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Fall is best time for planting of alfalfa
Stacy Campbell
Stacy Campbell

Kansas has 568,324 acres of alfalfa, which is a very important leguminous crop for the dairy and livestock industry in Kansas. Alfalfa hayfields help to supply forage that is highly digestible and high in protein. Late summer and early fall are often the best times to plant alfalfa in Kansas due to less weed pressure than spring planting. 

Available moisture at planting is crucial for alfalfa establishment, but too much moisture can increase seedling disease incidence and reduce alfalfa nodulation and nitrogen fixation.

If soil moisture is available, growers in northwest Kansas can plant as early as August 10. Optimum sowing date occurs later as we move towards southeast Kansas, where growers can plant until mid- to late-September. In other parts of Kansas, the optimal planting time is late August or early September. Producers just need to plant early enough to have three to five trifoliate leaves before the first frost.

Alfalfa is a four to five-year, or longer, investment, and therefore it is crucial to ensure proper establishment. Some producers shy away from alfalfa because of its high establishment cost and risk of stand failure. In the long run, however, it’s relatively inexpensive if amortized over the life of the crop.

If managed properly and given favorable weather conditions, dryland alfalfa can produce 3 to 6 dry matter tons of forage per acre per year. Irrigated fields can produce 6 to 8 dry matter tons per acre per year or more.

When sowing alfalfa, producers should keep the following in mind:


Soil test and correct soil acidity. Alfalfa grows best in well-drained soils with a pH of 6.5 to 7.5 and does not tolerate low soil pH. If the soil is acidic, add lime to raise soil pH to 6.8 before planting. Ensuring appropriate soil pH levels before planting is essential, especially as lime is relatively immobile in the soil profile and the field will not be worked for the next 3-5 years. Remember, after spread, lime takes a few weeks in the soils to react and increase the pH.


Soil test and meet fertilization needs. Apply the needed phosphorus (P) and potassium (K) amounts according to soil test recommendations. Phosphorus fertilizer will be required if soil test P levels are below 25 ppm, and potassium fertilizer will be required if soil K levels are below 120 ppm. Even soils that test higher than these thresholds may need additional fertilizer. Small amounts of nitrogen fertilizer (15 to 20 lb/acre) as a starter at planting are beneficial for alfalfa establishment. In some fields, sulfur can also bring some yield benefits.


Plant certified, inoculated seed. Ensuring the correct Rhizobium inoculation is crucial for alfalfa seedlings to fix available soil nitrogen to meet the needs of growing alfalfa for optimum production.


Plant in firm, moist soil. A firm seedbed ensures good seed-soil contact; therefore, use a press wheel with the drill to firm the soil over the planted seed. No-till planting in small-grains stubble will usually provide a good seedbed.


Don’t plant too deeply. Plant one-fourth to one-half inch deep on medium- and fine-textured soils and three-fourths inch deep on sandy soils. Don’t plant deeper than 10 times the seed diameter.


Use the right seeding rate. Plant 8 to 12 pounds of seed per acre on dryland in western Kansas, 12 to 15 pounds per acre on irrigated medium- to fine-textured soils, 15 to 20 pounds per acre on irrigated sandy soils, and 12 to 15 pounds per acre on dryland in central and eastern Kansas.

Check for herbicide carryover that could damage the new alfalfa crop – especially when planting alfalfa no-till into corn or grain sorghum stubble. In areas where row crops were drought-stressed and removed for silage, that sets up a great seedbed for alfalfa but may still bring a risk of herbicide damage.


Choose pest-resistant varieties. Resistance to phytophthora root rot, bacterial wilt, fusarium wilt, verticillium wilt, anthracnose, the pea aphid, and the spotted alfalfa aphid is essential. Some varieties are resistant to even more diseases and insects, which could contribute to reducing costs.

Purchase alfalfa varieties with a fall dormancy rating ranging from 4 - 6 for Kansas. Fall dormancy relates to how soon an alfalfa variety will stop growing in the fall and how early it will begin growing in the spring or late winter. Simply put, it would be better not buy a variety with fall dormancy of 9-10, which can be more suitable for California and regions where alfalfa can keep growing year-round under irrigation.

More information about growing alfalfa in Kansas can be found in the Alfalfa Production Handbook. That information also is available on the web at: www.ksre.ksu.edu/bookstore/pubs/c683.pdf

Also see Alfalfa Growth and Development, available on the web at: https://www.bookstore.ksre.ksu.edu/pubs/MF3348.pdf


Stacy Campbell is an Agriculture and Natural Resources agent for Cottonwood Extension District. Email him at scampbel@ksu.edu or call the Hays office, 785-628-9430.

Kansas Earth and Sky: An idea that makes good scents
A treat for the nose candle co.
Kansas Earth and Sky Candle Co
The hallway connecting the storefront to the production room of Scott and Jennifer Andersen’s candle making business is a tribute to historic Ellinwood as well as the iconic Main Street building where good scents are made
Kansas Earth and Sky Candle Co

ELLINWOOD — According to Scott and Jennifer Andersen, it all started with a candle seven years ago.

“I saw a candle in a magazine when I took the kids in for their yearly checkup. It was a really fancy candle and really expensive, so I asked Scott if I could get this candle?” Jennifer recalled. “He laughed and said, ‘I’ll make you a candle.’”

The couple had just moved back to the fifth-generation family farm near Ellinwood and were pretty low on funds, “so, when she sent me that photo I was like, oooh, so I bought the stuff on the credit card. Turns out I spent way over what the candle would have cost,” he said.

The experience was new to Scott, who brought his Forcefield Design graphic design business from Kansas City, but it was also fun. They made a few more candles and gave them out to family and friends for Christmas. 

“It was weird, because people really liked them, so that got us thinking, ‘can we do this for real?’” he said. 

If they were going to start a business, they would need a name. For Scott, who had lived in largely urban settings on the east coast, when he got to rural Kansas he was impressed by its landscape. “It wasn’t what most people in the East say about Kansas at all,” he said.

“When he got the first look at our farm after we moved from Kansas City, Scott said ‘There’s a lot of earth and a lot of sky,’” Jennifer said. 

So the idea for “Kansas Earth and Sky” was planted.


A vintage location

“We were pouring candles in our bedroom and it got too crowded with kids and cats,” Scott said. He and Jennie sought out, rented and later purchased the former Cyclone building on Main Street in Ellinwood. 

The building, which began as a mercantile store, was in need of repair, but had retained a lot of its original character. Their production area is in the rear, with a small storefront area facing the street. The two rooms are connected by a hallway filled with large photographs of the iconic Ellinwood structure.

“Both of us like old things, and we’re finding out we’re collectors,” Jennifer said. Their work tables were fashioned from the wooden lanes of an old area bowling alley. “They’re not all that pretty, but we like them and they work,” she said.


A treat for the nose

Just walking into the store at 23 N. Main in Ellinwood is a treat for the senses. The discriminating nose can discern a hint of baked bread, new-mown hay, lavender, and other scents that call up memories of field, home and hearth.

As they were starting out, Jennifer came up with a fragrance they incorporated into a candle called “A Warm Hug,” which was perfect for shut-ins and others at the height of the pandemic. 

“It was a best-seller,” she said. “We’re going to be bringing it back for this Christmas season.”

The candles are made from natural soy oil, which they also use for soy wax melts.

“A lot of candle companies use paraffin which is made from petroleum,” Scott said. “Our candles are made from soybeans which grow in Kansas, and they burn twice as long.

“We want to be sustainable so we recycle boxes and use natural products wherever we can,” he said.

They are big supporters of Ellinwood as well as area artists and entrepreneurs. They have a selection of goat-milk soaps and their walls are decorated with works rendered by local artists.

They even have “On Tap Saturdays,” in which locals can bring their old jars and tins and transform them into a functional keepsake.

“We’d love to bring more people to Ellinwood,” Scott said. “It has historic underground tunnels, lots of antique stores, and good restaurants.”

Wholesale orders have reached both coasts and the company, in its seventh year, has a strong local following. “We concentrate first on our wholesale orders, then we work in special orders that people are bringing in,” Jennifer said.