Yellow alfalfa variety: the perfect choice for grazing animals in dry conditions. Resistant to winter and easy to grow.

Alfalfa, a member of the legume family, has a strong and thick root system. Its stems are straight and covered with dense, small leaves, reaching a height of 80-85 cm. Alfalfa flowers are shaded in hues of blue and purple, and after flowering, the plant produces curly pods that mature in August.

In Western and Eastern Siberia, the variety of sickle alfalfa is widely spread, also known as yellow alfalfa. It is characterized by bright and light yellow flowers. This variety grows slowly and usually produces only one cutting, sometimes two. It is less productive compared to the seeding alfalfa, but it has higher winter hardiness and resistance to drought and salt. This variety is also less demanding in terms of growing conditions and is considered more durable, making it ideal for animal grazing. The stems of this variety are well developed but tend to lie on the ground, making them inconvenient for haymaking. Treating the seeds with TMTD helps protect young alfalfa shoots from diseases transmitted through planting material. To treat 1 ton of seeds, 3-4 kg of TMTD is required (active substance - thiram).

Alfalfa, belonging to early seeding crops, is sown simultaneously with spring grain crops. The row method of sowing ensures uniform and dense growth of the grass stand. In the first year of life, to combat annual and some perennial weeds, the crops are treated after the appearance of the first trifoliate leaf of alfalfa and before the cover crop (wheat, oats, barley) begins to grow, using the herbicide basagran (active substance - bentazon), consumption - 2.0 l/ha.

When sowing alfalfa under a cover of grain crops, it is important to timely remove the cover crop by making a high cut (15-20 cm) to ensure better development and wintering of the grass stand. The straw of the cover crop should be removed from the field as soon as possible after harvest to avoid damage to the alfalfa seedlings. In the second year, the stubble must be removed in early spring, as its presence can negatively affect the quality of the first cutting feed and contribute to the preservation of pests in the grass stand.

Stubble is mowed with low mowers, flattened by rollers, or the back side of a harrow, after which harrowing is carried out in two to four passes across the rows. Then the stubble is gathered and removed from the field for composting or burning on field edges.

The recommended sowing rates for alfalfa seeds are 16-20 kg/ha in chernozem zone, 16-18 kg/ha in forest-steppe regions, 12-15 kg/ha in steppe areas, and 10-12 kg/ha in sharply arid regions. The seeding depth of seeds depends on the soil type: on light soils - 3-4 cm, on heavy clay soils - 1-2 cm.

Alfalfa is pollinated by wild solitary bees and bumblebees.

Alfalfa is mowed at a height of 6-8 cm above the soil surface - this way, the plants branch out more in the second cutting and produce a higher seed yield. With low mowing (4-5 cm), the shoots are less formed, and the number of generative stems becomes significantly less. It is important to mow alfalfa in time to ensure its wintering. The optimal timing of the last cutting is 30-40 days before the onset of stable cold weather. In autumn, before winter begins, alfalfa is mowed at a height of 10-12 cm above the soil surface to have the remaining stubble trap snow. To achieve long-term use of alfalfa and maximize the collection of nutrients from 1 ha, it is necessary to alternate mowing at the beginning of flowering and the beginning of bud formation.