Jack Maloney used to be your typical farmer when it came to managing soil and fertility. He relied heavily on his local co-op for recommendations — after all, their agronomists had spent years in school studying science, chemistry and biology.
What producer doesn’t want to make the most efficient use of their fertilizer dollars? But more than ever, no-tillers are looking for ways to slash fertilizer costs while maximizing corn, soybean and wheat yields, says Phil Needham.
The higher the cost of the input, the more important it becomes to maximize efficiencies and make sure that input pays dividends. High fertilizer prices paired with potential environmental impact makes managing nutrient inputs doubly important.
RESULTS FROM A mid-February e-mail survey of no-tillers indicate there’s still a sizeable degree of uncertainty about the late-winter and early spring fertilizer situation. The results shown here are based on responses from 135 no-tillers with an average of 1,491 acres.
Cover crops, tissue samples, prescription applications, manure runoff control and many other practices used by several no-tillers to maximize soil fertility.
Besides the payback for getting the most bang for their nutrient buck, several no-till farmers were recognized for their efficient and environmentally sound fertility practices through the Responsible Nutrient Management Practitioner’s Program.
Understanding soil biology is critical to improving the soil profile for no-tillers. Jill Clapperton, a rhizosphere ecologist and agro-ecosystem consultant from Florence, Mont., promotes an understanding of how soil biology and ecology interact with cropping and soil management systems to facilitate long-term soil quality and productivity.
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On this episode of Conservation Ag Update, brought to you by Martin-Till, find out how several no-tillers are handling a wet month across parts of the Corn Belt. Central Illinois no-tiller Dave Brown is patiently waiting for Mother Nature to cooperate before he can finish up planting several hundred acres, while Wisconsin no-tiller Tyler Troiola deals with a tractor glitch and a 2-inch rain event in one day.
Needham Ag understands the role of technology in making better use of limited resources within a specific environment by drawing on a wealth of global experience to overcome the challenges facing today's farmers, manufacturers and dealers.
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