NEW SOURCE POPULATIONS DEVELOPMENT STUDIES IN THE ALFALFA (MEDICAGO SATIVA L.) BREEDING

The objective of this study was to development new source populations in alfalfa. The forage yield and quality of thirty-seven alfalfa (Medicago sativa L.) genotypes were determined. The experiment was conducted in a randomized complete block design with 3 replicates in 2015, 2016 and 2017 in Antalya, in Turkey. Seven cuttings were done every year during the vegetation period of three years. There were determined that dry matter yield (DMY), crude protein (CP), neutral detergent fiber (NDF), acid detergent fiber (ADF), acid detergent lignin (ADL) and relative feed value (RFV). As three-year observations; DMY were found between 1710.84-3642.94 kg da(-1), CP 15.57-19.83%, ADF 30.50-34.36%, NDF 38.86-45.80%, ADL 7.16-8.55% and RFV 125.43-159.93. Eight alfalfa genotypes (Gazipasa-1, Konyaalti-1, Konyaalti-2, Finike-1, Finike-1, Demre-1, Kas-1 and Akcay) were selected for alfalfa breeding program, reason for their superior yield and quality characteristic.