Start Date
2-27-1992 11:15 AM
Description
Many farmers are reluctant to develop a new enterprise based on the grazing of alfalfa if they have had no experience with grazing of this species. Their first negative reaction is usually based on their fear of legume bloat. Often their second reaction is that grazing will destroy the alfalfa stand in short order. Another response is that grazing is a wasteful and inefficient use of a valuable resource generating less income than conventional uses, such as hay and silage. Another reaction is based on the fear Alfalfa grazing, according to other sceptics, also requires lots of capital for fencing and water services, needs much more labor, demands complex managerial skills and the assumption of more risk. Still others believe that alfalfa does not provide a balanced diet for grazing livestock.
In this paper I will discuss these points of concern about the grazing of alfalfa: whether they are real (and if they are the available options to avoid or minimize them) or imaginary. I will also discuss new technology and research activities that affect the grazing of alfalfa.
Included in
Advances in Grazing Alfalfa
Many farmers are reluctant to develop a new enterprise based on the grazing of alfalfa if they have had no experience with grazing of this species. Their first negative reaction is usually based on their fear of legume bloat. Often their second reaction is that grazing will destroy the alfalfa stand in short order. Another response is that grazing is a wasteful and inefficient use of a valuable resource generating less income than conventional uses, such as hay and silage. Another reaction is based on the fear Alfalfa grazing, according to other sceptics, also requires lots of capital for fencing and water services, needs much more labor, demands complex managerial skills and the assumption of more risk. Still others believe that alfalfa does not provide a balanced diet for grazing livestock.
In this paper I will discuss these points of concern about the grazing of alfalfa: whether they are real (and if they are the available options to avoid or minimize them) or imaginary. I will also discuss new technology and research activities that affect the grazing of alfalfa.