Navigating Fertilizer Uncertainty

About this episode

This episode discusses strategies for managing nitrogen fertilizer amidst uncertainty and the importance of timely application for crop yield.

Have recent geopolitical events left you short on nitrogen? Or are you holding back due to high input costs and uncertainty around how much you’ll sell the crop for? The good news is that for most of our other nutrients we can short them for one year as long as we haven’t been shorting them for many years. When you keep up with replacement then you have a buffer in place. Nitrogen is not like this. Applying some upfront is nearly always needed. There’s always the option to top up later—if conditions improve and product is available. But just because you can doesn’t always mean you should. Cereals and oilseeds take up nitrogen faster than many expect. By the time you’re ready to top up, the crop may have already locked in its yield potential based on what it sensed during early root exploration. This month, I focus on a practical framework to help you decide when a split nitrogen strategy makes sense. I’ll also point you back to a few articles that can help you if you are struggling with what to do about the other nutrients, including the value of biostimulants, humic acids, and other non-traditional fertility sources.Transcript with links to everything mentioned in the…

People in this episode

Host: Scott Gillespie

Topics covered

• fertilizer management
• nitrogen application
• crop yield potential
• geopolitical impacts on agriculture
• nutrient replacement strategies
• biostimulants
• non-traditional fertility sources

Keywords

• nitrogen
• fertilizer
• crop management
• geopolitical events
• input costs
• yield potential
• split nitrogen strategy
• biostimulants
• humic acids

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Plants Dig Soil

Products: biostimulants, humic acids, fertility sources

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