Alfalfa or alternative crop?

Question

If a farmer were in a location (US) where there is local demand for hay, for spring '08 would they be better off planting a field to alfalfa or an alternative crop like corn or soybeans?

Let's assume that the field in question has reasonably high fertility, and a pH suitable for any of these crops (pH 6.8).

Answer 1

Corn...you could make corn fuel!

Answer 2

You would be better off growing a crop of corn.  You know that the price of corn is going to be very good.  Hay was/is in great demand almost everywhere this winter because of a wide spread drought. We don't know if this will be the case next year or not. If it is a good spring and summer for hay you could still sell it, but the price might not be so good. If it turns out to be another bad year for hay, you can always bale your corn stalks like many people did this year.

Answer 3

Not enough information is provided to make an answer.

What is your rain fall? What were the previous crops grown there, what chemicals were applied to the last crop - major question. Do you have resistance to pesticides? How much money do you have and can you afford to plant and maintain either crop? Do you have the machinery for both crops? Are you growing lucerne (alfalfa) in a crop rotation for the benefit of nitrogen - thus what will be your cost of loss of nitrogen and disease to your next crop if you don't follow a rotation? there are heaps more questions to answer. YOU NEED TO TALK TO YOUR LOCAL AGRONOMIST.

Answer 4

Alfalfa should better be planted in early fall (not spring) as this will not only give the optimum temperatures the plant needs to grow but more of that growth will be directed at developing a good root system.

http://cestanislaus.ucdavis.edu/files/29...

It is better to go for an alternative crop such as corn (best time to plant corn is from April 20 to May 10)

http://www.extension.iastate.edu/Publica...

Answer 5

Alfalfa can be a profitable crop.  Much depends on your local market and growning/harvesting conditions.  In northeast Texas, the market is good (plenty of horse, dairy and beef operations), however, subsoil acidity limits severely limits the number of locations that can successfully grow alfalfa.  A second issue then follows is our very wet spring.  The first alfalfa hay harvest would be in early April.  At that time, drying conditions are poor and often takes 5-8 days to dry the cut hay sufficiently for baling.    In that period of time, rain comes in and further delays baling, which affects both the quality of the baled hay and the quantity of hay harvested.

The third issue we face are damp soils.  Alfalfa production is limited if the rooting zone is saturated with water for a very long period of time.  A condition that is frequent on many of our farms during some part of the year.

Another issue is the blister beetle.  This insect is very prevalent in our area and affects marketing of alfalfa to the local horse owners.

However, to answer your question, do your homework.  If your market will support an adequate price and your farm has the ability to produce an appropriate yield of alfalfa then it may well be a profitable decision.  

I would spend time with my local county agent and other local agriculture experts to determine if that yield potential exists on your farm.

Answer 6

In our part of the world, Illinois, corn is king and not thought of as an alternative crop.    Much of your answer depends on your location and availability to market for the crop that you produce.   We like pH for alfalfa to be up around 7.0 where corn is ok with a level of 6.2.   Itemize your input costs for dry fertilizer, anhydrous, seed, tractor & labor along with a land cost (either owning or renting) for corn and compare with the input costs for alfalfa which would be seed, dry fertilizer, tractor and labor and a land cost.  Alfalfa is more expensive to start as seed costs are upward of $90 per acre plus the cost of the seed for a cover crop such as oats.  We usually tear up the field after 4 years for rotation so the seed cost is divided over 4 years.  Alfalfa is more labor intensive and you are up against the weather more often to take in the four cuttings (four in our state, more or less depending on your location).  Corn will average 185 bushels per acre, alfalfa about 7.5 tons per acre on average and mature.  I estimate that I would nearly double my net return on alfalfa over corn.  Personally I would go for the alfalfa crop, fertilize it well according to recommendations, use a high quality seed to start and follow recommended practices for establishing the seed bed as this is important for setting the alfalfa seed near the surface with a firm soil cover.  Mow and condition at early (0-10% bloom) and you will get along very well.  Good luck.