Fertility Management of Winter Wheat Grown after Alfalfa
Forage hay crops remove large amounts of nutrients from the soil, because of this, levels of available phosphorous, potassium and sulfur are often marginal for crops following forages.
IPNI-1997-CAN-MB10
01 Mar 1999
1998 Annual Interpretive Summary
Fertility Management of Winter Wheat Grown after Alfalfa, 1998
Winter wheat is often planted into no-till alfalfa stubble. Its ability to effectively capture over-winter moisture helps offset the negative impact alfalfa can have on soil moisture. Alfalfa depletes the soil of moisture and plant nutrients, particularly P and K. However, many believe it contributes substantial N to subsequent crops.
This project is investigating the N requirements of winter wheat following alfalfa. Because winter wheat is often susceptible to Cl deficiency, the effects of Cl fertilization are also being evaluated. Initial results confirmed the beliefs that additional N was not required. Similarly, Cl fertilization did not increase yields in the first year of the study in 1997. The 1998 winter wheat crop did respond to N, but due to a mix-up, the Cl treatments were not applied. The study will be repeated for another year to generate additional Cl data. MB-10