Alfalfa - medicinal herb from the legume family.
Alfalfa is grown to feed animals for medicinal and gastronomic purposes.
How to sow alfalfa
Alfalfa is sown in early spring, when the earth is well-moistened so that the seeds do not die. More specific dates for sowing alfalfa depend on the climate of the area, usually the month of April.
The best option for planting consider the time before the frost - deep autumn, in this case, the seeds overwinter and bring sense in May.
On the suburban areas just scatter, the first time along the fan-shaped, the second across. Seeds are sown either separately or by combining with other leguminous plants.
Seed preparation for sowing
Alfalfa seeds have a hard shell, so they are ground with sand before sowing. Then the seeds need to soak for a day in the water, then ventilate so as not to stick together when used.
Often, summer residents have a question: how to pickle alfalfa seeds in order to protect them from fungi and other diseases. In agriculture, 80% wettable powder TMTD (pesticide) is used at the rate of 3-4 kg of the drug per 1 ton of seeds.
It is undesirable to pickle the damaged seeds, it will not bring advantage. To increase the yield, seeds are treated with sodium molybdate simultaneously with the treatment.
Precursor selection
Alfalfa is capricious to previous cultures. It is best to sow it after legumes or row crops. Alfalfa itself is a good precursor for many agricultural plants.
Tillage and fertilization
It is important to know how to sow alfalfa, how to prepare the soil for sowing. To get a good harvest land is prepared in advance. In the fall, the plot is deeply plowed and thoroughly cleaned of weeds, then the plot needs to be injected.
When plowing, strong lumps of earth are broken, the soil is leveled and saturated with oxygen. Since alfalfa loves fertile soil, apply organic matter and mineral fertilizers.
Use manure (4-6 kg) and 40-50 g of superphosphate mixed with potash fertilizers in a 2: 1 ratio.
How to care for alfalfa
Growing alfalfa is not particularly difficult. Timely watering, fertilizing and protection from pests - all this together will give a good growth and crop yield.
Did you know? Alfalfa was brought to Europe in the fifth century. It was used as feed for horses.
Watering: all features
In the year of sowing the first watering is carried out when the seedlings grow to 15 cm in height. Watering should not be excessive. The second watering at the time of the appearance of the buds, about the second third of June.
The next watering after the first mowing in September. It is not difficult for a plant to get moisture and nutrients from the soil, so the green mass grows in arid conditions.
Alfalfa has ample precipitation, and excessive watering can lead to rare germination and weak cutting. When subsilver sowing alfalfa watered two or three times.
The first time a plant thrives; second watering during the earing period; the third during ripeness. If the site has shallow groundwater, watering is reduced.
Top dressing: is it needed?
The plant is well tolerated and mineral and organic fertilizers. In principle, to improve flowering and growth, fertilizers are applied before sowing or plowing. Plowing is good for plowing, and nitrogenous in early spring.
Weed control
During sprouting, alfalfa is susceptible to soil crusts. When planted sowing, the top layer of soil is overgrown with weeds that cover alfalfa with shade and suppress the crop. Therefore, it is necessary to mow grass-parasites and do it no later than the month of June.
Alfalfa harvesting for feed
Alfalfa is mown several times as animal feed. During the formation of alfalfa buds to feed the young, to hay during full bloom.
Two or three mowing is the best method: the grass loses useful properties with each mowing. The first time it is better to mow when the inflorescences appear, the second time when they bloom.
When mowing twice during the budding of nutrients and useful elements (carotene, protein) is much more than when mowing before the formation of buds.
The third mowing is carried out at the end of the summer - August. Later it is not recommended to mow, as the grass will not have time to restore the necessary minimum of nutrient reserves for wintering.
Important! Too low a mowing height will retard the growth of grass, and the number of buds will decrease. To avoid such losses, the cut must be at the level of eight centimeters.When harvesting alfalfa for hay for livestock feed, try not to overdry the grass in order to preserve the maximum amount of nutritious leaves.
Popular types of alfalfa
The number of alfalfa species - more than a hundred. In nature, you can find grass and shrubs of small size and species up to a meter high. When home grown, most often the plant goes to feed poultry, small and cattle.
Alfalfa is also useful for the human body, based on it make food additives and medicinal, as well as cosmetic preparations. Among the most popular types are:
Crescent alfalfa, or yellow. It grows up to a meter tall, blooms with bright yellow buds, which then form a curved shape resembling a sickle.
Choppy. A low annual plant, blooming, forms black pods with one seed.
Alfalfa blue or crop. It blooms with white or blue flowers, has a nap on the stems and leaves, and the fruit is in the form of a snail. It grows to a meter height.
Interesting! Crescent-shaped alfalfa is a honey plant, it is not let through by a domestic swarm or wild bees. The taste of honey is specific, and the smell is a bit like mint. Creamy honey, amber color.
Useful properties of alfalfa
Alfalfa contains many vitamins, almost all groups of trace elements, acids and other useful substances. All these substances are contained in an easily digestible form, which allows you to take the plant in food without additional processing.
Alfalfa can saturate the body with calcium, magnesium, potassium, fluorine and iron. It can help with anemia, with the regulation of hormonal levels in adolescents and postmenopausal women.
Alfalfa removes toxins from the body, lowers cholesterol. The use of alfalfa as a therapeutic drug helps with many different ailments:
- nervous disorders and stress;
- bruises and abrasions;
- joint disease;
- diabetes;
- urinary system problems;
- skin diseases;
- hemorrhoids;
- problems with the gastrointestinal tract;
- colds and runny nose;
- ophthalmic ailments;
- prostatitis and stuff.
Alfalfa is a herb often used in cosmetology. With its help, you can reduce puffiness, tighten and rejuvenate the skin, increase its elasticity.
Creams - masks based on alfalfa nourish and enrich the skin, scrubs clean the pores, tonics and creams moisturize and regenerate. Using hair care products will give them a healthy shine, saturate them with vitamins and reduce brittleness.
Alfalfa is also useful in cooking. It is used as a food additive, seasoned soups and salads with fresh grass, sprinkled with baked seeds.
When using alfalfa it is worth considering the contraindications. If you are allergic, you should test the effect of alfalfa on your body. Lubricate the skin on the crook of the elbow with a decoction or infusion of herbs, if there is no reaction, you can use it, but start with small doses.
It is forbidden to use alfalfa with autoimmune problems, with a poor rate of blood clotting, exacerbation of a stomach ulcer or gastritis. It is not recommended to give to children up to three years and pregnant women.
Attention! Do not collect grass for your own use in the fields - it may be sprayed with toxic chemicals.If you are an adherent of traditional medicine, such medicine as alfalfa is simply necessary at your summer cottage.
