Alfalfa
Medicago sativa
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Plantae Division: Magnoliophyta Class: Magnoliopsida Order: Fabales Family: Fabaceae Subfamily: Faboideae Tribe: Trifolieae Genus: Medicago Species: M. Plants are living Organisms belonging to the kingdom Plantae. The flowering plants or angiosperms ( Angiospermae or Magnoliophyta) are the most widespread group Magnoliopsida is the Botanical name for a class of Flowering plants By definition the class will include the family Magnoliaceae, but its Fabales is an order of Flowering plants It is included in the rosid group of the Eudicots in the Angiosperm Phylogeny Group II Fabaceae or Leguminosae is a large and economically important family of Flowering plants which is commonly known as the legume family, pea Faboideae is a Subfamily of the Flowering plant family Fabaceae or Leguminosae Medicago (family Fabaceae, the Legume family is a genus of flowering plants commonly known as medick or burclover. sativa
Binomial name
Medicago sativa L.[1]
Subspecies
Medicago sativa subsp. Carl Linnaeus (Latinized as Carolus Linnaeus, also known after his ennoblement as, May 23 new style (13 May old style 1707 who laid the foundations for ambigua (Trautv.) Tutin Medicago sativa subsp. Ernst Rudolf von Trautvetter (1809-1889 was a Russian Botanist, specialising in the flora of the Caucasus and central Asia. Tutin ( Serbian: Тутин Tutin, Bosnian: Tutin) is a town and municipality in Sandžak region of Serbia (part of microcarpa Urban Medicago sativa subsp. sativa L. Medicago sativa subsp. Carl Linnaeus (Latinized as Carolus Linnaeus, also known after his ennoblement as, May 23 new style (13 May old style 1707 who laid the foundations for varia (T. Martyn) Arcang.

Alfalfa (Medicago sativa) is a flowering plant in the pea family Fabaceae cultivated as an important forage crop. In the UK it is known as lucerne and Lucerne grass in India. The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom, the UK or Britain,is a Sovereign state located

Alfalfa is a cool season perennial legume living from three to twelve years, depending on variety and climate. A legume is a Plant in the family Fabaceae (or Leguminosae or a Fruit of these specific plants Climate encompasses the temperatures humidity rainfall atmospheric particle count and numerous other meteorogical factors in a given region over long periods of It resembles clover with clusters of small purple flowers. Alsike redirects here Alsike Sweden is also a town in the Knivsta Municipality, Sweden. A flower, also known as a bloom or Blossom, is the reproductive structure found in Flowering plants (plants of the division Magnoliophyta, also The plant grows to a height of up to 1 metre, and has a deep root system sometimes stretching to 4. ROOT is an object-oriented program and library developed by CERN. 5 metres. This makes it very resilient, especially to droughts. It has a tetraploid genome. Polyploidy occurs in cells and Organisms when there are more than two homologous sets of Chromosomes. In classical genetics the genome of a Diploid Organism including Eukarya refers to a full set of chromosomes or genes in a Gamete, thereby The plant exhibits autotoxicity, which means that it is difficult for alfalfa seed to grow in existing stands of alfalfa. Autotoxicity is self-destruction of a species through the production of chemicals that escape into the environment and directly inhibit the growth of that species Therefore, it is recommended that alfalfa fields be rotated with other species (e. g. corn, wheat) before reseeding.

Like other legumes, its root nodules contain bacteria, Sinorhizobium meliloti, with the ability to fix nitrogen, producing a high-protein feed regardless of available nitrogen in the soil. Sinorhizobium meliloti is a nitrogen-fixing bacterium ( Rhizobium) Nitrogen fixation is the process by which Nitrogen is taken from its natural relatively inert molecular form (N2 in the atmosphere and converted into Soil, often typeset as SOiL, is a four piece rock band from Chicago Illinois United States founded by Shaun Glass Tom Schofield Tim King and Adam Zadel Its nitrogen-fixing abilities (which increases soil nitrogen) and use as animal feed greatly improved agricultural efficiency. (The nitrogen comes from the air, which is 78 percent molecular nitrogen. Nitrogen (ˈnaɪtɹəʤɪn is a Chemical element that has the symbol N and Atomic number 7 and Atomic weight 14 )

Alfalfa is widely grown throughout the world as forage for cattle, and is most often harvested as hay, but can also be made into silage, grazed, or fed as greenchop. Cattle, colloquially referred to as cows, are domesticated Ungulates a member of the Subfamily Bovinae of the family Hay is a generic term for grass or Legumes that have been cut dried and stored for use as animal feed, particularly for grazing animals like For the Christian Alternative band please see Silage (band Silage is fermented, high-moisture Fodder that can Alfalfa has the highest feeding value of all common hay crops, being used less frequently as pasture. Pasture is land with Herbaceous vegetation cover used for grazing of Ungulate Livestock as part of a Farm or Ranch. When grown on soils where it is well-adapted, alfalfa is the highest yielding forage plant.

Alfalfa is one of the most important legumes used in agriculture. A legume is a Plant in the family Fabaceae (or Leguminosae or a Fruit of these specific plants The US is the largest alfalfa producer in the world, but considerable acreage is found in Argentina (primarily grazed), Australia, South Africa, and the Middle East. Known as Kuthirai Masal in Tamil, alfalfa is mostly grown in the Coimbatore district of Tamil Nadu, southern India. Tamil Nadu ( Tamil:, Country of the Tamils, t̪ɐmɨɻ n̪aːɽɯ is one of the 28 states of India.

The leading alfalfa growing states (within the U.S.A.) are California, South Dakota, and Wisconsin. The United States of America —commonly referred to as the California ( is a US state on the West Coast of the United States, along the Pacific Ocean. South Dakota ( is a state located in the Midwestern region of the United States of America. Wisconsin ( or wɪˈskɑnsɨn (French Ouisconsin) is one of the fifty United States of America, located in the north central part of the United States The upper Midwestern states account for about 50% of US production, the Northeastern states 10%, the Western states 40% and the Southeastern states almost none. Alfalfa has a wide range of adaptation and can be grown from very cold northern plains to high mountain valleys, from rich temperate agricultural regions to Mediterranean climates and searing hot deserts.

Its primary use is as feed for dairy cattle, and secondarily for beef cattle, horses, sheep, and goats. Humans also eat alfalfa sprouts, in salads and sandwiches, for example. Sprouting is the practice of soaking draining and then rinsing seeds at regular intervals until they Germinate, or sprout Tender shoots are eaten in some places as a leaf vegetable. Shoots are new plant growth they can include stems, flowering stems with flower buds leaves Leaf vegetables, also called potherbs, greens, or leafy greens, are plant leaves eaten as a Vegetable, sometimes accompanied Human consumption of fresh mature plant parts is rare and limited primarily by alfalfa's high fiber content. Dehydrated alfalfa leaf is commercially available as a dietary supplement in several forms, such as tablets, powders and tea. Alfalfa is believed by some to be a galactagogue, a substance that induces lactation. A galactagogue is a substance that induces Lactation. The most commonly cited galactagogues are herbal Fenugreek, Brewer's yeast, blessed thistle Lactation describes the secretion of Milk from the Mammary glands the process of providing that milk to the young and the period of time that a Mother

Contents 1 Culture 2 Harvesting 3 Varieties 4 Phytoestrogens in alfalfa 5 Medical Uses 5.1 Traditional Uses 5.2 Modern Use 6 Trivia 7 References 8 External links

Culture

Alfalfa can be sown in spring or fall, and does best on well-drained soils with a neutral pH of 6. pH is the measure of the acidity or alkalinity of a Solution. 8 – 7. 5. Alfalfa requires a great deal of potash. Potash (or carbonate of potash) is an impure form of Potassium carbonate ( K 2 CO3) Alfalfa is moderately sensitive to salt levels in both the soil and irrigation water, although it continues to be grown in the arid southwest, where salinity is an emerging issue. Soils low in fertility should be fertilized with manure or a chemical fertilizer, but correction of pH is particularly important. Manure is Organic matter used as Organic fertilizer in Agriculture. Usually a seeding rate of 13 – 20 kg/hectare (12 – 25 lb/acre) is recommended, with differences based upon region, soil type, and seeding method. A nurse crop is sometimes used, particularly for spring plantings, to reduce weed problems. In Agriculture, a nurse crop is an annual crop used to assist in establishment of a perennial crop Herbicides are sometimes used instead, particularly in Western production. A herbicide is used to kill unwanted Plants Selective herbicides kill specific targets while leaving the desired Crop relatively unharmed

In most climates, alfalfa is cut three to four times a year but is harvested up to 12 times per year in Arizona and Southern California. Total yields are typically around 8 tonnes per hectare (4 short tons per acre) but yields have been recorded up to 20 t/ha (16 short tons per acre). Yields vary with region, weather, and the crop's stage of maturity when cut. Later cuttings improve yield but reduce nutritional content.

Alfalfa is considered an 'insectary' due to the large number of insects it attracts. The Alfalfa Leafcutter Bee ( Megachile rotundata) is a European species of bee that has been cultured in the United States for Pollination A pollinator is the biotic agent ( vector) that moves Pollen from the male Anthers of a Flower to the female stigma of a flower to accomplish Some pests such as Alfalfa weevil, aphids, armyworms, and the potato leafhopper can reduce alfalfa yields dramatically, particularly with the second cutting when weather is warmest. Leafhopper is a common name applied to any species from the family Cicadellidae. Chemical controls are sometimes used to prevent this. Alfalfa is also susceptible to root rots including phytophora, rhizoctonia, and Texas Root Rot. Texas root rot (also known as cotton root rot) is a Pathogen fairly common in Mexico and the southwestern United States that causes sudden

Alfalfa seed production requires the presence of pollinators when the fields of alfalfa are in bloom. A pollinator is the biotic agent ( vector) that moves Pollen from the male Anthers of a Flower to the female stigma of a flower to accomplish Alfalfa pollination is somewhat problematic, however, because the pollen-carrying keel of the flower trips and strikes pollinating bees on the head to help transfer the pollen to the foraging bee. Pollination in angiosperms and Gymnosperms is the process that transfers pollen grains, which contain the male Gametes (sperm to where the female A flower, also known as a bloom or Blossom, is the reproductive structure found in Flowering plants (plants of the division Magnoliophyta, also Pollen is a fine to coarse powder consisting of microgametophytes ( pollen grains) which produce the male Gametes (sperm cells of Bees are flying Insects closely related to Wasps and Ants Bees are a Monophyletic lineage within the superfamily Apoidea Western honey bees do not like being struck in the head repeatedly and learn to defeat this action by drawing nectar from the side of the flower. Nectar robbing refers to an Insect (or other visitor such as a bird visiting a Flowering plant and removing Nectar without pollinating the Nectar is a Sugar -rich liquid produced by plants It is produced either by the Flowers in which it attracts pollinating animals or by extrafloral The bees thus collect the nectar but carry no pollen and so do not pollenate the next flower they visit. ^[2] Because older, experienced bees don't pollinate alfalfa well, most pollination is accomplished by young bees that have not yet learned the trick of robbing the flower without tripping the head-knocking keel. When western honey bees are used to pollinate alfalfa, the beekeeper stocks the field at a very high rate to maximize the number of young bees. Saturation pollination is a pollination technique for agricultural crops in areas dominated by non-crop plant species that are preferred by pollinators

Today the alfalfa leafcutter bee is increasingly used to circumvent this problem. The Alfalfa Leafcutter Bee ( Megachile rotundata) is a European species of bee that has been cultured in the United States for Pollination As a solitary but gregarious bee species, it does not build colonies or store honey, but is a very efficient pollinator of alfalfa flowers. Nesting is in individual tunnels in wooden or plastic material, supplied by the alfalfa seed growers. ^[2] The leafcutter bees are used in the Pacific Northwest, while western honeybees dominate in California alfalfa seed production.

A smaller amount of alfalfa produced for seed is pollinated by the alkali bee, mostly in the northwestern USA. It is cultured in special beds near the fields. These bees also have their own problems. They are not portable like honey bees; and when fields are planted in new areas, the bees take several seasons to build up. ^[2] Honey bees are still trucked to many of the fields at bloom time.

Main article: List of alfalfa diseases

Harvesting

When alfalfa is to be used as hay, it is usually cut and baled. This article is a list of diseases of Alfalfa ( Medicago sativa) Hay is a generic term for grass or Legumes that have been cut dried and stored for use as animal feed, particularly for grazing animals like Loose haystacks are still used in some areas, but bales are easier to transport and store. Ideally, the hay is cut just as the field is beginning to flower. When using farm equipment rather than hand-harvesting, a swather cuts the alfalfa and arranges it in windrows. A swather is a Farm implement that cuts Hay or small grain crops and forms them into a Windrow. A windrow is a row of cut (mowed Hay or small grain crop It is allowed to dry before being baled combined or rolled In areas where the alfalfa does not immediately dry out on its own, a machine know as a mower-conditioner is used to cut the hay. The mower-conditioner has a set of rollers or flails that crimp and break the stems as they pass through the mower, making the alfalfa dry faster. After the alfalfa has dried, a tractor pulling a baler collects the hay into bales. A tractor is a Vehicle specifically designed to deliver a high Tractive effort at slow speeds for the purposes of hauling a trailer or machinery used This article describes the farm machinery For the municipality in Aurora, Philippines, see Baler Aurora.

There are several types of bales commonly used for alfalfa. For small animals and individual horses, the alfalfa is baled into small "square" bales — actually rectangular, and typically about 40 x 45 x 100 cm (14 in x 18 in x 38 in). Small square bales weigh from 25 – 30 kg (50 – 70 pounds) depending on moisture, and can be easily hand separated into "flakes". Cattle ranches use large round bales, typically 1. 4 to 1. 8 m (4 to 6 feet) in diameter and weighing from 500 to 1,000 kg. These bales can be placed in stable stacks or in large feeders for herds of horses, or unrolled on the ground for large herds of cattle. The horse ( Equus caballus) is a hoofed ( Ungulate) Mammal, one of eight living species of the family Equidae. Cattle, colloquially referred to as cows, are domesticated Ungulates a member of the Subfamily Bovinae of the family The bales can be loaded and stacked with a tractor using a spike, known as a bale spear, that pierces the center of the bale. A tractor is a Vehicle specifically designed to deliver a high Tractive effort at slow speeds for the purposes of hauling a trailer or machinery used Or they can be handled with a grapple (claw) on the tractor's front-end loader. A tractor is a Vehicle specifically designed to deliver a high Tractive effort at slow speeds for the purposes of hauling a trailer or machinery used A loader is a type of construction equipment (engineering vehicle machinery that is primarily used to "load" material (asphalt demolition debris A more recent innovation is large "square" bales, roughly the same proportions as the small squares, but much larger. The bale size was set so that stacks would fit perfectly on a large flatbed truck. These are more common in western states.

When used as feed for dairy cattle alfalfa is often made into haylage by a process known as ensiling. For the Christian Alternative band please see Silage (band Silage is fermented, high-moisture Fodder that can Ensilage or silaging is the process of preserving green food for Livestock in an undried condition in airtight conditions either in a Storage silo (an Rather than drying it to make dry hay, the alfalfa is chopped finely and fermented in silos, trenches, or bags, anywhere where the oxygen supply can be limited to promote fermentation (food)|ferment]]. Fermenting the alfalfa allows it to retain high nutrient levels similar to those of fresh forage, and is also more palatable to dairy cattle than dry hay.

Varieties

Considerable research and development has been done with this important plant. Older cultivars such as 'Vernal' have been the standard for years, but many better public and private varieties are now available and better adapted to particular climates. A cultivar is a cultivated Plant that has been selected and given a unique name because of its decorative or useful characteristics it is usually distinct from similar Private companies release many new varieties each year in the US.

Most varieties go dormant in the fall, with reduced growth in response to low temperatures and shorter days. 'Non-dormant' varieties that grow through the winter are planted in long-seasoned environments such as Mexico, Arizona, and Southern California, whereas 'dormant' varieties are planted in the Upper Midwest, Canada, and the Northeast. 'Non-dormant' varieties can be higher yielding, but they are susceptible to winter-kill in cold climates and have poorer persistence.

Most alfalfa cultivars contain genetic material from Sickle Medick (M. falcata), a wild variety of alfalfa that naturally hybridizes with M. Medicago falcata is a plant species of the genus Medicago. It is native to the Mediterranean basin but is found throughout the world sativa to produce Sand Lucerne (M. sativa ssp. varia). This species may bear either the purple flowers of alfalfa or the yellow of sickle medick, and is so called for its ready growth in sandy soil.

Most of the improvements in alfalfa over the last decades have consisted of better disease resistance on poorly drained soils in wet years, better ability to overwinter in cold climates, and the production of more leaves. Multileaf alfalfa varieties have more than three leaflets per leaf, giving them greater nutritional content by weight because there is more leafy matter for the same amount of stem.

Modern alfalfa varieties have probably a wider range of insect, disease, and nematode resistance than many other agricultural species. The North American Alfalfa Improvement Conference records new varieties and encourages communication between breeders.

Roundup Ready alfalfa is a genetically modified variety, patented by Monsanto, that is resistant to Monsanto's glyphosate herbicide Roundup. Roundup is the brand name of a systemic broad-spectrum Herbicide produced by the U Genetic engineering, Recombinant DNA technology, genetic modification/manipulation (GM and gene splicing are terms that apply to the direct The Monsanto Company ( is a multinational Agricultural biotechnology Corporation. Glyphosate (N-(phosphonomethyl glycine is a non-selective Systemic Herbicide, absorbed through the leaves injected into the bole or applied to the stump of Roundup is the brand name of a systemic broad-spectrum Herbicide produced by the U Although most broadleaf plants, including ordinary alfalfa, are sensitive to Roundup, growers can spray fields of Roundup Ready alfalfa with Roundup, and so kill the weeds without harming the alfalfa crop. Roundup Ready alfalfa was sold in the United States from 2005-2007 and more than 300,000 acres (1,200 km²) were planted with it, out of 21 million acres. However, in May 2007, the California Northern District Court issued an injunction order prohibiting farmers from planting Roundup Ready alfalfa until the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) completed a study on the genetically engineered crop's likely environmental impact. In response, the USDA put a hold on any further planting of Roundup Ready alfalfa. The key issues of the lawsuit were the possibility that Roundup Resistance could be transmitted to other plants, including both other crops and weeds, making major pest species resistant to an important herbicide, Roundup.

Phytoestrogens in alfalfa

Alfalfa, like other leguminous crops, is a known source of phytoestrogens. ^[3] Grazing on alfalfa has been suspected as a cause of reduced fertility in sheep. Fertility is the natural capability of giving life As a measure "Fertility Rate" is the number of children born per couple person or population

Medical Uses

Alfalfa has been used as an herbal medicine for over 1,500 years. Herbalism is a traditional Medicinal or Folk medicine practice based on the use of Plants and Plant extracts Herbalism is also known as A year (from Old English gēr) is the time between two recurrences of an event related to the Orbit of the Earth around the Sun Alfalfa is high in protein, calcium, plus other minerals, vitamin A, vitamins in the B group, vitamin C, vitamin D, vitamin E, and vitamin K. Proteins are large Organic compounds made of Amino acids arranged in a linear chain and joined together by Peptide bonds between the Carboxyl Calcium (ˈkælsiəm is the Chemical element with the symbol Ca and Atomic number 20 A mineral is a naturally occurring substance formed through geological processes that has a characteristic chemical composition a highly ordered atomic structure and specific Vitamin A refers to a family of similarly shaped molecules the Retinoids. The B vitamins are eight water-soluble Vitamins that play important roles in cell Metabolism. Vitamin C or L-ascorbate is an Essential nutrient for a large number of higher primate species a small number of other Mammalian Vitamin D is a group of fat-soluble Prohormones, the two major forms of which are vitamin D2 (or Ergocalciferol) and vitamin D3 (or See also Tocopherol, Tocotrienol Vitamin E is the collective name for a set of 8 related Tocopherols and Tocotrienols which are fat-soluble Vitamin K (K from "Koagulations-Vitamin" in German Danish Swedish and Norwegian denotes a group of Lipophilic, Hydrophobic Vitamins that

Traditional Uses

In early Chinese medicines, physicians used young alfalfa leaves to treat disorders related to the digestive tract and the kidneys. China ( Wade-Giles ( Mandarin) Chung¹kuo² is a cultural region, an ancient Civilization, and depending on perspective a National Medicine is the art and science of healing It encompasses a range of Health care practices evolved to maintain and restore Human Health by the The kidneys are complicated organs that have numerous biological roles In India, ayurvedic physicians used the leaves for treating poor digestion. India, officially the Republic of India (भारत गणराज्य inc-Latn Bhārat Gaṇarājya; see also other Indian languages) is a country Digestion is the breaking down of chemicals in the body into a form that can be absorbed They made a cooling poultice from the seeds for boils. A poultice, also called cataplasm, is a soft moist mass often heated and medicated that is spread on cloth over the skin to treat an aching inflamed, or Painful A seed (in some plants referred to as a kernel) is a small embryonic Plant enclosed in a covering called the seed coat usually with some stored Boil or furuncle is a skin disease caused by the infection of Hair follicles resulting in the localized accumulation of Pus and dead tissue At the time, alfalfa was also believed to be helpful towards people suffering from arthritis and water retention. Arthritis (from Greek arthro-, joint + -itis, inflammation plural arthritides is a group of conditions involving damage to the Joints of the body

Modern Use

It is majorly used in homeopathic medicines worldwide. Today, alfalfa is suggested for treating anemia, diabetes, to extend appetite and contribute towards weight gain, as a diuretic for increased urination, for indigestion and bladder disorders, alfalfa can also be used as an estrogen replacement in order to increase breast milk and to mitigate premenstrual syndrome, a dietary supplement, and to lower blood cholestrol levels. Anemia ( AmE) or anæmia/anaemia ( BrE) (from the Ancient Greek grc-Latn anaîmia, meaning “without blood” is defined as a qualitative Diabetes mellitus (ˌdaɪəˈbiːtiːz or /ˌdaɪəˈbiːtəs/ /məˈlaɪtəs/ or /ˈmɛlətəs/ often referred to simply as diabetes ( Ancient Greek: grc In the Physical sciences weight is a Measurement of the gravitational Force acting on an object A diuretic is any Drug that elevates the rate of urination ( Diuresis) Urination, also known as micturition, voiding, and more rarely emiction, is the process of disposing Urine from the Urinary bladder Dyspepsia (from the Greek "δυς-" (Dys- and "πέψη" (Pepse known in plain English as indigestion, meaning hard In Anatomy, the urinary bladder is a hollow muscular, and distensible (or elastic organ that sits on the Pelvic floor in Mammals It is the Estrogens (US otherwise oestrogens or œstrogens) are a group of Steroid compounds named for their importance in the Estrous cycle, Breast milk refers to the Milk produced by a mother to feed her baby Premenstrual syndrome ( PMS) (sometimes referred to as PMT or Premenstrual Tension) is a collection of physical psychological and emotional symptoms ^[4]

Trivia

• In Of Mice and Men, the popular novella authored by John Steinbeck, Lenny becomes increasingly obsessed with growing Alfalfa for his rabbits for if he ever gets a farm with George. Of Mice and Men is a Novella written by Nobel Prize -winning author John Steinbeck. A novella is a written, Fictional Prose Narrative longer than a Novelette but shorter than a Novel. John Steinbeck III (February 27 1902—December 20 1968 was one of the best-known and most widely read American writers of the 20th century

• In Catch-22 by Joseph Heller, Major Major Major Major's father receives a government subsidy for every strip of ground he does not grow alfalfa on. Catch-22 is a satirical, historical Novel by the American author Joseph Heller, first published in 1961 Joseph Heller (May 1 1923 – December 12 1999 was an American Satirical novelist Short story writer and playwright Major Major Major Major is a fictional character in Joseph Heller 's classic novel Catch-22. He uses this money to buy more land to not grow alfalfa on.

References

External links

• Photos of moving honeybees to alfalfa
• Use of the Alfalfa Leafcutter Bee Growing in California
• Problems with genetically modified Alfalfa
• University of Wisconsin Forage Research and Extension
• University of California Alfalfa Workgroup
• International Legume Database & Information Services

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