Timing Last Alfalfa Harvest with GDD
Allowing for alfalfa to winterize before dormancy is a key factor preventing winterkill across a stand. Traditionally, my recommendation has been to time the last cutting for roughly six weeks before the first frost.
Growing degree days (GDD) can give us another way to look at that decision, but there has been an important update to the numbers I’ve shared in the past.
Previous recommendations used 500 and 200 GDD with a base temperature of 41°F. A review of the original research found those numbers came from Celsius-based growing degree days and weren't properly converted to Fahrenheit. Using a base temperature of 41°F, the correct thresholds are about 900 and 360 GDD.
With more than 900 GDD remaining before a killing freeze, alfalfa should have enough time to regrow and replenish root reserves. With fewer than 360 GDD remaining, there generally isn't enough time for significant regrowth to draw those reserves down. That leaves 360 to 900 GDD as the higher-risk window for harvest.
For eastern Nebraska, the University of Wisconsin’s Alfalfa Cutting Tool can help. Select the “Upper Midwest” map, your location, and then the “Season Planning” tab. Currently, coverage only extends into roughly the eastern quarter of Nebraska.
For areas farther west, the Northeast Regional Climate Center CLIMOD2 tool can be used to look at historical base-41 GDD and killing-freeze dates for nearby locations.
Finally, stand condition and stress over the growing season should also factor into any late-cutting decision.
Hunting Rights and Land Leases
Amid ongoing market volatility, some producers may be exploring additional income opportunities, including leasing hunting access. This often raises an important question: Who holds the hunting rights when land is leased?
For written cropland or pasture leases, hunting rights can be specifically addressed in the lease agreement. If the lease does not reserve those rights to the landowner, they generally belong to the tenant for the duration of the lease.
The same is typically true for verbal cropland leases. Unless the parties agree otherwise, hunting rights usually default to the tenant because the tenant has the right to possess and use the property during the lease term, including the right to exclude others, even the landowner.
Verbal grazing and pasture leases are somewhat different. Because many of these leases end before hunting season begins, hunting rights often return to the landowner once the lease expires. However, if a verbal grazing lease remains active during hunting season, hunting rights generally belong to the tenant for the duration of the lease unless the parties have agreed otherwise. Landowners do not automatically retain hunting rights simply because they own the property.
Written leases are the best way to avoid misunderstandings. Landowners and tenants should clearly address hunting rights when negotiating lease terms and review applicable Nebraska law regarding verbal cropland and pasture leases.
