A new alfalfa hybrid from Dairy-land Seed, West Bend, WI, offers even better yield and persistence than earlier hybrids, say company officials.
HybriForce-2400 Gen-2 is the first second-generation alfalfa hybrid from Dairyland, which introduced the first hybrid, HybriForce-400, in 2001. Compared with the first entry, the new one “produces significantly higher yields, better crop consistency and greater hardiness,” says Chad Staudinger, the company's forage product manager.
He says its parental lines were selected for superiority across diverse environments and weather patterns, and that research has shown that it performs well in wet and dry years, through extreme winters and in multiple cutting regimes.
“Extensive field studies and trials throughout the Midwest have shown that HybriForce-2400 Gen-2 outperforms competitive alfalfa varieties in 94.3% of the head-to-head comparisons,” states Steve Wagner, a Dairyland alfalfa breeder.
The company claims growers of HybriForce-400 saw an 8-15% yield advantage over competitors, and that the new hybrid offers an additional 5% increase. A fall dormancy 4 variety with a 1.8 winter survival rating, it's highly resistant to all the major alfalfa diseases. Significant amounts of seed will be available for spring 2010 plantings.