Alfalfa, often considered the “Queen of Forages”, produces high yields that are highly digestible and high in protein. Alfalfa is a very important leguminous crop for dairy and other livestock operations in Kansas. Late summer and early fall are often the best times to plant alfalfa in Kansas due to less weed pressure than spring planting (Figure 1).

Figure 1. Alfalfa seedlings. Photo by Doohong Min, K-State Research and Extension.

Much of Kansas has seen above-average rainfall this summer and soil moisture within the profile is adequate, if not surplus, in many areas. Available moisture at planting is crucial for alfalfa establishment, but too much moisture can increase seedling disease incidence and reduce alfalfa nodulation and nitrogen fixation.

If soil moisture is available, growers in northwest Kansas can plant as early as mid-August. Those in southeast Kansas can plant in mid-to-late September. In other parts of Kansas, the optimal planting time is late August or early September. Producers just need to plant early enough to have three to five trifoliate leaves before the first frost.

Alfalfa is a three- to five-year, or longer, investment and therefore it is crucial to ensure proper establishment. Some producers shy away from alfalfa because of its high establishment cost and risk of stand failure. In the end, however, it is relatively inexpensive, if amortized over the life of the crop.

Under proper management and favorable weather conditions, dryland alfalfa can produce 3 to 6 dry matter tons of forage per acre per year. Irrigated fields can produce 6 to 8 dry matter tons per acre per year or more.

When planting alfalfa, producers should keep the following in mind:

Soil test and correct soil acidity. Alfalfa grows best in well-drained soils with a pH of 6.5 to 7.5, and does not tolerate low soil pH. For areas east of the Flint Hills, if the pH drops below 6.4, add lime to raise soil pH to 6.8 before planting. For the Flint Hills and areas west, lime is recommended when the pH drops below 5.8 with a target pH of 6.0. Ensuring appropriate soil pH levels prior to planting is essential, especially as lime is relatively immobile in the soil profile and the field will not be worked for the next 3-5 years. For more information on liming alfalfa fields, see the previous eUpdate article published on July 26, 2019: “Liming prior to fall seeding of alfalfa”.

Soil test and meet fertilization needs. Apply the needed phosphorus (P) and potassium (K) amounts according to soil test recommendations. Phosphorus fertilizer will be required if soil test P levels are below 25 ppm, and potassium fertilizer will be required if soil K levels are below 130 ppm. Even soils that test higher than these thresholds may need additional fertilizer. Small amounts of N fertilizer (15 to 20 lb/acre) as a starter at planting are beneficial for alfalfa establishment.

Plant certified inoculated seed. Ensuring the correct Rhizobium inoculation is crucial for alfalfa seedlings to fix available soil nitrogen to meet the needs of growing alfalfa for optimum production.

Plant in firm, moist soil. A firm seedbed ensures good seed-soil contact; therefore, use a press wheel with the drill to firm the soil over the planted seed. No-till planting in small-grains stubble will usually provide a good seedbed.

Do not plant too deeply. Plant one-fourth to one-half inch deep on medium- and fine-textured soils and three-fourths inch deep on sandy soils. Do not plant deeper than 10 times the seed diameter.

Use the right seeding rate. Plant 8 to 12 pounds of seed per acre on dryland in western Kansas, 12 to 15 pounds per acre on irrigated medium- to fine-textured soils, 15 to 20 pounds per acre on irrigated sandy soils, and 12 to 15 pounds per acre on dryland in central and eastern Kansas. Double drilling, with the second seeding drilled 45 degrees to the first planting can help ensure a good uniform stand. If using the double drill method, each pass should be planted at 50% for the total seed rate to be 100%.

Check for herbicide carryover that could damage the new alfalfa crop – especially when planting no-till alfalfa into corn or grain sorghum stubble. In areas where row crops were drought-stressed and removed for silage, that sets up a great seedbed for alfalfa, but may still bring a risk of herbicide damage.

Choose pest-resistant varieties. Resistance to phytophthora root rot, bacterial wilt, fusarium wilt, verticillium wilt, anthracnose, the pea aphid, and the spotted alfalfa aphid is essential. Some varieties are resistant to even more diseases and insects.

Purchase alfalfa varieties with a fall dormancy rating ranging from 4 – 6 for Kansas. Fall dormancy relates to how soon an alfalfa variety will stop growing in the fall and how early it will begin growing in the spring or late winter. Simply put, it would be better not buy a variety with fall dormancy of 9-10, which can be more suitable for California and regions where alfalfa can keep growing year-round under irrigation. 

Find more information about growing alfalfa in Kansas in the Alfalfa Production Handbook. This publication is available on the web at: www.ksre.ksu.edu/bookstore/pubs/c683.pdf

Also see Alfalfa Growth and Development, available on the web at: https://www.bookstore.ksre.ksu.edu/pubs/MF3348.pdf

BY JOHN P. TRETBAR

The weekly rig count from Independent Oil & Gas Service shows four active drilling rigs in eastern Kansas, down two from the week before, and 25 west of Wichita, up one. Drilling was underway at one lease in Barton County, one in Ellis County and one in Russell County. Baker Hughes reported 898 active drilling rigs across the U.S. Friday, down four oil rigs from a week earlier, and down two seeking natural gas. The count in Oklahoma was down five, Texas was down three, and North Dakota was up three.

Independent Oil & Gas Service reports 15 newly-completed wells across Kansas last week, 12 of them west of Wichita. Regulators approved 15 new drilling permits across state, eight of them east of Wichita, and seven in Western Kansas, including one in Barton County.

Kansas regulators report 94 new intent-to-drill notices across the state last month, down from 111 the month before and less than half the 236 intents reported in August of last year. The Kansas Corporation Commission reports seven new intents on file in Barton County, six in Ellis County and two in Stafford County. The year-to-date total is just 735 intents, compared to 1,303 intents through August of last year.

The U.S. Energy Information Administration reported domestic crude oil production dropped slightly from last week’s all-time record high. The government says U.S. producers pumped 12.354 million barrels per day for the week ending August 30, the second biggest weekly production total ever. That’s down 146,000 barrels from the record 12.5 million barrels produced the week before.

The government said U.S. commercial crude oil inventories dropped by 4.8 million barrels from the previous week to 423 million barrels, right at the five-year average for the time of year.

EIA reported a big increase in crude-oil imports, which were 976,000 barrels per day higher than last week at 6.9 million barrels per day. The four-week average is about 12.5% less than the same four-week period a year ago.

In its latest monthly crude-oil production report, the Energy Information Administration said U.S. operators produced 12.082 million barrels of crude oil in June, a slight drop from May’s total but more than 13% higher than the figure from June of last year. In Kansas, June production reached 92 million barrels, which is up two percent from the month before but down more than five percent from a year earlier.

Gasoline prices are up to a dime cheaper than last week in all but four states. AAA says two of those states saw rising prices because of Hurricane Dorian. Across Kansas, motorists are paying an average of $2.336 per gallon for regular gasoline, which is more than 12 cents cheaper than a month ago. The national average is $2.573. We spotted $2.21 a gallon at several locations in Hays and $2.17 across Great Bend. Your 15-gallon fill-up will cost nearly two dollars more than a month ago, but six dollars less than last year at this time.

Maturing debts in the Permian Basin are driving a spike in bankruptcy declarations. The Wall Street Journal reports that so far this year we’ve already nearly matched last year’s total of 28 producer bankruptcies. The Journal reports there’s still about nine billion dollars in notes set to mature through the rest of this year. According to S&P, there’s another $137 billion coming due between 2020 and 2022. Defaults are on the rise, as companies struggle to service debt, bring in new financing and refinance existing debt, according to the report.

Oil-by-rail continued to increase last month, despite a continuing decline in monthly numbers for all freight train traffic. The Association of American Railroads said that in August, eight of the 20 commodity categories they track saw increases compared with a year earlier. Leading the way was petroleum and petroleum products, which were up 7.8 percent. AAR Senior Vice President John T. Gray said total U.S. freight carloads have fallen on a year-over-year basis for seven straight months. AAR said petroleum rail traffic gained half a percent in the week ending August 31 compared to a year earlier. Oil-by-rail in Canada was up more than 12 percent.

Adams County, Colorado on Tuesday became that state’s first county to adopt new oil and gas regulations since the state passed a law that bolstered local control over fossil fuel development. Adams County Commissioners on Tuesday doubled the current setback limits, from 500 to 1,000 feet between oil and gas development and occupied buildings and homes. Operators can request exemptions, which would require a public hearing. The state’s largest oil and gas industry group calls the new county rules “unreasonable.” The Colorado Oil and Gas Association says they will hurt the more than 5,000 families who depend on oil and gas development.

The Interstate Oil and Gas Compact Commission, a group of energy-state regulators, has come out very loudly against the so-called “Green New Deal.” Chairman Wayne Christian of the Railroad Commission of Texas said Senator Bernie Sanders’ version of the environmental plan would cost $16.3 trillion and would cripple the Texas economy. Christian said “Over my dead body will I allow out-of-state forces to eliminate jobs, decrease state revenue, and increase the cost of living on the constituents I represent.” The Commission passed a resolution urging the federal government to reject the Green New Deal “…in the spirit of cooperative federalism.” They’re sending copies of the resolution to top administration and congressional officials to encourage them to oppose the Green New Deal and any substantially similar legislation.

Exxon Mobil is poised to drop out of the S&P 500 Index’s 10 biggest companies for the first time since the index’s inception some 90 years ago. According to data compiled by Bloomberg, Visa replaced Exxon as the 10th biggest member of the index Aug. 1 and two weeks later Procter & Gamble overtook the oil giant. The growth of technology giants like Facebook, Amazon and Microsoft over the past decade coincided with an energy slowdown caused by a global glut brought on by the shale revolution.