Nutrient management planning ensures that crops receive the right nutrients in the right amounts at the right time. When done effectively, it not only promotes healthy crop growth but also maximises yields and minimises environmental impacts.
Rachel Clifton, one of our experts in nutrient management planning, sheds light on the plan’s key principles and practices, and what is involved in the process of getting one.
Before making fertiliser purchase decisions, farmers are advised to review an array of factors which will determine a crops need, be it the type or quantity of fertiliser.
Over the last 20 months, we have seen a hike in fertiliser prices due to the war in Ukraine and so it is more important than ever that farmers are making informed decisions around fertiliser applications.
Beneficial soil microbes play a critical role in the acquisition, ‘renaturing’ and transfer of soil nutrients into plants. Biofertilisers (microbial biostimulants) comprise living micro-organisms which, unlike traditional fertilisers multiply as they enter the ground, act to increase Nutrient Use Efficiency (NUE) of plants.
In a world where input costs are rising and soil health is rightly being championed, building soil biology is a very practical way to reduce fertigation and improve soil structure and carbon capacity.
The evidence that most grassland soils require the application of sulphur from fertilisers to maximise grass silage and grazing yields still mounts. Most farmers now appreciate that all light and medium soils, and even some heavier loam soils, do not release enough sulphur from organic matter to allow grass growth and quality to meet potential. They also realise that there is not enough available sulphur in slurries and manures to meet demand.
The first thing to consider when looking at the finer details of grassland management is whether you have a full understanding of your soil and its nutritional status. If the answer is no, then to get the maximum benefit from a reseed or established leys, I would always advise checking the soil structure and sampling on a field-by-field basis. This will help to determine key factors such as the pH of your soil which is essential for nutrient availability, as well as the current levels of N, P, K and other elements.
Grass breeder, Germinal, recently identified that soil which is moderately damaged – with poor soil structure and which is suffering
Overseeding is a very simple but effective way to rejuvenate old or damaged grass leys without the cost of a complete reseed. Increases in yield and quality can be achieved without ploughing and the time spent out of production can be reduced.
The 2021/22 AHDB Recommended List sees several high yielding varieties introduced in the wheat and barley groups. For maximum potential yield to be achieved, crops need to be provided with the correct balance of essential nutrients throughout the growing season.
Improving Nitrogen fertiliser Use Efficiency (NfUE) will be one of the most important ways in which UK growers can improve their business productivity in the future.
The single most important decision you can make to maximise your NfUE lies in the type of fertiliser you choose in the first place, says CF Fertilisers’ head agronomy Dr. Sajjad Awan. Whilst good management can help finetune the effectiveness of your applications, start with the wrong Nitrogen source and you’ll be locked into lower levels of NfUE with little you can do to lift it, he says.
“NfUE is essentially a measure of how much of the Nitrogen applied ends up in the crop. “In simple terms, if you apply 100kg N/ha and only 50kg N/ha is taken up by your crop, you will have an NfUE of 50% and half of the N you have paid for has gone somewhere other than into your crops as intended “Improving NfUE benefits your crop, your pocket and the wider environment.
Whether you are looking at it from the perspective of clean air, reducing your carbon footprint or increasing production efficiency, loss of N from the cropping system is a major problem.”
Energy and protein feed costs look set to remain high through the remainder of the year, so maximising clamp fill and forage quality will matter more than ever. As you will be aware however, fertiliser pricing and availability on farm are proving challenging, so what are your options?
Inclusion of spring cereal crops in a rotation can be economically beneficial, providing either cash crops or valuable home-grown starch and energy feed sources. However, to see a good return on investment, it’s important to achieve maximum potential yields and this requires attention to detail when it comes to a nutrient plan.
