California Agriculture

More than 50 Australian legume varieties for rangeland have been introduced commercially since the mid-1980s, but none of them had been tested for their adaptability to California. To determine their viability, in 1990 we planted a number of these varieties at the UC Hopland Research and Extension Center, along with some that were already popular in California. We evaluated them over the course of 10 years, and in 1997 planted 16 more varieties that had been subsequently introduced. Many of the cultivars planted in 1990 persisted to cover more than 50% of the plots, while others covered a smaller portion and several disappeared completely. Our evaluation shows which of the new cultivars are likely to improve rangeland in Northern California coastal areas.