Yuma County Office
2200 W. 28^th Street, Ste. 102
Yuma, AZ 85364
(928) 726-3904
(928) 726-8472 FAX

Production Update:

Stand Replacement: The decision to replace alfalfa stands is based on stand establishment costs, opportunities in other crops, hay price, and yield of the alfalfa stand in question. Historical yields for the farm can provide a good idea whether or not a stand should be replaced. A stand should be replaced if plant density is less than 4 to 6 plants per square foot or if the number of stems is less than 40 per square foot. Optimum plant density can be considerably higher if the plants are not distributed uniformly. Renovating alfalfa stands by overseeding with alfalfa is rarely effective except in relatively large bare sports. Delay seeding alfalfa into a field previously in alfalfa by 2 to 4 weeks to avoid autotoxicity.

Insect Management: Sowbugs (picture) are crustaceans more closely related to crayfish than insects. Commonly encountered in fields with an abundance of decomposing plant residue from a previous crop. They are oval in shape, appear to be many segmented, and are up to 0.5 inch long. Sowbugs are pests of seedling stands and rarely, if ever, cause problems in established stands. In newly planted fields, sowbugs can destroy seedlings by clipping them off. Control sowbugs using an insecticide bait spread evenly over the field or by using a broad spectrum insecticide spray.

Weed Control: Now is the time to apply preemergence herbicides for winter annual weed control. Annual bluegrass, for instance, can germinate in October and is controlled prior to germination with Trifluralin granules but is difficult to control once established. For more information about using herbicides on alfalfa read Alfalfa Weed Control in the Low Deserts of Arizona (2002), PDF file, 96 KB

10 Year Summary (Sept 23 - Oct 6, 1994-2003):

Full Disclaimers

Issued in furtherance of Cooperative Extension work, acts of May 8 and June 30, 1914, in cooperation with the U.S. Department of Agriculture, James A. Christenson, Director Cooperative Extension, College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, The University of Arizona.

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