Sainfoin

ABOUT THE PLANT: Family of sainfoin (Onobrychis Adand) includes more than 62 species. Ssainfoin usual, height-leaved sanfoin or seed sainfoin, sand sainfoin is grown in Ukraine (O. arenaria D. C.) as well as Transcaucasus sainfoin.

Sainfoin is a valuable fodder plant. By its feeding value it is not worse than alfalfa. In pastures it is desirable to eat for horses, but other animals are not that keen of it. It is not resistant to grazing, especially in the first year of use. Feeding animals with green mass they do not suffer from stomach swelling. Sainfoin is a good precursor for most crop rotation. It accumulates in the soil 100-200 kg / ha of nitrogen. Valuable honey plant, from 1ha they get 1.0-1.5 kg of honey. Sainfoin sandy is drought-resistant, winter-hard, durable and has heigher crop capability than other types. They grow sainfoin in forest-steppe and steppe regions of Ukraine. There are two cutting per year. Herbage features are kept for 4-5 years.
Sainfoin poorly reacts to application of organic and mineral fertilizers and the level of soil fertility, so grows well on marginal lands. The root system is stem, well developed, reaching depth of 3-6 m. It has a high adoption capacity. Significantly more nodules than on alfalfa or clover are formed on the roots of sainfoin. Sainfoin is not recommended to be sown on acid soils without previous liming.
On the fertile soil after crops and cultivated predecessors sainfoin does not need any fertilizers. Sainfoin and its grass- mixtures are sown in spring under cover. The most common cover crops in the forest-steppe are barley and oats. Compared to clover and alfalfa sainfoin is more inhibited cover crops. To improve the competitiveness of sainfoin its recommended to sow it not deep, optimum depth of seeding on heavy soils is 2-3 cm, for medium and light soils – 3-4cm. Seeding standard of sandy sainfoin is 50-70kh / ha.The crop should be gathered (picked up) in time, straw must be taken off the field in time as well. To obtain the highest harvest of high quality (200-300 quintal of green mass per ha) cutting of sainfoin must be held at the beginning of blossoming.

IMPLEMENTATION: Our company offers to buy sainfon seeds at a good price, we offer the next sorts: Sandy sainfoin 1251, sainfoin Blysk, Smaragd

Sort Sandy Sainfoin 1251
It is a perennial herb of the family legumes. Stems are numerous, strict standing, 30-70 cm tall. Leaves are cirrous, lower leaves consist of 6-12 pairs of ellipticall eaves. Flowers bisexual, in long bouquet. Corolla is bright violet with dark stripes, 8-10 mm long. Fruit – beans, mesh-lined. Its blossoming in June and July. It grows in the western part of the forest-steppe on dry meadows, forest edges, in bushes.
All aerial part and roots are used. The grass is gathered while blossoming of plants; roots – in the fall. The chemical composition is poorly understood. The plant contains carbohydrates (9.6%), whites (4.4%), fat (1.5%), cellulose (5.4%), vitamins, ash materials (4.6%) and others.
Sandy Sainfoin is a great honey plant, which gives 4-5 kg of transparent, light yellow and very sweet honey per day, and its kept in this condition for a long time before sugaring. The plant is good as a fodder plant.

Sort Blysk
Originator – Selection and Genetic Institute. Plants duringthe first year of life have a high tendency to bloom. Next years- at the beginning of budding plants are tall, straight through habit, with moderate branching. The stem is long, medium thickness, does not have anthocyanins color and without hairs in the middle part. The leaves are green, without gray-green color, long and wide, elliptical shape. The start time of blossoming and full bloom is average. The inflorescence has medium length, cylindrical shape. Pink flower with a steady color. Bean medium size,not dentinal. Middle-grade. It has a high drought resistance and winter hardiness. Resistance to root rot – higher than the average, that is why plants fail less and can be growing at the same place three years. The sort is just for one cut, in wet years after the first cut it creates good re-growth. The average yield capacity of dry matter per year of trial was 84.4 quintal / ha, the maximum -100.0 quintal / ha. The content of dry protein – 13,5%, gluten – 25.5%. the sort is recommended for cultivation in the steppe zone.

Sort Smaragd
The sort is recommended for cultivation in Ukrainian steppe zones and belongs to sandy kind. Bush is upright, bushiness is average, plant height is 100-120 cm. Stems have average roughness, half full and weakly pubescent. Number of internodes – 7-9. Green color units. The leaves are of medium size with a blunt tip of wide oval shape, dark green color on the bottom and light green in the upper tiers. Cones fusiform, medium density. The flowers are pink. Beans light brown, medium-sized.
Middle-grade, drought-resistant, winter-hardy, pretty resistant to diseases. Leaves density of plants – 52-54%. Protein content in the green mass in terms of absolutely dry substance – 17,9-18,8%. Weight of 1000 seeds ranges within 19-22 g. Average yield of green mass is 350 kg / ha, air-dry matter – 79.7 seeds – 8.3 quintal / ha.

INTERESTING FACTS ABOUT SAINFOIN:
1. By fodder value sainfoin belongs to the group of the best forage plants.
2. Sainfoin is an ancient plant. In the Caucasus it was grown in IX century (CE)
3. Sainfoin honey is one of the best kinds of honey, has a pleasant aroma and delicate flavor. Honey has light amber color, and for a long time does not crystallize.