English

Abstract

Alfalfa is an important legume forage with high nutritional quality. Harvest stage has an essential impact on alfalfa hay yield and nutritional quality. However, there is no clear indication about the effects of harvest time on the production performance, overwintering rate and economic benefits of alfalfa under drip irrigation. Therefore, this study was conducted to evaluate the impact of harvesting at bud stage (FB), 5% flowering stage (F5%), 15% flowering stage (F15%), and full bloom stage (F50%) on hay yield and quality, and economic benefits of two alfalfa cultivars i.e.,WL354HQ and Magnum551. Harvesting time had significant effect on hay yield of both cultivars (P ≤0.05) and the order of total dry matter yield (TDMY)was: F5%> F15%> F50%> FB. The alfalfa crude protein (CP)content of each cutting in alfalfa decreased gradually with the advance of the harvest stage, while the neutral detergent fiber (NDF)and acid detergent fiber (ADF)contents gradually increased. A comprehensive analysis of alfalfa dry matter yield(DMY), quality and overwintering rate was used to analyze the fuzzy similarity priority ratio, and the priority ranking was as follows: FB> F5%> F15%> F50%.Maximum economic benefits of both alfalfa cultivars were obtained atF5%harvest time, reaching 2703$ha-1 (WL354HQ) and 2585 $ha-1(Magnum551), followed by FB, F15%, and F50%. Therefore, in order to get more hay yield and economic returns, harvesting at 5% flowering stage of alfalfa seemed viable option under drip irrigation.© 2021 Friends Science Publishers