Two major factors, excluding climate and soils, account for the success or failure of most forage plantings. One factor is seed quality. In discussing seed quality, whether in reference to forage, turf, specialty, or cereal seed, we are referring to the following:

Percentage of pure seed, weed seed, other crop seed, inert matter and germination. Other factors to consider in seed quality are general appearance and uniformity of the lot, and in the case of cereals, seed size.

For legumes, total germination includes both the percentage of hard seed (dormant) and seed which will readily germinate. Hard seeds are usually viable, however water uptake may be hampered due to an impermeable seed coat. Hard seed may lie dormant in the soil for several weeks, months or in unusual cases, for years. The hard seed percentage on most lots of alfalfa will range from a low of about 20% to a high of 50%. In certain cases such as poor soil moisture, or other conditions leading to poor germination, hard seed can be advantageous, since germination will occur at a later time when conditions for seedling development may be better. Pure seed is the percentage of the variety in the lot of seed being offered for sale. Weed seed, including noxious weed seed, is listed by total percentage. Restricted noxious weed seed, if present, must be listed on the tag by name and number per pound. Prohibited weed seed cannot legally be present in any lot of seed offered for sale. Each state and in some cases counties will present their own list of prohibited and restricted weeds. Inert material is defined as any material present in the lot which will not germinate including broken seed, chaff, etc.

Pure Live Seed (PLS) is a term with which all buyers of seed should be familiar. Pure live seed can simply be defined as that portion of the seed lot containing pure seed of the variety being sold, which will germinate. This percentage is determined by multiplying the percentage of pure seed as a whole number by percentage of germination, and dividing by 100. EXAMPLE-assume purity of the lot to be 90% and the germination to be 80%. 90 X .80 equals 72. Therefore, per every 100 pounds of seed purchased, 72 pounds would be pure seed, capable of germinating.

The second major factor affecting the success or failure of a new planting is seedbed preparation. Seedbeds for small seeded grasses and legumes should be firm and level. A good rule of thumb regarding seedbed firmness is to note the depth of the footprint. The depth of the footprint of the average man should not exceed about one-half inch in a well prepared seedbed. The major reason for a fine, compact seedbed is to allow moisture movement to the seed, and retention thereof long enough for germination and root development to occur. A rough, uneven seedbed will dry out much quicker due to the presence of excessive pore space among soil particles. Even though a seed may germinate under poor seedbed conditions, it may not survive because of poor moisture retention under such conditions. The important thing to remember is that as seed size decreases, the firmness and overall condition of the seedbed must be improved. This is simply due to the fact that a small seed may not be able to imbibe water and germinate if placed in a soil containing excessive air space.