I began to include irrigated alfalfa into the article, but I found I really don't know much about it, aside from driving by some in west Texas a few years back. Irrigated crops, whether grain or forage, in my opinion is an egregious waste of resources all around. There is also apparently a great deal of fertilizer involved in the growing of alfalfa for sale, because it tends to strip a lot of minerals out of the soil.
I had not considered electric mowers or balers, but I do think that automation is going to take over the mechanical part of agriculture in the immediate future anyway, so that's a logical progression anyhow.
Thank you for the praise. I hope to write more, as I have a little more time on my hands.
Alfalfa is actually a legume so it fixes nitrogen and essentially does not deplete the soil at all. Micro nutrients only. But it takes a lot of water.
It's going to take a major cultural shift to slow up irrigated farming. Such a high percentage of commercial ag is irrigated.
I believe alfalfa pulls off a lot of potassium, if I recall my HS agronomy class correctly. Also, even though it's a legume, most farmers apply a bit of nitrogen between cutting to push growth for swift recutting (at least around here, though it's not irrigated here).
Sadly the issues with commercial ag won't be resolved until its no longer (financially) advantageous to act so destructively.
Thats some good info. Thanks