Legumes - Red Clover - Forages of Florida - Solutions for Your Life - UF Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences

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Red Clover
Species:	Red Clover
Scientific Name:	Trifolium pratense
Cultivars:	Cherokee, Southern Belle (Florida-developed, both semi-nondormant); Kenstar (developed in Kentucky). For the cool-season forage variety recommendations report, cl ick this link.
Growth Habit:	3-4 feet tall, erect, leaves pubescent; presence of watermark; pink flowers.
Life Cycle:	Perennial. In Florida is an annual, Southern Belle and Cherokee reach full flowering approximately by April 15 in North Florida
Origin:	Europe
Production Season:	March to June
Nutritive Value:	Varies depending on maturity (leaf:stem ratio) Usually medium to high crude protein; medium to high digestibility.
Use:	Hay, grazing Forage portion of red clover is 50% leaves and 50% stems, leaf loss can be minimized by harvesting as green chop or haylage. Higher leaf loss occurs with baling or grazing. Care should be taken when tedding the hay to minimize leaf loss during curing.
Adaptation
Soil:	Loam, clay-loam well drained
pH:	6.0-8.0
Rainfall:	35-65 inches
Temperature:	-38°F (minimum). Good cold tolerance.
Management
Planting Date:	October 1 to November 25.
Planting Depth:	1/4 to 1/2 inch
Seeding Rate:	10 to 15 lb/acre; 10 if using precision planter and/or using high quality seed, use 15 lb/acre if broadcasting. Inoculate seed with rhizobium bacteria type 'B', Clover group
Seed Cost:	Kenland $2/lb; $24 to 30/acre
Fertilization:	For fertilization info click this link A seasonal application of 60 lb P2O5 and 80 lb K2O/acre (at sedding) and 80 lb K2O/acre Do not apply nitrogen after first grazing or harvest.
Production:	3000-5000 lb/acre. Late winter/early spring (first havest yields) is when Southern Belle and Cherokee show maximum yields - double that of the more nothern-developed cultivars. Cherokee (lb DM/acre, Total cutting=5550; (April 4 cutting=2000; May 10 cutting=1800; July 12 cutting=1690)
Notes
Can be mixed with small grain to extend grazing season. With proper late spring/summer management, good reseeding of Floridian cultivars can be obtained. High seedling vigor. Cherokee and Southern Belle first cultivars to exhibit root- knot nematode (RKN)resistance. Southern Belle has additional RKN resistance. Dormant types (Kenstar, Marathon, Cinnamon) are late maturing. Graze at height of 8-10 inches and stop grazing when at 3-5 inches; rest period: 10-20 days. Use correct inoculum strain (Nitragin B) Bloat potential is not an issue if fed in mix with grass

Red Clover

Adaptation

Management

Notes