Vegetable-type Alfalfa Varieties Screening And Cultivation Techniques Research

Alfalfa(Medicago sativa L.)is a leguminous alfalfa plant with a long history of cultivation in China.It has high yield,rich nutrition and alfalfa is a leguminous plant of medicago,with characteristics of high yield,rich nutrition and high regenerative ability.Alfalfa was mainly cultivated as high-quality forage grass in China mainly to feed livestock.Alfalfa seedlings are rich in protein content,a variety of minerals,trace elements and active polysaccharides;due to its crisp plant with a fresh taste,its seedlings are cooked as a vegetable after they turn green in Spring in many parts of the North in China;however,in the south of China,Alfalfa was not developed for a long time due to the limitation of variety adaptability.Research,planting and promoting of Alfalfa has not been carried on in the Southern part of China until fine alfalfa varieties suitable for the Northern part were introduced from abroad at the turn of the century.Since alfalfa in the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River area in China has nearly nine months of natural growth period,and its regeneration performance is also very strong,therefore,it has a huge potential and value for vegetable use.This study selects 30 alfalfa varieties and evaluates their agronomic characters and nutritional value for vegetables use;on this basis,the alfalfa varieties suitable for vegetable utilization and burclover varieties mainly cultivated in Shanghai are selected to make a comparison between their characteristics and nutritional value as vegetables and also study their cultivation techniques of alfalfa as vegetables.The results are as follows:(1)According to accumulated biomass,accumulated plant height,average stem diameter and stem/leaf ratio of the alfalfa regeneration seedlings for three times,30 alfalfa varieties can be divided into four categories;both the plant height and biomass of the first two types are relatively low,and they do not have the value to be cultivated as high yield vegetables;Further,a comprehensive evaluation of the above-ground biomass,plant height,stem diameter,regeneration,the taste of stem as well as the crude protein content and acid detergent fiber content of 17 alfalfa varieties of the last two types of alfalfa to select WL656,GTBR PLUS,Fengye721,WL525,CW785 and WL903,a total of a alfalfa varieties with a strong regeneration capability,high yield and nutritional value and good taste,which are very suitable for vegetable cultivation use;(2)Select alfalfa variety WL656 and Burclover(Medicago falcata L.),and make a comparison from the following aspects:yield,plant height,regeneration,stem diameter,taste and other agronomic traits,the crude protein content and acid detergent fiber content as well as the change of the content of soluble sugar,nitrate,nitrite and the amino acid of the plants after blanching treatment with different time(0,1 min,and 5 min);the results show that the regeneration performance of alfalfa is much better than burclover(only one crop)and the alfalfa under 20 cm height can be mowed for 3 times;alfalfa's accumulated biomass reaches 8429 kg/hm~2;the alfalfa stem leaf protein content is significantly higher than burclover while its acid detergent fiber content is significantly lower than burclover;the total amino acids content and essential amino acids content as well as the ratio of essential amino acids to total amino acid of alfalfa under different blanching time are all significantly higher than burclover;Under different blanching time,the nitrate content and nitrite content of california bur clover are both greater than alfalfa;and content of soluble sugar of california bur clover is significantly higher than that of alfalfa.In general,as a vegetable,alfalfa is superior to california bur clover in terms of the regeneration performance,yield,nutritional value and its high temperature stability,etc.,which further evidences that it has very good vegetable use value.(3)With WL656 as the material,set up different mowing heights,the first-time mowing height and N and K fertilizer level,and make a research on the their effect on the content of crude protein of alfalfa,acid detergent fiber content,taste and production performance;the results show that the 20cm high mowing,alfalfa stem diameter,yield and crude protein content are the highest while acid detergent fiber content is the lowest and the taste is best when the alfalfa is mowed at 20cm high;when the first-time mowing height is 60 cm and N:K=20 g/m~2:5 g/m~2 fertile level,the accumulated plant height and yield are the largest.Therefore,used as a vegetable,the suitable cultivation measures of the alfalfa are as follows:the first-time mowing height of 60 cm,mowing height of 20cm and N:K=20 g/m~2:5 g/m~2 fertilizer level.