I'll be planting some clover/chicory/alfafa here pretty soon. The clover and alfafa are already innoculated, but I've read that it's a good idea to do it again before planting. These require different innoculants though, don't they?

i don't think it requires different innoculants.

They need different innoculants but the blend that you buy will dictate what it's meant for. If they are already innoculated and have been kept cool and dry they should be fine.

Dan O.

Where do you buy the innoculants, at the feed mill/seed broker? Does corn and soybeans need innoculant? Is it expensive? Trying to be fully prepared at planting time this year. Thanks.

It is always a good idea to innoculate soybean seed, Its cheap and a little bit goes a long way. Just do it right before you plant and keep the seed out of direct sunlight once it has been innoculated.

Yes, but some bagged inoculants will have a couple different bacterias blended together for broad use. The last inoculant I purchased was Nitragin brand, it had two bacterias (Rhizobium meliloti, and Rizobium leguminosarum biovar trifolii). It waslabled for alfalfa, sweetclover, red, white, alsike, and ladino clovers.

Soybeans would use a different bacteria, Kura clover yet another different inoculant bacteria. A 6.6 ounce bag cost about $6, and will do about 80 lbs of clover seed.

Inoculant bacteria is not required to grow healthy clover, alfalfa, or soybeans! It only insures these legumes will have the ability to store Nitrogen from the air, in root nodules, for later use, or for next years crop. These legumes will use, and benefit from some applied Nitrogen, just like every other green plant. But in turn, Nitrogen will also benefit weeds and grasses that might be competeing with the legumes for water, nutrients, and space.

For farmers, inoculating legume seed is a cheap way to insure banking an extra 50 to 100 lbs of Nitrogen, in the soil, for next years crop, and saving on his future fertilizer bill.