- Author: Eric T. Natwick
Alfalfa caterpillar, Colias eurytheme, is a warm weather pest of alfalfa. Six generations of the pest may occur between May and October, in the low desert. The adults are yellow butterflies and are often called alfalfa butterflies. The abundance of alfalfa butterflies is now increasing in the low desert valleys of southern California and in the central valley of California. Alfalfa butterflies that may be flying over tall alfalfa, most likely emerged from the same field. Eggs are football-shaped and are laid singly on the upper surface of leaves in alfalfa re-growth which is up to 6 inches tall. The larvae hatch in 3 to 7 days, grow to about an inch long and pupate in approximately 2...
- Author: Shannon C. Mueller
Mark your calendar for Thursday September 5th and plan to join fellow growers, PCAs, and seed and chemical company reps at our annual Alfalfa and Forage Field Day. Registration begins at 7:30 AM and trams will depart for the field portion of the meeting promptly at 7:50 AM.
In the field, participants will learn about alfalfa variety selection as a tool for managing pests and diseases, using alfalfa-grains rotations to get the most from nitrogen fixation, and how Roundup Ready® and conventional alfalfa hay fields coexist. Three presentations covering nitrogen utilization, variety selection, and irrigation strategies for sorghum are also scheduled.
Once the field visits are finished, we will...
- Author: Daniel H Putnam
- Author: Mike Ottman
Late summer harvests of alfalfa are often disappointing to growers, with low yields and also low quality.
This is often called ‘summer slump’ – which occurs with alfalfa but also (more severely) with cool-season forages like timothy, ryegrass, orchardgrass and fescue. The extent of the reduction in yield and quality depends upon heat, irrigation, cutting schedule, and weather patterns. This year, for example, many regions had hot temperatures in late June and early July, but more moderate temperatures (so far) in August.
Why does this occur? Its causes are somewhat complex. An excellent recent article by Mike Ottman and Ayman Mostafa from the University of Arizona, Tucson, explores the...
- Author: Larry Godfrey
- Author: Rachael Freeman Long
The straw itch mite (Pyemotes ventricosus) is a predator living in oat hay fields. It is an extremely small mite (1/125 inch long), elongate, and whitish to translucent in color. It feeds on small insects and mites in the field and also continues to feed on these organisms in hay bales. This sounds very positive and beneficial, but this mite can also be a severe pest. During the “heat of the summer” every year, there are reports of bites and dermatitis associated with handling given lots of oat hay. The straw itch mite will move out of hay bales and readily bite humans and other animals. At the time of the bite, a prickling sensation may be felt with the “full force” of...
- Author: Daniel H Putnam
- Author: Steve Orloff
‘To cut, or not to cut, that is the question. Whether 'tis nobler to suffer the slings and arrows of outrageously low prices or to harvest when the slender shoots are yet tender to the tongue” --I think Shakespeare said that.
The tradeoff between high yields and high quality in alfalfa is a quandary that farmers have wrestled with for generations. However, this has become particularly important as dairies have demanded ever higher quality for their higher-producing dairy cows. After all, the average 2013 dairy cow produces >70% more milk than a cow in 1970, and dairies have demanded higher quality forage as a result. This has meant that growers cut at increasingly shorter schedules,...