Weed control at seeding is critical for establishing a healthy stand. Preliminary test results indicate: Post emergence Roundup® application at the 3-7 leaf stage results in excellent stands nearly free of weeds. Excellent crop safety with respect to forage yield and quality. RoundupControl

Dan Undersander-Agronomy © 2006 Weed control in established stands  Excellent crop safety with respect to forage yield and quality.  Roundup® applications in spring and/or fall result in excellent season-long control of weeds. Fall Roundup application Control

Dan Undersander-Agronomy © 2006 Performance of Roundup Ready Alfalfa Varieties Arlington, WIRosemount, MN Entrytons/acre^ tons/acre WL CropPlan Genetics DK FD Garst RR03BD RR03BD RR03BD RR03BD REBOUND V Mean LSD(5%) n.s

Dan Undersander-Agronomy © 2006 Performance of Roundup Ready Alfalfa Varieties

Dan Undersander-Agronomy © 2006 The Future… Research is ongoing with biotech traits that enhance forage quality. Reduced lignin alfalfa Increased fiber digestibility Decreased manure solids Tannin alfalfa Increased efficiency of alfalfa protein utilization Decreased protein supplementation Decreased N losses from dairy cows Elimination of bloat risk when grazed

Dan Undersander-Agronomy © 2006 Use considerations The seed is guaranteed to have greater than 90% roundup ready seed. It is anticipated that the first spraying in the seedling stage will take out the non roundup ready seedlings and their loss will not be noticed as stands thin naturally in the seeding year. This could be an issue if the alfalfa is not sprayed in the seedling stage. Roundup controls a broader array of both grassy and, especially, broadleaf weeds than currently available herbicides. Concern about development of Roundup resistant weeds if all three crops in rotation are Roundup resistant. Problem may be minimized by frequent cutting of alfalfa Roundup does not cause damage to the seedling alfalfa as observed with most other herbicides.

Dan Undersander-Agronomy © 2006 Use considerations Harvest restrictions for herbicides registered for use in forages Buctril30 days Butyrac days for new seedings 30 days for established stands Glyphosate (Weathermax and Ultramax II) 14 days 36 hours for fields being rotated to another crop 5 trifoliate leaves to 5 days before harvest for Roundup Ready alfalfa Poast Plus7 days for undried forage 14 days for dried hay Pursuit30 days Raptor20 days The harvest restriction is much shorter for Roundup applied to alfalfa in the seedling stage than for most other herbicides.

Dan Undersander-Agronomy © 2006 Use considerations The contracts will vary slightly among companies in terms of record keeping. Cropplan Genetics is requiring a GPS reading in each corner of each field. Others requiring no GPS reading in Wisconsin (one GPS reading per field is required for those states in the West where seed is produced). The one time technology fee per 50-lb bag of Roundup Ready alfalfa seed East of the Rocky Mountains is $125 a bag. West of the Rockies, it is $150 a bag. If a grower plants 12 lb/acre in Wisconsin, the technology fee is approximately $30/A. Add to this the cost of the seed itself to get the total seed cost.

Dan Undersander-Agronomy © 2006 Seeding grass-alfalfa mixtures Why? Less use of oats as cover crop Less need for bedding Value of grain less than hay Damage to alfalfa Short rotations of alfalfa Need high yield in seeding year Faster drying Multiple species less susceptible to stand damage

Dan Undersander-Agronomy © 2006 Changes in Alfalfa Establishment Practices Prior to 1990, greater than 90% of alfalfa seed with oat cover crop Now less than 40% of alfalfa is seeded with oat cover crop

Dan Undersander-Agronomy © 2006 Acreage of oats harvested for oatlage

Dan Undersander-Agronomy © 2006 First production year yield of alfalfa-grass mixtures, Spooner

Dan Undersander-Agronomy © 2006 First production year yield of alfalfa-grass mixtures, Marshfield

Dan Undersander-Agronomy © 2006

Quality changes in Alfalfa-Grass mixtures with Maturity - Spooner NDF First cuttingSecond cuttingThird cutting

Dan Undersander-Agronomy © 2006 Quality changes in Alfalfa-Grass mixtures with Maturity - Spooner RFQ First cuttingSecond cuttingThird cutting

Dan Undersander-Agronomy © 2006 Quality changes in Alfalfa-Grass mixtures with Maturity - Marshfield NDF Third cuttingSecond cuttingFirst cutting

Dan Undersander-Agronomy © 2006 Quality changes in Alfalfa-Grass mixtures with Maturity - Marshfield RFQ First cuttingSecond cuttingThird cutting

Dan Undersander-Agronomy © 2006 Quality changes if Alfalfa Grass mixtures with Maturity Including grasses with alfalfa increases NDF Grasses have higher digestible fiber than alfalfa Grass-legume mixtures have higher digestible fiber Some grass-legume mixtures have similar RFQ to pure alfalfa

Dan Undersander-Agronomy © 2006 Maximizing Alfalfa Yield in Seeding Year Seed early Select variety carefully Consider mixing with Italian ryegrass

Dan Undersander-Agronomy © 2006 Yield range of seeding year alfalfa Arlington and Marshfield, WI

Dan Undersander-Agronomy © 2006 Yield range of seeding year alfalfa ChippewaFond du Lac Lancaster

Dan Undersander-Agronomy © 2006

Choose high seeding year yielding variety of alfalfa Seed at 15lb/a. Two Italian ryegrass types over-seeded at the following rates: 0 (pure alfalfa plot), 2 lb/a 4 lb/a 8 lb/a 16 lb/acre. Effect of Italian Ryegrass Seeding Rate on Forage Yield

Dan Undersander-Agronomy © 2006 Effect of Italian Ryegrass Seeding Rate on Forage Yield Ryegrass seeded at 2, 4, 8, and 16 lbs. Note that rates above 4 lbs/a reduced alfalfa stand

Dan Undersander-Agronomy © 2006 Effect of Nitrogen Fertilizer on Forage Yield Treatments pure alfalfa at 15lb/a one variety of the Italian ryegrass seeded with alfalfa at 15 lb/a oats at 2 bu/a with alfalfa at 15 lb/a Apply nitrogen according to following treatments: 0 lb/a 30 lb/a at seeding 30 lb/a at seeding + 30lb/a after first cutting.

Dan Undersander-Agronomy © 2006 Effect of Nitrogen Fertilizer on Forage Yield + 0 N + 30 lb N + 30 & 30 lb N Arl Mar Spo

Dan Undersander-Agronomy © 2006 Maximizing Alfalfa Yield in Seeding Year Seed early Select variety carefully Consider mixing with Italian ryegrass Cut at 60 days after seeding Following cuttings at appropriate stage Take late fall cutting if planted variety with winter survival of 2 or less.