Phenolic acids contents and allelopathic potential of 10-cultivars of alfalfa and their bioactivity

By high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) we determined the content of 6-phenolic acids (p-hydroxybenzoic acid, caffeic acid, p-coumaric acid, chlorogenic acid, ferulic acid and cinnamic acid) in fresh aerial parts and roots of 10-cultivars of alfalfa. The results showed that the concentrations and compositions of phenolic acids depended on the aerial part or roots of alfalfa. Bioassays were conducted with leaf litter leachates from all these cultivars on the seeding growth of Festuca arundinace and Sorghum sudanense. The growth of F. arundinace and S. sudanense was inhibited variably by different cultivars of alfalfa. At 50 mg/mL, the inhibitory effects of leaf litter leachates were higher on roots than on shoots. Our results demonstrate that the content of phenolic compounds and the allelopathic potential of 10-cultivars of alfalfa are differed from each other.