ESTABLISHMENT AND SUBSEQUENT PRODUCTIVITY OF BROMEGRASS AND ALFALFA SEEDED WITH AN ARGENTINE RAPESEED COMPANION CROP IN NORTHEASTERN SASKATCHEWAN

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Abstract
Yields of pure stands of alfalfa (Medicago media Pers.) and bromegrass (Bromus inermis Leyss.) established on summerfallow with and without an Argentine rape-seed (Brassica napus L.) companion crop were compared at Melfort in three tests, each maintained for 4 yr. In all three experiments, yields over the 4-yr period were greater when the forage was established alone, and in two of the three, bromegrass produced more than alfalfa. When established with rapeseed, forages produced much less dry matter in the seedling year than when established alone, and the effects of the companion crop carried over into the following year. Thereafter, the yield differences between the two establishment methods were small and in the final year had disappeared. Argentine rapeseed suppressed forage seedling growth more in the 2 yr with average or cool summers, than in the year with a hot summer. Alfalfa was more severely suppressed than bromegrass in the year with the best growing season.Key words: Bromegrass, alfalfa, rapeseed, companion crops, forage yield, forage establishment

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