Forage Genetics International held an alfalfa field day event June 20 at its facility near West Salem, Wis., to give about 100 growers, agronomists and ag industry representatives a firsthand look at the HarvXtra alfalfa trait.

According to Mark McCaslin, vice president of research at FGI, with a reduced amount of lignin in the plant, HarvXtra alfalfa is the industry’s first genetically enhanced alfalfa technology developed to maximize quality.

“HarvXtra alfalfa gives growers the ability to better manage the yield versus quality trade-off. It offers more flexibility in the cutting schedule to achieve improved forage quality or greater yield potential when compared to conventional alfalfa at the same stage of maturity,” McCaslin explained.

The HarvXtra alfalfa trait provides flexibility by widening the cutting window, which gives growers the option to maintain their normal harvest schedule for higher-quality forage, or delay harvest for seven to 10 days for increased yield potential without sacrificing forage quality, compared to conventional alfalfa at the same stage of maturity, according to Dan Undersander, a University of Wisconsin Extension research forage agronomist.

“This ability to delay harvest gives growers the option to decrease the number of cuttings over a growing season, which can reduce harvest costs, reduce stress on alfalfa and potentially improve the life of the alfalfa stand,” Undersander said.

HarvXtra alfalfa is stacked with the Roundup Ready technology, which gives growers the ability to apply Roundup herbicides, McCaslin added.

Less lignin, higher quality
“HarvXtra alfalfa has an average of 16% to 20% less lignin and 14% to 18% higher neutral detergent fiber digestibility and relative forage quality than conventional alfalfa harvested at the same stage of maturity,” McCaslin noted.

What does this mean?

“Harvested in 35-day intervals, HarvXtra alfalfa has the same fiber digestibility as conventional alfalfa varieties, and we get a 20% increase in yield,” McCaslin said.

“With the ability to delay harvest, HarvXtra alfalfa is stressed less than conventional alfalfas,” Undersander said. “We get more yield in the first cutting. If we take the first cutting when we would normally cut it, and then cut every 34 days or do whatever the weather will let us do, we will still have high-quality alfalfa. This alfalfa gives growers flexibility.”

Phil Bollman, HarvXtra alfalfa technical support team member, echoed what Undersander said.

“If you are normally scheduled to harvest your alfalfa at day 18 and you see rain in the forecast or have a breakdown of equipment on your farm, you can utilize HarvXtra alfalfa as it gives you the flexibility to delay harvest seven to 10 days and still maintain high quality compared to your conventional alfalfa cut at 28 days,” Bollman said. “Now you have options, and you remove the risk of unexpected delays without sacrificing quality.”

Ben Daley, who grows between 800 and 1,000 acres of alfalfa and milks 1,500 cows with his family in southeastern Minnesota on Daley Farms of Lewiston, said they have seeded about 25% of their alfalfa with HarvXtra alfalfa.

“We’re transitioning to HarvXtra alfalfa,” Daley said. “Next year about half of our alfalfa will include the HarvXtra trait.”

Daley said he became interested in HarvXtra alfalfa “because we like high-producing cows, and we thought this would be the next step.

“It packs the same as conventional alfalfa,” Daley noted. “It harvests the same and looks the same. I didn’t notice any lodging. We tested each load when we harvested it before we put it in the bunker. We’re blending it in the bunker, and we hope it improves our overall average.”

Daley said he likes the fact that the harvest window is lengthened with HarvXtra.

“Like a lot of people this year, we’re having issues with the weather,” he said. “HarvXtra gives us flexibility.”

Dave Whalen, FGI director of regulatory affairs and quality assurance, recommends direct-seeding alfalfa in April on ground that has been sprayed with Roundup, and then spray it with Roundup five days before harvesting.

HarvXtra alfalfa is available through several different seed companies. For more information and to learn how much it costs, contact your local seed representative.