Core Ideas Mixtures of alfalfa with meadow fescue, tall fescue, or meadow bromegrass have comparable yields and persistence to alfalfa‐timothy. Mixtures with festulolium or perennial ryegrass had lower total seasonal DM yields than the alfalfa‐timothy mixture. Harvesting mixtures at the alfalfa early flower stage maximizes the estimated milk production per ha. Timothy (Phleum pratense L.) is the main forage grass species cultivated with alfalfa (Medicago sativa L.) in eastern Canada, yet its regrowth under dry and warm conditions is poor. Air temperature and water stress are predicted to increase in the near future, which could further reduce timothy’s regrowth. We evaluated six alfalfa–grass binary mixtures at three contrasted sites in eastern Canada to find potential alternatives to the alfalfa–timothy mixture under current climatic conditions. Timothy, tall fescue (Schedonorus arundinaceus [Schreb.] Dumort.), meadow fescue (Schedonorus pratensis [Huds.] P. Beauv.), festulolium (× Festulolium Asch. & Graebn), perennial ryegrass (Lolium perenne L.), and meadow bromegrass (Bromus biebersteinii Roem. & Schult.) were evaluated with harvests either at the early bud or early flower stage of alfalfa. Dry matter yield, nutritive attributes, and the yield contribution of each species were determined. Alfalfa mixtures with festulolium (cv. Spring Green) and perennial ryegrass (cv. Remington) had inferior grass yield contributions due to winter damages, as well as inferior forage yield and estimated milk production per hectare; these cultivars are not currently viable alternatives to timothy in eastern Canada. In contrast, alfalfa–meadow fescue and alfalfa–meadow bromegrass mixtures produced comparable yields, nutritive value, and estimated milk production per hectare and they are, therefore, possible alternatives to the alfalfa‐timothy mixture. The alfalfa–tall fescue mixture also represents a possible alternative; its lower nutritive value was compensated by its slightly greater yield. Timothy, tall fescue, meadow fescue, and meadow bromegrass remained productive over the first three production years when cultivated in mixture with alfalfa.

There is a lack of persistent forage legumes for permanent pastures in eastern Canada. Kura clover (Trifolium ambiguum M. Bieb.; KC) is a long‐lived species, with demonstrated potential in various regions, however, there is a lack of information on its performance in mixtures with grasses and no comparisons with white clover (Trifolium repens L.; WC), the main legume species recommended for pastures in eastern Canada. Objectives were to evaluate the potential of KC when grown in mixtures with grasses and compare its performance with WC based‐mixtures and N‐fertilized grass monocultures. Twenty treatments that included KC, WC, and six perennial grasses species (Kentucky bluegrass [Poa pratensis L.; KB], meadow bromegrass [Bromus biebersteinii Roem. & Schult., MB], orchardgrass [Dactylis glomerata L., OR], smooth bromegrass [Bromus inermis L.; SB], tall fescue [Schedonorus arundinaceus (Schreb.) Dumort.; TF], and timothy [Phleum pratense L.; TI]) seeded alone and in binary mixtures were seeded in 2 yr at two sites and monitored for up to four production years. During the first production year, WC‐based mixtures yields were overall greater than those of KC‐based mixtures, while in the second production year and onwards, KC treatments had similar or greater yields than WC, illustrating the greater persistence of KC. Adding KC to grasses also increased total forage yields by 13% on average compared to N‐fertilized solo‐seeded grasses. The performance of specific KC–grass mixtures was variable across sites‐years with no specific mixture being consistently more productive. Kura clover is adapted to contrasting environments of Québec and appears to be a suitable alternative to WC.