Seed Technology

   Innovative Technologies to Improve Productivity.

Today Alforex Seeds, through DLF researchers and scientists, continue to pursue new avenues to deliver more and better genetics and technologies. The breeding, research and production capabilities of our predecessors and partners have resulted in several breakthrough technologies for alfalfa and forage seed. Alforex alfalfa and forage seed technology include X-Force, HybriForce, Hi-Ton, Hi-Salt, and Hi-Gest Alfalfa Technology.

 

X-Force® Alfalfa Technology – A new generation of varieties that uses a combination of technologies for exceptional performance.

X-Force is a new generation of varieties that utilize several technologies to achieve a new level of performance. Hybrid technology, heterosis among extremely diverse germplasm pools, an extensive progeny testing yield trial program, and a drone imagery program have all contributed to a new exciting level of genetic gain. This combination of technologies allows traits to be combined as never before and provides yield resiliency and stability across environments and weather extremes like never before.

  • A racehorse variety with exceptional yield
  • Very good forage quality when managed aggressively
  • Excellent 35/35 disease package allowing it to perform exceptionally well over a wide range of
    environments
  • Superior winter survival
  • Has High Resistance to Aphanomyces Race 2

 

HybriForce®Alfalfa Technology – Raises the bar in yield potential using hybrid alfalfa technology.

A 4th generation of hybrid alfalfas using msSunstra hybrid alfalfa technology. HybriForce varieties raise the bar in yield potential and are a broadly adaptive variety of alfalfas that excel in a wide range of environments.

  • 0.4% yield advantage against competitors in 174 head-to-head, side-by-side comparisons
  • 5% higher yielding than the previous HybriForce generation
  • Outstanding yield potential in the establishment year
  • Racehorse style of hybrid alfalfa with excellent disease protection
  • Tall, dense, leafy hybrid alfalfa with fine stem
  • Resistance to Aphanomyces race 2

 

Hi-Gest Alfalfa seed Technology

Hi-Gest® Alfalfa Technology – For improved digestibility, high yields and management flexibility.

Using conventional breeding techniques and screening hundreds of thousands of plants, our breeders began the long process of selecting elite parental material that expressed both strong agronomic traits and improved fiber digestibility. After years of testing, Alforex Seeds now offers varieties with Hi-Gest® Alfalfa Technology. Hi-Gest’s elite genetics improve the rate of digestion in ruminant livestock. This translates to increased forage intake and increased milk and/or meat production. In addition, Hi-Gest delivers:

  • High quality that can help produce an estimated 2.5 more pounds of milk per cow per day
  • High yield
  • Good agronomics
  • Management flexibility and good winter survival
  • Superior disease and pest resistance

 

Hi-Ton Performance Alfalfa seed technology

Hi-Ton® Performance Alfalfa – Fast recovery for more tonnage.

To earn the Hi-Ton® designation, varieties must average at least 2 cm of growth per day, starting with spring green-up. Most commercial varieties range from 1.5 to 1.9 cm per day. Designated varieties AFX 779, AFX 579, AFX 469 and AFX 429 have exceeded the yield of peer experimentals and commercial alfalfa varieties by 5%, the minimum threshold for Hi-Ton® alfalfa.

  • Grow up to 30% faster than conventional alfalfas
  • Increase the number of productive harvests each season
  • Provide bigger second, third and fourth crops
  • Enable harvesting of the first crop sooner
  • Shorten harvest intervals by three to five days
  • Suppress weeds

Hi-Ton Alfalfa Faster Regrowth Chart
Hi-Ton growth ratings are calculated by Alforex Seeds from weekly measurement of varieties grown side-by-side from green-up to harvest through the growing season.  Expressed as average centimeters growth per day.   All measurements were conducted at the DLF research farm in West Salem, WI.

 

Hi-Salt Salinity Tolerant Alfalfa seed technology

Hi-Salt Salinity Tolerant Alfalfa – An improved option for yield and quality in saline soils.

Alforex alfalfa varieties with enhanced salinity tolerance are the alfalfa grower’s front line of defense against salinity losses. Salt-tolerant alfalfa varieties, like AFX 779, PGI 908S, CISCO II and Rugged offer growers a tool for production regions affected by salinity. With a raised salinity threshold over unimproved varieties, Hi-Salt salinity tolerant alfalfa maximize seasonal forage yield, when combined with proactive field monitoring and remediation practices.

  • Reduces seedling loss at establishment
  • Protects and maximizes hay yield
  • Helps curb and remediate salinity

Alfalfa Salinity Management Guide

To learn more, download our free guide, Alfalfa Management for Saline Soils.

 

Now Offering HarvXtra and Roundup Ready Products

HarvXtra® Alfalfa seed technology

The HarvXtra® Alfalfa trait is the most advanced alfalfa trait on the market. HarvXtra® was developed to maximize quality by reducing the amount of lignin in the plant compared to conventional alfalfa at the same stage of maturity. It is the first genetically engineered alfalfa trait with these characteristics.

For growers, this means they have the flexibility to produce higher-quality forage or delay harvest to maximize yield potential, depending on the weather or operational needs.

Advanced Beyond Conventional Breeding

The genetically engineered HarvXtra® Alfalfa trait technology improves alfalfa beyond what is possible through conventional breeding techniques. Gene suppression rewires the way alfalfa plants make lignin. This gene suppression changes both the lignin content and its composition while maintaining the high-quality characteristics that matter most.

Stacked With Roundup Ready® Technology

With the widest cutting window in the business combined with unsurpassed weed control, growers can get more higher-quality alfalfa.

Forage Quality

By reducing the amount of lignin in the plant, the HarvXtra® Alfalfa trait technology fundamentally changes the relationship between forage quality and stage of maturity. Less acid detergent lignin (ADL) and higher neutral detergent fiber digestibility (NDFD) improves digestibility and can command a higher price per ton come harvest.

HarvXtra® Alfalfa provides on average 14 to 18 percent higher relative forage quality (RFQ) and NDFD across cuttings than conventional varieties harvested at the same stage of maturity.*

Wider Cutting Windows, Higher Yield Potential

Fewer cuttings have the potential for more yield over time, less stress and lower harvest costs. The HarvXtra® Alfalfa trait lets growers delay harvest for seven to 10 days to increase tonnage without sacrificing yield quality.

Farmers can achieve at least 20 percent higher yield potential* by delaying harvest at 35-day cutting intervals. This is based on three cuttings at 35-day intervals compared to four cuttings at 28-day intervals, with the three-cut system yielding more over the life of the stand.

*Data comes from FGI trials comparing HarvXtra® Alfalfa with Roundup Ready® Technology 2017 commercial varieties to commercial checks. Information is based on data from the 2017 commercial fall dormancy 4 (FD4) products available on the market. Trials were seeded in 2013 and harvested in 2014 and 2015 from Nampa, ID; Touchet, WA; Boone, IA; West Salem, WI; and Mt. Joy, PA.

Roundup Ready® Alfalfa seed technology

Roundup Ready® Alfalfa system provides the opportunity to deliver unsurpassed weed control with superior crop safety, allowing you to grow more, higher-quality alfalfa.

Better Stand Establishment Means Better Stand Persistence

Roundup Ready Alfalfa offers significant establishment advantage in both yield potential and quality. This is a result of improved weed control and crop safety through Roundup Ready PLUS® Crop Management Solutions.

Broadest Application Flexibility

With the broadest application timing window plus excellent crop safety, Roundup Ready Alfalfa requires minimal waiting — only 5 days before grazing or harvest.

Increased, High-Quality Yield Opportunity

Roundup Ready Alfalfa can deliver a higher percentage of pure alfalfa in hay and haylage than competitors, along with improved quality. Roundup Ready Alfalfa has low ADF (acid detergent fiber), low NDF (neutral detergent fiber) and high RFV (relative feed value).

HarvXtra® is a registered trademark of Forage Genetics International, LLC.  HarvXtra® alfalfa with Roundup Ready® technology is enabled with technology from The Samuel Roberts Nobel Foundation, Inc. Genuity® and Roundup Ready® are registered trademarks used under license from Monsanto Company.
Do not export alfalfa seed or crops containing Genuity® Roundup Ready® technology including hay or hay products, to China pending import approval. In addition, due to the unique cropping practices, do not plant this product in Imperial County, California.
Always Read and Follow Pesticide Label Directions. Alfalfa with the Genuity® Roundup Ready® technology provides crop safety for over-the-top applications of labeled glyphosate herbicides when applied according to label directions.  Glyphosate agricultural herbicides will kill crops that are not tolerant to glyphosate.  ACCIDENTAL APPLICATION OF INCOMPATIBLE HERBICIDES TO THIS VARIETY COULD RESULT IN TOTAL CROP LOSS.

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