Enhancement of Field Hay Curing with Potassium Carbonate

Abstract

AbstractTreating alfalfa (Medicago sativa L.) herbage with solutions of K2CO3 reduces curing time. However, there is a lack of information concerning the effectiveness of K2CO3 solutions as a hay drying agent in the humid environment of the southeastern USA. The objective of this research was to quantify the influence of several concentrations [3.5‐17.2 kg Mg−1 of dry matter (DM)] and solution volumes (25–166 L Mg−1 DM) of K2CO3 on the time required to dry first‐, second‐, and third‐cutting alfalfa to 800 g kg−1 DM under field conditions in the humid southeastern USA. Field experiments were conducted during 1984 and 1985 on a Typic Hapludult soil in the Piedmont region of North Carolina. In all trials, applying K2CO3 solutions to alfalfa significantly reduced field drying time compared with untreated forage. Treating alfalfa with K2CO3 at mowing reduced field drying time from 3 to 22 h compared with untreated forage. Relative to untreated forage, drying time was reduced by 29 to 72% due to K2CO3 treatment. In five of seven trials, the treated forage reached a DM concentration of 800 g kg−1 1 d before untreated forage. Increasing the K2CO3 concentration from 3.5 to 14 kg Mg−1 of DM resulted in a small but statistically significant reduction in drying time of the forage in three of seven trials. These differences were considered to be biologically insignificant. Increasing K2CO3 solution volume from 25 to 166 L Mg−1 of DM did not affect drying time of alfalfa forage. Potassium carbonate applied as low as 3.5 kg Mg−1 of the forage DM in a solution volume of 25 L Mg−1 of DM has the potential to significantly reduce the field drying time of alfalfa hay in the humid southeastern USA.