"Melilotus albus" medicus, una leguminosa de uso múltiple para las tierras calizas de la españa seca

Abstract

Sweetclover is native to températe Europe and western and central Asia, but it is also present in the Mediterranean región in its most humid áreas, being south-eastern Spain (Murcia and Almería) its southern limmit in Europe. The specie has been widely used for múltiple purposes (as forage or pasture, for honey production, as green manure, as cover crop, etc) in countries as USA, Canadá, USSR and Germany, but it is practically unknown in Spain. The southern ecotype "Topares" collected by the authors in a gully of Almena, stand out against the standard plant material because of its height (between 1.7 and 2.6 m), late flowering, and its good performance under cultivation in dryland calcareous soils of NW Murcia (average rainfall over 350 mm), since natively, it is only found in humid riverside soils. Preliminary data are presented on several aspects of c.v."Topares":seed size and weight, germination capacity (40-90 %, according to legume matunty degree), chemical composition (CP, ash, NDF, ADF, lignin, etc) of the different plant fractions (i.e., crude protein: 25 % in leaves, 10 % in fine steams and 6 % in thick steams), biomass production (272 g DM/plant, equivalent to 2.5 Tn DM/ha), seed production (650 kg/ha) etc. First results on intake by sheep -as green forage or as hay- are reported also (1.2-1.4 kg DM/sheep/day), as well as other agronomic information that justify its interest as a pasture crop to cover the seasonal feeding gaps (grazing in summer, or as hay for winter), or as a honey producer and green manure /cover plant for marginal áreas where cereal crops will probably be abandoned