BROMONT, Alta. — Forages are the ultimate multi-taskers.
They are good for the soil, boost nitrogen levels, preserve moisture, increase yield within a rotation, protect wildlife, feed livestock and act as a water filter and a carbon sink for greenhouse gases.
They are also Canada’s largest crop with an estimated value of $5.1 billion.
However, instead of adopting this important crop, farmers and re-searchers are shunning them.
The Canadian Seed Trade Association says that $65 million was spent on canola research in 2010, $16 million on corn research, $9 million on soybean research, $8 million on cereals and a paltry $180,000 on forage research.
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“The magnitude of difference is quite large,” said Bill Deen, a University of Guelph crop specialist.
Yields of canola, corn and soybeans have doubled through new varieties and research, but tame hay yields have not increased in more than 40 years.
Such poor yields in comparison to cereal and oilseed crops make it tough to convince farmers not to plow up their grassland and replace it with a flashier crop.
“When displacing forages, there is a tendency to displace them with corn, soy, wheat and a movement to more simple rotations,” said Deen.
As well, the remaining forages are often pulled from the best land and relegated to poorer quality land, which makes it more difficult to en-sure a good quality crop.
Even dairy producers who traditionally rely on forage for their cows’ diets are turning to corn silage to ensure a consistent product with guaranteed yields.
“We are seeing a shift in dairy production systems from traditional forages to corn forage systems,” he said. “As we intensify and get larger, it becomes harder and harder to produce good quality hay.”
However, it’s still important to keep forages in the rotation to maintain soil and water quality.
Doug Karlen, an Iowa researcher, said the corn-soybean rotation is so engrained in U.S. Midwest farmers that they don’t even know what alfalfa looks like.
In Iowa, where concerns are increasing about water quality in areas where only corn and soybeans are grown, Karlen recommended farmers re-introduce forages into their fields through buffer strips, around windbreaks or on field barriers.
The forages can be used as hay and help solve water quality problems.
“If 10 percent of the land is taken out of row crops, it can have a very positive environmental and economic benefit,” he said.
