Alfalfa How - Cost

bravo2zero · Feb 15, 2014

I have about 50 acres of land. I would like to take about 10 acres of the land to grow Alfalfa. I have no experience in growing Alfalfa or anything for that matter, but I am willing to learn and to take on the project if I can get some guided help. I would even go so far as taking photo progress and post here on the forum to share my experience.

The land is currently Bahiagrass. I'm not sure where to even start and the cost to get going? Less equipment. I'm located in north Alabama. Our land looks like a golf course, it is that green, and I haven't fertilized in two years other than mowing over cow patties. I have a John Deere 997 that I mow the land with as of now. I'm purchasing a John Deere Tractor next month and trading in the 997.

I'm not looking to turn a profit. I'd like to do this for myself and to have fun. If I make a few bucks on the side then that's great! I've attached a photo of our entrance to our land. This was taken as the sun was going down last fall. As you can see I take pride in our land, but even with that said, there is still a never ending job to be done with the land.

smstonypoint · Feb 15, 2014

Nice looking property.

Alfalfa is management-intensive (you have to be concerned about diseases and insects), and is expensive to establish and maintain. Here's a report from Auburn that contains establishment and maintenance budgets for alfalfa that you could modify and update to fit your situation: http://www.ag.auburn.edu/agec/extension/farm_report/08BudgetsForage.pdf. This report from the University of Georgia provides useful agronomic information: http://www.caes.uga.edu/commodities/fieldcrops/forages/pubs/Alfalfa%20Management%20in%20Georgia.pdf.

My take -- growing alfalfa in Alabama on 10 acres might be fun, but it's going to cost you.

Steve

flusher · Feb 16, 2014

No harm in trying. I'd mow the 10-acre hayfield as low as possible, disc it, smooth it with a drag or cultipacker and then plant with either a drop seeder or a broadcast seeder. Alfalfa seed is small, so you might want to mix the seed with something else like sand to get it applied. Press the seed into the soil with the cultipacker or a roller (seed needs to be in good contact with the soil for efficient germination).

Normally, alfalfa is planted using a Brillion seeder. These can be bought used on eBay for a few thousand dollars (5-ft wide models) and sometimes can be rented from the county ag station.
Alfalfa is a deep-rooted perennial.

My neighbor worked about 25 acres of irrigated alfalfa and baled every 5-6 weeks during our growing season (Oct-May)--3-twine bales about 110 lb each. With the drought here in CA, people are selling off their animals so the market for his hay was diminishing. Last year he started a plum orchard on that hayfield--more money selling to Sunsweet for prunes.

Good luck

bravo2zero · Feb 16, 2014

Thanks to all that posted and shared ideas in a pm. I'll give it some thought and let you guys know what I decide to do. I sure would like to give it a try.

bravo2zero · Feb 16, 2014

One question... Do you remove the grass that is in the location where you want to plant seed for Alfalfa or do you mow the grass as low as possible like a golf course (which is what our land looks like)? Then plant the seed with the above concept? Also is it too late to start now, let's say in April?

flusher said:
No harm in trying. I'd mow the 10-acre hayfield as low as possible, disc it, smooth it with a drag or cultipacker and then plant with either a drop seeder or a broadcast seeder. Alfalfa seed is small, so you might want to mix the seed with something else like sand to get it applied. Press the seed into the soil with the cultipacker or a roller (seed needs to be in good contact with the soil for efficient germination).

Normally, alfalfa is planted using a Brillion seeder. These can be bought used on eBay for a few thousand dollars (5-ft wide models) and sometimes can be rented from the county ag station.
Alfalfa is a deep-rooted perennial.

My neighbor worked about 25 acres of irrigated alfalfa and baled every 5-6 weeks during our growing season (Oct-May)--3-twine bales about 110 lb each. With the drought here in CA, people are selling off their animals so the market for his hay was diminishing. Last year he started a plum orchard on that hayfield--more money selling to Sunsweet for prunes.

Good luck

flusher · Feb 16, 2014

Run a tandem disc over the hayfield several times once north-south and then east-west. Attach a drag to your disc to smooth the plowed ground. I use a simple tire drag on my 6-acre hayfield towed behind my 7-ft wide offset disc. The white things on the disc are plastic buckets filled with concrete (about 120 lb each) and helps disc to plow effectively. The disc will take care of the existing grass like you see in this photo.

What are your plans for harvesting your alfalfa crop? Post back and you'll get plenty of good advise on this part of your adventure in farming.

Continued good luck.