A forage crop, Medicago sativa, domesticated in the region of ancient Persia and Central Asia several thousand years ago, from where its cultivation spread with early empires and trade routes across the Mediterranean, Europe and eventually to the Americas. Alfalfa is grown chiefly as hay and forage for livestock, especially dairy cattle, valued for its high protein content and its deep root system, which can extend several meters into the soil, allowing the plant to draw water and nutrients unavailable to shallower-rooted crops and to survive drought conditions that damage many other forage plants. As a legume it also fixes nitrogen in the soil, and it remains one of the most widely grown forage crops in the world.
Facts
Sources
1. Alfalfa (Wikipedia)
- lead: flowering plant in the legume family, Fabaceae
Lead paragraph, life cycle
Medicago sativa, commonly known as alfalfa () in North America and lucerne () in the United Kingdom, South Africa, Australia, and New Zealand, is a perennial flowering plant in the legume family, Fabaceae. Native to warmer temperate climates, alfalfa has long been cultivated as livestock fodder, perhaps since antiquity.
Lead paragraph, use
Medicago sativa, commonly known as alfalfa () in North America and lucerne () in the United Kingdom, South Africa, Australia, and New Zealand, is a perennial flowering plant in the legume family, Fabaceae. Native to warmer temperate climates, alfalfa has long been cultivated as livestock fodder, perhaps since antiquity.
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