What is Alfalfa?

Alfalfa is native to Asia and is one of the most important and common hay crops in the world. A long-lived perennial legume, fresh, pure alfalfa stands from one to three feet tall and produces clusters of small purple flowers. It prefers deep, well-drained soils and is found throughout the entire United States.

In addition, alfalfa grass yields healthy amounts of plant matter that can be harvested several times a season, which is why it is invaluable in hay production and is widely grown and used among farms and pasture lands. Alfalfa can also be partnered with grass species such as meadow fescue and orchardgrass for pasture grazing, although it should be a small percentage of the overall forage mix content to avoid bloating.

 

What Are The Uses of Alfalfa?

Though we provide a brief list of its uses above, here is a more detailed description of the many uses of alfalfa for livestock and agriculture:

Hay Production – As mentioned earlier, alfalfa hay is considered ideal for farmers, as its persistent growth cycle throughout the year can allow for great volumes of hay to be produced. Alfalfa hay is also known as high-protein feed, ensuring the livestock it feeds grows healthy and strong.

Livestock Grazing – During more verdant times of the year, alfalfa is also great for animals such as cows and lambs to graze and consume directly.

Silage – Alfalfa can also be stored in a silo for lengthy amounts of time, providing high-quality feed for times of year when there are no grasses or other plants for animals to graze.

Green Manure – For those looking to help sustain their lawns or pastures better, alfalfa can also be used as a great fertilizer while it is still green, providing additional nitrogen to the soil.

Ground Cover – In some cases, alfalfa can also be used as feed or fertilizer and as protection from soil erosion, weeds, diseases, and more.

Those are just some ways alfalfa seeds are used to benefit your farm, pasture, or other landscape. There are many incredible advantages to growing it as a crop on your property.

 

What Are The Benefits of Having Alfalfa Fields?

In addition to its varied uses, planting alfalfa seeding provides several benefits that make it more distinct and ideal to include as part of your forage mix. Here are a few perks of alfalfa seed to consider:

Alfalfa Increases soil nitrogen

As it is a legume, alfalfa plants have the ability to fix available nitrogen from the atmosphere, absorbing it from the air and back into the soil, enhancing plant growth for subsequent crops you may be planting in the same field later on.

Alfalfa is the highest-yielding forage plant

As mentioned before, alfalfa seed also provides a high yield for a sizable time of the year, giving it the highest feeding value among other legume and grass species.

Alfalfa Helps prevent soil erosion

Alfalfa plants each grow an incredibly deep root system, making it somewhat drought-tolerant, loosening compacted soil for better water infiltration and structure, and reducing soil erosion.

Alfalfa Provides high-quality forage and animal feed

Alfalfa grass can also be excellent feed and forage for livestock such as sheep and cattle. It provides them with a healthy, abundant food source with a high protein content and remains fresh for long periods, even when stored in a silo.

Alfalfa Manages the insect population

Planting alfalfa also helps protect every acre of pasture or farmland from harmful pests, as it attracts all kinds of other more beneficial insects, such as bees and other pollinators, as well as birds, which will hunt down any pests looking to eat your other crops.

These benefits and more help to prove that alfalfa may be the best legume in the world to plant in your pasture or grazing area. For premium quality Alfalfa seed and other legumes, order from Nature’s Seed today!

Muhlenbergia rigens, commonly known as deergrass, is a species of perennial bunchgrass native to the southwestern United States and northwestern Mexico. Deergrass is well-adapted to arid and semi-arid regions and is commonly found in a variety of habitats, including grasslands, chaparral, coastal sage scrub, and desert scrub. It prefers well-drained soils and is often seen on slopes or hillsides. Deergrass forms dense, clumping tufts with slender, arching, and graceful foliage. The leaves are narrow, linear, and can reach lengths of up to 2 feet (60 cm) or more. They are typically bluish-green or grayish-green in color.

Deergrass is an ecologically important plant in its native range. It provides food and habitat for various wildlife species, including deer, birds, and insects. Additionally, its dense clumps help stabilize soil and prevent erosion in areas prone to disturbance. Historically, indigenous communities in the southwestern United States utilized deergrass for various purposes, such as weaving baskets and mats.

Host plant: white-lined sphinx and green cutworm moth

Produced by S&S Seeds

Big squirreltail is a species of wildrye native to the western United States, particularly in California; often found on rocky or brushy hillsides and in open woods, dry plains, grasslands, or savannas. It is a drought tolerant bunchgrass that is fire resistant. Big squirretail prefers full sun, well drained soils and is used as a quick fix to soil stabilization. Big squirretail is similar to bottlebrush squirreltail (Elymus elymoides), but grows in slightly more mesic areas.

Host plant: woodland skipper, Nevada skipper, white-lined sphinx, armyworm moth, bronzed cutworm, glassy borer, and darted wainscot

Produced by Hedgerow Farms

Blando brome is a cool season annual bunchgrass native to Europe. It is widely distributed throughout the ranges of California, including the Sierra foothills, and range areas bordering the Sacramento-San Joaquin Valley and the high mountain chaparral ranges of southern California. Blando brome growth starts in the fall and matures by April or May of the following year. This grass has excellent reseeding abilities, along with a dense and fibrous root system that aids in reducing soil erosion. It is adaptable to a wide range of soils and climates, is low-growing, and matures early. Blando brome is often used in ranges, pastures, and as a cover crop for vineyards and orchards.

Produced by S&S Seeds

Scientific Name: Festuca microstachys

Small fescue, also known as pacific fescue or three weeks fescue, is an annual grasslike herb native to western North America, particularly to California. It is often found in disturbed or recently burned, open, sandy regions at elevations up to 5,000 feet. Small fescue is also found in the Yellow Pine Forest, in foothill woodlands, chaparral, and valley grasslands.

Host plant: common ringlet, sandhill skipper, Sonora skipper, Madron skipper, Sierra skipper, Lindsey’s skipper, and Nevada skipper

Produced by Hedgerow Farms

Quailbush, also known as big saltbush, is a perennial deciduous evergreen shrub native to the southwestern United States and northern Mexico. Here, it grows in saline or alkaline soils, such as salt flats, dry lake beds, coastlines, and desert scrub. Additionally, it can also be found in non-saline soils along riverbanks and in woodlands. Quailbush is often used to revegetate riparian habitat or to stabilize banks in its native range; and is used in butterfly and bird gardens. Its ability to remain tolerant of drought and difficult sites that experience high winds, salt spray, saline, and alkaline soils makes it incredibly adaptive. Native birds and mammals in particular love the beautiful silvery gray foliage, as it provides food and cover. It’s excellent for erosion control and is fire resistant. Despite its name, it is a highly palatable forage for most livestock and big game.

Host plant: western pygmy blue, MacNeill’s sootywing, common sootywing, Mohave scootywing

Black sage is the most common sage in California, and is a keystone species of the coastal sage scrub plant community in southern California, as well as the chaparral and desert scrub communities throughout California. It can grow in a wide range of soils including sandstone, shale, granite, and basalt.

Host plant: gray hairstreak, white-lined sphinx, alfalfa looper moth, bilobed looper moth, Virginian tiger moth, and wavy-lined Emerald.

Produced by S&S Seeds

Formerly known as Kochia prostrata (prostrate summer cypress). Forage kochia is native to Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan. Small to medium polymorphic evergreen subshrub adapted to a wide range of sites and soils, including shallow soils with low fertility and highly saline or sodic soils. Behaves as a warm or cool season plant depending upon the ecotype in which it is planted. Exhibits exceptional fire resistance and is used for green stripping in cheatgrass-infested ranges in the Intermountain West. Very palatable and nutritious for both livestock and wildlife as a year-round forage with proper management.

Scientific Name: Bassia prostrata

Thickspike wheatgrass is a native perennial grass known for its sod-forming growth habits. It is strongly rhizomatous and drought tolerant. Grows up to 4 feet tall and is often used for erosion control and food plots. This grass begins growing in early spring and is generally long-lived. Suited for medium to coarse-textured soils.

Scientific Name: Pseudoroegneria spicata

This cool-season perennial bunchgrass is native to most of the Intermountain West and northern Great Plains areas. It’s long-lived and palatable to all types of livestock and wildlife, and its extensive root system makes bluebunch wheatgrass an excellent component in erosion control and reclamation projects. Drought-tolerant and adaptable to most soil types. It can reach up to four feet tall and can be grown without irrigation in areas receiving at least 8-10 inches of annual precipitation.