The Manitoba Forage and Grasslands Association (MFGA) is launching Year 24 of its Green Gold alfalfa-monitoring program.

'Hay Day' is the best cut date when harvested pure alfalfa stands are at optimum quality 150 Relative Feed Value (RFV).

“We want the best feed values being used provincially and within our dairy hay exports,” said John McGregor, MFGA extension lead. “When it comes to haying, Mother Nature is the biggest determining factor for good quality forage.”

McGregor says the key is understanding how quickly alfalfa quality in their field is dropping or where it is at any given point for producers to decide when to cut. For example, if the forecast calls for rain in three days and a producer is aware that the alfalfa is at 180 and dropping five points per day they have a choice of either cutting and putting the forage up right away at a quality above what they may want or they can wait and take up the forage at a quality that is slightly below what they were targeting.

Every May and June, McGregor leads a team of provincial staff and volunteer producers who clip samples from selected fields across Manitoba, twice each week on Monday and Wednesday or Thursday and delivered to Central Testing Laboratory in Winnipeg before 11:00 a.m. that day. Regional results are emailed to more than 500 producers and industry people, including alfalfa, dairy, beef and sheep producers twice each week through McGregor.

Results are also posted on the MFGA website.