Forages are a main source of livestock food, and unlike
most other crops they have no direct human use. Alfalfa,
clover, vetch - all legumes - and grass make up 70 percent of
the diet of beef cattle and 90 percent of sheep intake.
Perennial forages protect against erosion because the soil is
not tilled each year.
In the 1880s alfalfa was an experimental crop that
wouldn'wouldt survive Minnesota winters, though it was the forage
of choice for European dairy herds. In 1895 the U"s
Agricultural Experiment Station released its first three
plant varieties: an oat, a wheat, and "Grimm" alfalfa. The
name honors the Carver County farmer who brought 20 pounds of
alfalfa seed from Germany in 1857. By collecting seed from
surviving plants, he developed a winter-hardy alfalfa that
researchers used for extensive management studies and
breeding.
Alfalfa is now the mainstay of our dairy industry, which
ranks fifth in the country and brings in $1.5 billion to
farmers, and adds over $6 billion to processors of milk,
cheese, butter, and ice cream. Almost 150 years ago Minnesota
dairying led to the establishment of the first farm
cooperatives in the country. Now, we are home to two of the
world"s largest.
Deep rooting varieties of alfalfa were developed by
UM-USDA scientists to extract nitrogen from the soil. The
legume"s roots reach below the root systems of cereal crops
to keep nitrogen from entering groundwater or tile lines. In
the last decade, alternative legumes such as kura clover and
native species such as cicer milkvetch have been introduced
by the University as options to help diversify Minnesota
agriculture.
Applied research helps farmers manage forages to produce
the best crop for dairy, beef, and sheep herds. In 1937 the
University published the first comprehensive management guide
for alfalfa, earlier considered an "exotic" crop. Today,
scientists evaluate forages in many ways:
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Species selection
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Planting date
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Planting rate
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How often to harvest
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Grazing or mechanical harvest
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Forage quality and yield
While alfalfa is traditionally grown as a perennial, U
of M and USDA breeders released 'Nitro' in 1986 as an
alternative annual crop in rotation with corn and soybeans.
'Nitro' was developed as a one-year-high-nitrogen fixing
legume that does not overwinter.
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U of M breeding of red and white clovers and bromegrass
began in 1946. The goal is to improve winter hardiness and
disease resistance."Minn A" white clover germplasm was
released to industry breeders in 1974 and is found in many
commercial varieties.
An indirect benefit of crop production is the 12 million
pounds of honey produced here each year. U of M entomologists
have developed "hygienic" honeybees that are helping colonies
nationwide eliminate parasitic mites.
University animal scientists and agronomists
determined that alfalfa should be cut in the "early
flowering stage" to obtain maximum digestibility and
highest nutrient concentration. Minnesota farmers
typically cut alfalfa three times a year and with good
management get five years of production before reseeding
is necessary.
Livestock, like children, won't eat something they
don"t like. University and USDA research led to release of
"HiPal" - short for high palatability - cicer milkvetch,
and a low alkaloid reed canarygrass, a native grass that
cattle previously would not eat. U of M researchers were
the first to prove that palatability differences are more
important than crop yield, or quantity of nutrients, in
grazing animal performance.
Legumes - plants with pods above ground and nodules on their
roots - have the unique ability to take nitrogen from the air
and convert it into soil nitrogen that can be used by later
crops as fertilizer.
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Wheat
