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craigreavley 
Silver Level
Joined: 09 Sep 2010
Location: illinois
Points: 119
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 Topic: Planting alfalfa
Posted: 21 Mar 2012 at 12:35pm |
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I am almost ready to plant a 5 acre hay field in central Illinois. I am going to drill in oats at 50 lbs per acre, add 3 lbs per acre of orchard grass to the drill, then broadcast 100 lbs of alfalfa seed and lightly harrow. This is my first attempt at a field of alfalfa am I on the right tract
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bill2260
Silver Level
Joined: 30 Mar 2010
Points: 215
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Posted: 21 Mar 2012 at 1:05pm |
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Does the drill not have grass seed attachments? If it does, I would use that. Would help to cullipack when done seeding. Will help seed germinate. Bill
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Gerald J.
Orange Level
Joined: 12 Sep 2009
Location: Hamilton Co, IA
Points: 5636
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Posted: 21 Mar 2012 at 1:23pm |
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I found in Iowa that less than 2 bushels of oats per acre let too many weeds grow. 3 bushels were better. Pick a short early oat so it doesn't smother the alfalfa. Alfalfa I planted at 16 pounds to the acre most years. 20 isn't way too much though. Alfalfa seed needs to be just barely covered. Oats can grow from surface to a couple inches deep. I took the grass seed tubes off the drill grass seed box and let the alfalfa seed fall mostly on top to be covered by the drag chains and following cultipacker.
Gerald J.
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Soilguy
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Joined: 10 Jul 2011
Location: Weslaco, TX
Points: 32
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Posted: 21 Mar 2012 at 2:11pm |
Do people in your area inoculate alfalfa? If it's needed, you'll get the most nitrogen out of the alfalfa if it's inoculated. Makes for better hay and improved soil. Good luck. Larry 
Edited by Soilguy - 21 Mar 2012 at 2:12pm
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JayIN
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Joined: 18 Dec 2009
Location: SE/IN
Points: 1982
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Posted: 21 Mar 2012 at 3:44pm |
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be sure to cultipack, it helps
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sometimes I walk out to my shop and look around and think "Who's the idiot that owns this place?"
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John (C-IL)
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Joined: 11 Sep 2009
Location: Illinois
Points: 1654
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Posted: 21 Mar 2012 at 3:56pm |
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If you have a roller it would be better than the harrow. I usually have growers that plant oats for a nurse crop seed at 48# per acre unless they are going to cut them for hay, then I have them go to 2 bu. per acre.
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TedBuiskerN.IL.
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Joined: 11 Sep 2009
Location: Davis, IL.
Points: 1959
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Posted: 21 Mar 2012 at 5:15pm |
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N.Ill., 3 bushel oats, 15# alfalfa through the grass seed attachment, and 3# smooth stem brome mixed with the oats in the seed box per acre worked best. This was usually good for a three year stand, as the alfalfa died out, the brome filled in to keep tonnage up. Our clay soils up here are hard on alfalfa roots due to frost heave.
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Most problems can be solved with the proper application of high explosives.
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ky wonder
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Joined: 13 Apr 2011
Location: horse cave, ky
Points: 647
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Posted: 22 Mar 2012 at 9:40am |
are you going to bradcast any fertilzer,
i have had great success mixing my seed in with the fertilizer at the mixing plant then broadcasting with the fertilizer
then using a notched cultipacker to cover
but i will admit that i love the look of a good drilled alfalfa crop,
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i like old tractors of all colors
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