Photo: University of Minnesota By Jackie Estrem, UMN Extension Educator- Cropping Systems, Stearns, Benton, Morrison, & Sherburne Counties, and Taylor Herbert, UMN Extension Educator- Crops, Wright, McLeod, & Meeker Counties With warm, sunny days in the forecast, many growers are beginning to cut. For the southern stretch of Alfalfa Scissor Cut territory, harvest is well underway. In the northern reaches, ambitious growers have begun cutting, and given warm conditions, hopefully more fields will reach their respective optimum harvest timing soon. Overall within the scissor cut project, 6 farms have cut, and a majority of the remaining farms have RFV’s below 200. Hay typically loses between 15 and 25 RFV points during harvest and storage. For a fed RFV of 150 or higher, forage should be cut above 165-175 RFV. Please remember to take a moment to fill out the alfalfa pest needs assessment survey at z.umn.edu/alfalfapestsurvey . This online survey lets you voice what issues you are...
