Alfalfa U gives producers answers to their questions 

In the 10 years High Plains Journal hosted Alfalfa U events across multiple states—Kansas, Nebraska, South Dakota, Colorado, and Nevada—those in attendance were never short on pertinent topics. 

From insect pests to management techniques to variety selection and the ever-popular producer panels to equipment, speakers covered the gamut during their sessions. And the speakers themselves were the best in the business. Professors from Kansas State University, Oklahoma State University, Utah State University, University of Idaho and University of Nebraska, along with industry experts shared their expertise at each one. 

Looking back

Each HPJ U event has been special for High Plains Journal Publisher Zac Stuckey as each one proves what it’s all about. He said any time he’s had the privilege of connecting with farmers and ranchers on a personal level it has always been inspiring. But none have been more memorable than the first Alfalfa U.  

“This legendary series began my rookie season at HPJ and had an incredibly impressionable effect on me,” Stuckey said. “There was a recognizable need for alfalfa/hay/forage education amongst producers in the High Plains region. More and more dairies were moving into our area searching for quality feed and hay tools and seed technology—all advancing in the market at the same time.” 

This was a pivotal period for alfalfa production in the region and HPJ was there to help support growers and be a part of the journey to raise high quality hay and advance operations.  

“When you keep the farmer/rancher at the center of your decisions, you get experiences that make it worth it,” Stuckey said. 

One such experience was with an Alfalfa U grower who shared his notes from nine years ago with Stuckey at the 2024 event in Dodge City. The Alfalfa U event in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, was one of the first events held, and this attendee had such a great impression he drove seven hours to attend again. 

“I’m not sure I can think of a better motivation than that,” he said. “Whether it is the diverse alfalfa growing conditions across the six different state locations for Alfalfa U during the 10-year run, including one virtual event during COVID, Alfalfa U and the value that comes with it, will continue to grow as a big part of a larger brand at the new HPJ-Live event August 2025 in Wichita, Kansas.” 

Farmer panels

Most often the farmer panel sessions have the toughest questions. At the 2024 event, Katelyn McCullock, director, Livestock Marketing Information Center, was asked about changes in commodity markets at the time and how alfalfa fit into the picture. She said weather played an important role on the number of alfalfa acres. 

“I think, for the last several decades, the number of alfalfa acres has been decreasing. We got a little bit of bump last year. And that was nice to see,” McCullock said. “But generally speaking, alfalfa is competing against high priced other commodities that are constantly battling for acreage. And we’ve seen that in specific states.”  

Alfalfa producers in Idaho gave their perspective of growing forages in the West. Field Editor Lacey Vilhauer detailed the Reno, Nevada panel in a March 2022 article in the Journal. This panel featured four diverse growers and included, Craig Laub, Laub Feeding and Cubing of southwest Utah, Jim Gallagher, a small hay marketing coop manager from Eureka, Nevada, Kim Summers, Kustom Crop Solutions in Wennemucca, Nevada, and Rulon Fowers, Circle F Land and Livestock of Hooper, Utah. 

Panelists had their own set of unique challenges and opportunities for their region and how they were able to manage alfalfa operations through it all. Summers struggled finding employees who could live a couple hours from town and housing caused challenges. But his location, as the only landowner in the basin helped with water availability for growing alfalfa, made it attractive.  

Vilhauer wrote, “Unlike Summers, Gallagher, Fowers and Laub said water management and producing a crop with limited water is always a pivotal concern for their operations. Fowers manages dry conditions by rotating his alfalfa with a three- or four-way cereal grain like triticale, wheat, barley, oats or peas and implementing minimum or no-tillage to conserve water.” 

Yield and quality was also discussed in Reno, with Laub focusing on yield. He took advantage of variety selection in his harsher climate. 

“We want to get it off in four or five days at the most because of the regrowth,” he said. “We cut when we start to see the regrowth so we’re not running on our next crop, because that’s detrimental to our yield.” 

HPJ Live

Even though Alfalfa U won’t be produced in 2025 as a stand-alone event, there will be alfalfa and forage content included in a new event, HPJ Live. It will combine former HPJ U events into a multi-day educational conference, complete with a tradeshow and networking.   

The first HPJ Live will be held Aug. 6 to 8 at the Century II Performing Arts & Convention Center in Wichita, Kansas. Registration opened March 3. For more information about HPJ Live visit hpj.com/events. To learn more about sponsorship opportunities, contact Jason Koenig at jkoenig@hpj.com or 314-873-3125.  

Kylene Scott can be reached at 620-227-1804 or kscott@hpj.com.