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An observational trial was conducted last year in Yolo County to evaluate the impact of deficit irrigation on alfalfa stands, including those grazed by sheep in the fall.
Last October, stand counts were taken in four alfalfa fields without water throughout the growing season due to zero water allocation from the district and scant rainfall. One field was used as a control.
The fields had mostly dried down with a few remaining green crowns, indicating there might be a heavy stand loss. However, in the case of the fields we monitored, the stands mostly recovered.
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Alfalfa is quite drought tolerant and capable of going into a drought-induced dormancy when deprived of water, though yield is greatly reduced during the season due to the lack of water. The crop mostly recovers in the fall after moist conditions return.
However, those alfalfa fields that were grazed by sheep shortly after the plants started to regrow in the fall did not appear to recover as well as the field where there was no grazing.
Our small study suggests that it’s not a good idea to graze drought-stressed alfalfa fields in the fall to reduce thatch when the plants are trying to recover from a long hot, dry summer of no water.
