Dry matter yield and plant density of alfalfa as affected by cutting schedule and seeding rate

Alfalfa cutting schedule is a more significant factor in achieving high quality, high yields and stand persistence than numerous cultural practices such as irrigation, fertilisation, pest control, sowing management, variety selection, etc. The objective of this research was to determine dry matter (DM) yield and plant density of alfalfa stand as affected by the three different cutting schedules: C 1 - early (first flower, 5 cuts), C 2 - medium (late flower, 4 cuts), and C 3 - late (green pod, 3 cuts), and two seeding rates: S1-8 kg ha-1 and S2-16 kg ha-1, during 2009 - 2011. The numbers of plants per square metre were determined six weeks after sowing, in the spring 2010 and in spring 2011. In each year and over a two year total, C 3 had significantly lower DM yield than other treatments. Alfalfa harvested at the C 1 stage produced higher total DM yield (45.0 t ha-1) than harvesting at the C 3 stage (36.4 t ha-1). Cutting schedule did not influence plant populations of alfalfa stand. The final plant densities were approximately the same in all cutting treatments (early - 90; medium - 85; late - 90 plants m-2). The analysed agronomic traits were not significantly affected by seeding rate.