What is alfalfa used for?

[sevensages]

In the documentary Unforgivable Blackness: The Rise and Fall of Jack Johnson, the narrator says that after the boxer Jim Jeffries retired from boxing, he started an alfalfa farm in California. Before I saw the documentary Unforgivable Blackness, I knew that alfalfa was a type of grass or a type of plant, but I didn't know that anyone deliberately grew alfalfa on farms. I don't think that humans ever eat alfalfa. What is alfalfa used for?

 

[fresh_42]

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alfalfa#Cultivation

Agriculture
Alfalfa is cultivated worldwide as livestock feed and also as a food crop (sprouts). Very often, if not predominantly, the plants grown in Central Europe are not the pure species *Medicago sativa*, but rather hybrid alfalfa (*Medicago × varia*).
History of Cultivation
Alfalfa was already an important fodder crop for horses in Persia. According to tradition, it was brought to Greece around 470 BC. From there, it arrived in Italy around 150–50 BC, where it was used as fodder for sheep. At the beginning of the 16th century AD, Spanish colonial rulers brought alfalfa to the Americas, primarily to Mexico and Peru.
...

Source: https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Luzerne#Landwirtschaft

Compared to hay, alfalfa provides more protein and calcium to the ration and is therefore a valuable addition to the basic feed as well as a fiber-rich substitute for concentrated feed.

Source: https://www.dr-maroske.de/luzerne-die-koenigin-unter-den-futterpflanzen/

Alfalfa sprouts: A crunchy boost for vegans​

Alfalfa sprouts: Little nutrient powerhouses for plant-based cooking
Imagine sprinkling a handful of healthy ingredients into your meals. That's exactly what alfalfa sprouts are! These little green wonders are not only a treat for vegans and vegetarians, but also add a fresh touch to any salad or smoothie.

Source: https://samen.de/blog/alfalfa-keimsprossen-knackiger-kick-fuer-veganer.html

 

[sevensages]

fresh_42's source says that alfalfa is used as feed for livestock, and fresh_42's source also says that alfalfa was used to feed sheep in antiquity. What livestock is alfalfa used to feed in the 20th century and 21st century?

 

[fresh_42]

fresh_42's source says that alfalfa is used as feed for livestock, and fresh_42's source also says that alfalfa was used to feed sheep in antiquity. What livestock is alfalfa used to feed in the 20th century and 21st century?

Cattle and horses.

 

[sevensages]

Cattle and horses.

Okay thank you

 

[fresh_42]

I have seen on TV that some people tried using it as a meat substitute, but I haven't dug deeper.

 

[Bystander]

Cattle and horses.

, and poultry, and fish, and ....

 

[jbriggs444]

As a legume and a non-grass, rotation of fields into alfalfa can be helpful for fertility and for anti-pest purposes.

Also, pet rabbits and such can be fed alfalfa pellets.

 

[Baluncore]

Alfalfa, AKA lucerne outside the USA, is a perennial, nitrogen-fixing, fodder crop. It is not over-grazed directly, but each area is mechanically trimmed and collected, maybe three times each year. Only part of the field is harvested each time, so a continuous supply of crushed chaff or bales is available year round.
Alfalfa is a rich source of protein, so is blended with grass hay and used to feed and fatten valuable stock, including horses.

 

[Bystander]

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Laminitis

Alfalfa, AKA lucerne outside the USA, is a perennial, nitrogen-fixing, fodder crop. It is not over-grazed directly, but each area is mechanically trimmed and collected, maybe three times each year. Only part of the field is harvested each time, so a continuous supply of crushed chaff or bales is available year round.
Alfalfa is a rich source of protein, so is blended with grass hay and used to feed and fatten valuable stock, including horses.

carefully, please.

 

[Baluncore]

carefully, please.

You are being a bit cryptic. Are you suggesting that overfeeding will lead to overweight animals, resulting in laminitis?

Lucerne here is expensive, so it is really only used to restore horses and lambs from poor condition, during and following drought. I have hand fed lucerne to ewes and lambs that could not lift their nose off the ground, it put a real spin in their tails.

 

[Bystander]

You are being a bit cryptic. Are you suggesting that overfeeding will lead to overweight animals, resulting in laminitis?

Fifty/sixty years ago "they said"/the story was that "foundering" was the result of a "too rich" diet; admittedly I've never heard of cattle/sheep/horses breaking down fences around hay/alfalfa fields, but at the same time why fence off fodder/forage?