TY - JOUR
T1 - Differential survival of alfalfa varieties interseeded into corn silage
AU - Grabber, John H.
AU - Osterholz, William R.
AU - Riday, Heathcliffe
AU - Cassida, Kimberly A.
AU - Williamson, Jessica A.
AU - Renz, Mark J.
N1 - Funding Information:
The authors are grateful to Matthew Volenec, Stacey Marion, Joe Paling, Tyler Rice, and Miguel Schevenin for providing excellent technical assistance during the course of these studies. The authors thank Nicolas Enjalbert, David Mickelson, Charles Rodgers, Mark Smith, Steve Wagner, and David Witte for providing input on alfalfa varieties to test in our experiments. We also thank Corteva Agriscience, Donald Viands, and JoAnn Lamb for donating seed of several varieties evaluated in our studies and as well as Peter Piepho and Michael Casler for advice on several statistical procedures. This work was in part carried out under USDA-ARS Cooperative Agreements 58-3655-1-754 and 58-5090-6-060 with the University of Wisconsin–Madison. Mention of trade names or commercial products does not imply recommendation or endorsement by the USDA. USDA is an equal opportunity provider and employer.
Publisher Copyright:
© 2021 The Authors. Crop Science © 2021 Crop Science Society of America
PY - 2021/5
Y1 - 2021/5
N2 - Interseeding alfalfa (Medicago sativa L.) into silage corn (Zea mays L.) can improve forage yield, farm profitability, and soil conservation, but unreliable alfalfa establishment hampers on-farm adoption. This study evaluated seedling survival and growth of 36 alfalfa varieties differing in reported plant traits when interseeded at two Wisconsin sites in 2015 and at single sites in Wisconsin, Michigan, and Pennsylvania in 2016. Subplots of alfalfa varieties were sprayed with prohexadione-calcium (PHD) at 0 or 0.42 kg acid equivalent (a.e.) ha–1 to assess changes in seedling survival mediated by this growth retardant. After corn harvest in 2015, average stand density of varieties in Wisconsin ranged from 15 to 94 plants m–2 without PHD and from 52 to 199 plants m–2 with PHD. Stand density largely determined subsequent first-cut alfalfa dry matter yield, which ranged from 1.1 to 6.3 Mg ha–1. After corn harvest in 2016, stand density of varieties averaged across PHD treatments ranged from 113 to 248 plants m–2 in Michigan and Pennsylvania, compared with only 0.5 to 26 plants m–2 in Wisconsin; PHD treatment improved stand density only in Wisconsin but could not ensure adequate establishment under wet conditions that favored vigorous corn growth and foliar disease on alfalfa. Overall, establishment was poorly related to measured or reported alfalfa traits, but ‘55H94’ and hybrids were consistently among the best performing cultivars. Further work is needed to understand seedling survival mechanisms and to develop improved germplasm and production practices to ensure reliable establishment of interseeded alfalfa.
AB - Interseeding alfalfa (Medicago sativa L.) into silage corn (Zea mays L.) can improve forage yield, farm profitability, and soil conservation, but unreliable alfalfa establishment hampers on-farm adoption. This study evaluated seedling survival and growth of 36 alfalfa varieties differing in reported plant traits when interseeded at two Wisconsin sites in 2015 and at single sites in Wisconsin, Michigan, and Pennsylvania in 2016. Subplots of alfalfa varieties were sprayed with prohexadione-calcium (PHD) at 0 or 0.42 kg acid equivalent (a.e.) ha–1 to assess changes in seedling survival mediated by this growth retardant. After corn harvest in 2015, average stand density of varieties in Wisconsin ranged from 15 to 94 plants m–2 without PHD and from 52 to 199 plants m–2 with PHD. Stand density largely determined subsequent first-cut alfalfa dry matter yield, which ranged from 1.1 to 6.3 Mg ha–1. After corn harvest in 2016, stand density of varieties averaged across PHD treatments ranged from 113 to 248 plants m–2 in Michigan and Pennsylvania, compared with only 0.5 to 26 plants m–2 in Wisconsin; PHD treatment improved stand density only in Wisconsin but could not ensure adequate establishment under wet conditions that favored vigorous corn growth and foliar disease on alfalfa. Overall, establishment was poorly related to measured or reported alfalfa traits, but ‘55H94’ and hybrids were consistently among the best performing cultivars. Further work is needed to understand seedling survival mechanisms and to develop improved germplasm and production practices to ensure reliable establishment of interseeded alfalfa.
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85102647492&partnerID=8YFLogxK
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/citedby.url?scp=85102647492&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1002/csc2.20465
DO - 10.1002/csc2.20465
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:85102647492
SN - 0011-183X
VL - 61
SP - 1797
EP - 1808
JO - Crop Science
JF - Crop Science
IS - 3
ER -