Lucerne (Alfalfa)

Land Preparation

Fine, firm, well-drained seedbed. Lucerne stays in the ground for three to four years, so time spent levelling and clearing perennial weeds now pays back for several seasons.

Sowing Time & Method

September to November. Rows 9 inches apart or broadcast, sown shallow.

Seed Rate & Treatment

8–10 kg per acre, inoculated with Rhizobium.

Fertilizer

One bag DAP at sowing and phosphorus again each year. Lucerne fixes its own nitrogen, so urea is largely wasted on it.

Irrigation

Every 10–15 days in summer, 20–25 in winter. Good drainage matters more than frequent watering — the crown rots in standing water.

Weed Control

Weed Damage Control Product
Dodder (Amar Bel) Its yellow threads wrap the lucerne and suck out the sap, killing patches out of a stand meant to last years. Dodder-free clean seed; cut and burn the infested patch before it flowers
Bathu (Lambsquarters) In the establishment year it fills the gaps and takes the water and fertiliser, so the stand never settles properly. Keep the field clean in the first year with hoeing and hand weeding
Purple Nutsedge (Deela) Pushes up between the crowns after every irrigation and takes the food from a stand that must last several years. Dig the tubers out after a cut and take them off the field; do not run a harrow or suhaga through the stand, it only breaks the tubers up and spreads them
Field Bindweed (Lehli) Threads through the lucerne and mats the swath together, making cutting hard and dropping the fodder's quality. Take it out before sowing with repeated summer ploughing that dries the roots; in a standing stand do not dig the patch out — digging cuts the deep roots into pieces and every piece grows again, and the lucerne crowns are lost as well; instead cut the patch down with every lucerne cut so the roots stay starved, and clear the roots with summer ploughing when the stand is renewed
Canary Grass (Dumbi Sitti) In the first winter it comes up over the young lucerne and takes the light, thinning the early cuts. Pre-sowing rauni, then plough under the weed flush before sowing

Keep the field clean in the establishment year; after that the stand shades most weeds out itself.

Insect Pests

Aphid and lucerne weevil, mainly in spring.

Diseases

Crown and root rot in poorly drained land.

Harvesting

Cut every 30–40 days at one-tenth flowering, six to eight cuts a year. Cutting too low or too often weakens the crown and shortens the stand's life.

Expected Yield

800–1200 maund green fodder per acre per year.

Pests & diseases of Lucerne (Alfalfa)

Aphidsmedium Salinity and Sodicityhigh Phosphorus Deficiencymedium Micronutrient Deficiencymedium