Alfalfa Variety Performance at Maricopa, 1999-2000 M. J. Ottman, S. E. Smith, D. M. Fendenheim, and M.T. Rogers Introduction Alfalfa varieties are being introduced into the marketplace at a record-setting pace. The number of varieties available for low-elevation desert areas in Arizona in the non-dormant and very non-dormant class is about 44. New varieties are introduced each year and unbiased yield comparisons are helpful to the grower to base the decision of whether or not to sow a new variety. The study reported here is part of the on-going effort to evaluate alfalfa variety performance in Arizona. Procedure Alfalfa varieties and experimentals (potential varieties being evaluated for future release) were compared in a field study on a Casa Grande sandy loam soil on Field 107 at the Maricopa Agricultural Center near Maricopa, Arizona. The experimental design was a randomized complete block with four replications and 46 entries. Seed was sown on October 29, 1998 into five rows spaced 6 inches apart with a single row hand planter at a rate of 20 pounds of seed per acre. The plots were 3 ft. wide by 12 ft. long. Irrigation water was applied the same day as planting to germinate the seed. Irrigations of about 4 to 6 inches each were applied using the border flood method at an interval of twice per cutting. The plots were cut with a sickle-bar mower, the forage was raked, placed on a tarp, and weighed. The cutting interval at the peak of the season was every 4 weeks. The plots were subjected to insect pressure from Egyptian alfalfa weevil, various aphids, alfalfa caterpillar, beet armyworm, and whitefly, but damage from these pests was not severe enough to warrant chemical control. No herbicides or fertilizers were applied. The data was analyzed using nearest neighbor analysis and least-squares means are reported. Least-squares means were calculated for the annual totals and are not identical to the sum of the least-squares means of the individual harvests. Discussion Forage yields for the varieties tested are presented in Table 1. No general conclusions will be made from this study, which is part of an ongoing effort to evaluate alfalfa variety performance in Arizona. This information is intended to help growers decide whether or not to plant a new variety on a limited acreage on commercial farms. A new variety should be planted on a larger acreage only after the variety has been evaluated on a smaller acreage under farm-specific conditions. Acknowledgments Research on alfalfa at the University of Arizona is supported by ABI Alfalfa, Asgrow, Cal/West Seeds, Dairyland Research International, Forage Genetics, Kamprath Seed Co., MBS Incorporated, S & W Seed, and W-L Research. ___________________________________ This is a part of the University of Arizona College of Agriculture 2001 Forage and Grain Report, index at: http://ag.arizona.edu/pubs/crops/az1254/ 1 Table 1. Forage yield for alfalfa varieties and experimentals at Maricopa, AZ in 1999. 1999 Variety Source 15-Apr 5-May 17-Jun 22-Jul 26-Aug 30-Sep 2-Dec Total ----------------------------------- Forage yield (lbs/plot) -----------------------------------9L600 Aztec Beacon Coronado CUF-101 CW 59128 CW 5965 CW 5991 CW 69117 CW 69120 DK 180ML DK 191 Magna 901 DS 881 DS 882 FG98-1000 Lew Magna 8 Maricopa Mecca III Mesa SW 8730 SW 8816 SW 8829 SW 9500 SW 9601 SW 9720 SW 9800 UC-2524 UC-2598 UN 1718 WL 525HQ WL 612 WL 711WF WL 92296 WL C252 WL C345 XP3666 ZG 9891 ZS 9592 ZS 9890 ZX 9393 ZX 9699 ZX 9701 ZX 9791 ZX 9894 AVERAGE CV (%) LSD (5%) Forage Genetics Asgrow Forage Genetics Forage Genetics Univ. CA Cal/West Cal/West Cal/West Cal/West Cal/West Kamprath Kamprath Dairyland Dairyland Dairyland Forage Genetics Univ. AZ Dairyland MBS Inc. MBS Inc. MBS Inc. S&W Seed S&W Seed S&W Seed S&W Seed S&W Seed S&W Seed S&W Seed Univ. CA Univ. CA Forage Genetics W-L Research W-L Research W-L Research W-L Research W-L Research W-L Research Asgrow ABI Alfalfa ABI Alfalfa ABI Alfalfa ABI Alfalfa ABI Alfalfa ABI Alfalfa ABI Alfalfa ABI Alfalfa 9.6 9.1 9.4 9.2 8.7 8.8 8.8 8.3 8.4 9.0 8.9 9.8 8.2 9.1 10.1 8.7 9.1 9.4 8.9 8.8 9.0 9.1 8.6 8.9 8.9 8.5 9.1 8.0 9.2 9.4 9.6 9.2 9.0 8.2 8.6 8.4 9.3 9.4 9.2 8.9 9.2 8.5 8.5 9.0 9.2 8.8 9.0 9.1 9.0 8.8 9.0 9.2 9.1 9.0 8.8 8.9 9.3 9.1 9.7 9.0 9.4 9.8 8.9 8.9 9.0 9.1 9.2 9.2 9.2 9.0 8.6 8.6 8.3 9.4 8.5 8.9 8.9 9.9 9.3 9.0 8.5 8.9 9.3 8.9 9.8 9.5 9.0 8.8 8.7 9.2 9.4 9.4 8.5 9.1 14.7 14.3 14.3 14.2 14.2 14.3 14.1 13.9 14.0 14.1 13.5 14.9 14.3 14.1 14.3 14.0 14.2 14.7 14.4 14.2 13.5 13.9 14.2 13.5 14.1 13.7 14.6 13.8 14.3 14.0 14.3 14.3 14.3 14.4 13.7 14.1 13.9 14.1 14.0 14.2 13.8 14.7 13.5 14.3 14.2 13.6 14.1 14.2 13.4 13.5 13.7 13.7 13.5 13.8 13.8 13.4 14.1 13.0 14.0 13.6 13.7 12.8 13.9 14.0 13.8 14.0 14.3 13.3 13.6 12.8 13.6 14.1 12.9 13.8 13.8 14.3 13.7 13.3 14.3 13.5 13.6 13.3 13.7 13.3 13.5 13.1 13.8 13.5 13.4 12.7 13.0 13.4 12.9 13.6 12.1 11.7 11.7 11.6 12.2 12.3 12.2 11.7 11.8 11.3 9.9 11.0 11.4 11.3 9.7 12.4 12.1 11.9 12.1 12.1 11.1 11.3 11.9 11.3 11.9 12.1 12.7 12.9 12.4 11.7 10.9 11.5 12.0 12.4 12.2 11.9 11.5 9.5 10.4 11.6 11.2 12.6 10.6 11.4 11.7 11.8 11.6 9.6 8.4 9.0 8.5 8.3 9.3 8.7 8.5 8.8 8.8 8.3 8.4 8.5 8.4 7.7 8.9 9.1 8.7 8.4 9.0 8.0 8.4 8.7 8.6 8.8 8.7 8.5 9.3 9.2 8.7 8.8 8.2 9.1 9.7 9.0 8.7 8.4 7.0 7.9 8.6 8.8 9.0 7.5 8.6 8.4 8.9 8.6 9.8 7.7 8.8 8.0 7.6 9.0 7.8 7.6 7.8 7.8 7.2 7.3 7.3 7.3 6.5 8.9 8.5 7.7 7.2 7.9 6.4 7.5 7.7 7.3 8.3 8.4 8.2 9.0 8.8 8.5 7.4 7.5 8.2 9.1 8.1 7.7 7.8 5.7 6.6 8.0 7.5 8.6 6.9 7.8 7.5 8.5 7.8 79.6 75.0 75.9 74.7 75.3 76.9 74.6 72.5 73.8 74.6 69.7 74.0 75.2 73.0 69.9 76.3 76.5 75.7 74.1 75.3 69.4 72.9 73.4 71.2 75.6 72.9 77.1 76.5 77.3 75.0 73.2 74.1 74.8 76.2 73.5 73.3 73.6 68.0 70.4 74.4 73.2 76.0 69.3 72.2 73.9 73.6 74.0 6.2 0.8 6.9 0.6 4.3 0.7 5.0 1.0 4.5 0.9 6.0 0.7 6.6 0.7 6.0 5.3 2 Table 1(cont’d). Forage yield for alfalfa varieties and experimentals at Maricopa, AZ in 2000. 2000 1999-00 Variety Source 2-Mar 13-Apr 11-May 6-Jun 13-Jul 17-Aug 28-Sep 30-Nov Total Total ------------------------------- Forage yield (lbs/plot) ------------------------------- % CUF 9L600 Aztec Beacon Coronado CUF-101 CW 59128 CW 5965 CW 5991 CW 69117 CW 69120 DK 180ML DK 191 Magna 901 DS 881 DS 882 FG98-1000 Lew Magna 8 Maricopa Mecca III Mesa SW 8730 SW 8816 SW 8829 SW 9500 SW 9601 SW 9720 SW 9800 UC-2524 UC-2598 UN 1718 WL 525HQ WL 612 WL 711WF WL 92296 WL C252 WL C345 XP3666 ZG 9891 ZS 9592 ZS 9890 ZX 9393 ZX 9699 ZX 9701 ZX 9791 ZX 9894 AVERAGE CV (%) LSD (5%) Forage Genetics Asgrow Forage Genetics Forage Genetics Univ. CA Cal/West Cal/West Cal/West Cal/West Cal/West Kamprath Kamprath Dairyland Dairyland Dairyland Forage Genetics Univ. AZ Dairyland MBS Inc. MBS Inc. MBS Inc. S&W Seed S&W Seed S&W Seed S&W Seed S&W Seed S&W Seed S&W Seed Univ. CA Univ. CA Forage Genetics W-L Research W-L Research W-L Research W-L Research W-L Research W-L Research Asgrow ABI Alfalfa ABI Alfalfa ABI Alfalfa ABI Alfalfa ABI Alfalfa ABI Alfalfa ABI Alfalfa ABI Alfalfa 12.5 10.1 11.0 10.2 11.0 11.0 9.6 10.2 10.4 10.3 8.8 10.1 9.8 8.9 8.7 11.5 12.4 10.8 9.4 10.8 8.3 9.1 10.4 9.6 10.7 11.0 10.8 11.1 11.8 11.1 9.6 10.0 11.7 12.7 10.5 10.3 10.8 6.8 8.8 11.0 11.1 12.0 8.9 10.0 9.9 11.8 10.4 15.3 13.4 13.8 13.9 13.4 14.0 13.1 13.4 13.8 13.4 13.2 13.0 13.2 12.2 12.4 14.5 14.7 14.0 12.6 13.5 12.1 13.4 13.2 12.4 13.4 14.1 13.9 14.7 14.6 13.4 13.0 13.1 14.1 15.2 13.7 13.1 13.2 11.4 12.2 14.1 13.6 14.7 12.1 13.2 13.3 14.1 13.5 19.1 16.4 17.2 16.5 16.5 17.8 16.3 16.5 16.8 16.8 16.5 16.2 15.5 15.0 14.0 17.8 17.8 18.0 15.4 16.8 14.1 15.8 16.0 16.0 17.1 17.1 17.3 17.5 17.7 15.3 15.5 16.5 16.7 19.6 16.8 16.5 16.2 13.7 14.8 17.9 17.0 18.6 13.9 16.9 16.9 16.9 16.5 18.8 16.5 17.4 16.8 17.0 18.3 17.0 16.4 16.8 16.7 15.4 15.9 16.6 15.7 13.9 18.4 18.3 18.4 15.8 17.2 14.5 15.7 17.3 15.7 16.9 17.5 18.4 18.3 18.2 15.7 15.7 16.8 16.4 20.4 17.2 16.4 16.7 12.9 15.4 17.7 17.3 17.6 14.5 16.3 17.0 17.8 16.8 14.6 13.5 14.5 14.1 13.8 15.1 14.5 14.3 13.9 14.5 12.8 13.4 13.9 13.2 11.8 15.1 14.1 14.6 13.0 15.5 12.4 13.8 14.7 14.3 14.3 14.3 14.7 15.4 14.0 12.9 13.6 14.5 14.6 16.2 14.6 13.5 13.7 10.7 12.2 14.3 14.1 14.4 11.8 14.1 13.5 14.3 13.9 10.6 10.6 11.0 10.3 10.1 11.9 11.7 10.8 11.2 10.7 8.6 9.7 10.7 9.7 8.5 11.2 11.0 10.7 10.7 11.4 9.5 9.4 11.6 10.6 10.8 11.8 11.8 12.2 10.5 10.1 10.4 10.7 10.7 12.3 11.9 11.4 10.7 7.4 8.5 10.2 9.7 11.1 8.8 10.0 10.1 10.8 10.5 7.0 6.7 7.2 6.9 6.5 7.6 7.5 7.2 6.9 6.8 9.3 6.1 6.9 6.5 6.0 7.2 7.2 6.9 6.4 7.5 6.2 6.3 7.7 6.8 7.1 7.6 7.1 8.1 7.1 7.0 6.3 6.5 7.3 8.8 7.4 6.9 6.9 4.8 5.7 6.1 6.0 7.3 5.9 6.7 6.7 6.7 6.9 5.8 5.6 5.7 5.6 5.2 5.9 5.6 5.5 5.5 5.4 4.8 5.2 5.2 5.3 5.0 5.7 5.5 5.2 4.8 5.3 4.8 5.2 5.7 5.0 5.3 5.4 5.6 6.0 5.7 5.5 4.9 4.9 5.3 6.8 5.3 5.2 5.4 4.1 4.7 4.9 4.7 5.7 4.9 5.2 5.7 5.4 5.3 103.8 92.6 97.4 93.9 93.5 102.3 95.3 94.1 95.1 94.3 88.7 89.3 91.5 85.8 80.1 101.4 101.0 98.8 88.5 97.2 81.4 88.9 96.4 90.3 95.9 99.1 100.2 103.7 99.3 90.4 88.9 93.0 95.4 112.4 97.5 93.4 93.6 71.7 81.9 96.5 93.6 101.6 80.3 92.3 93.3 98.3 93.7 108 99 102 99 100 106 100 97 99 99 93 95 96 93 87 105 105 103 95 101 88 95 99 94 102 101 105 107 103 97 94 98 100 112 101 97 98 80 90 101 98 105 88 98 98 101 99 6.5 1.0 6.3 1.2 7.2 1.7 8.4 2.0 6.6 1.3 7.0 1.0 6.9 0.7 5.6 0.4 5.5 7.9 5.4 7.5 3