Nitrogen loss: Lessons learned from the 2024 growing season is the big topic on today's episode of the Nutrient Management Podcast. What N application practices looked particularly bad in 2024? Some farmers are saying they are no longer going to apply fall N based on how 2024 played out. Is this warranted, or is it an overreaction? Is there any data back from split-application trials, or evaluations of rescue treatments? What did it tell us? In hindsight, what would have been ideal practices to have used this past year? What can we take away from the 2024 growing season with respect to how to manage fertilizer in the future?

TRANSCRIPT

Guests:

• Fabian Fernandez, Extension nutrient management specialist (St. Paul)
• Jeff Strock, Extension soil scientist (Lamberton)
• Jeff Vetsch, U of M researcher (Waseca)
• Lindsay Pease, Extension nutrient and water management specialist (Crookston)
• Brad Carlson, Extension educator (Mankato)

Additional Resources:

• Supplemental nitrogen worksheet for corn
• Minnesota corn fertilizer guidelines
• Video: Split-applying nitrogen for corn: Three keys for successful sidedress applications
• Corn nitrogen rate calculator
• Advancing Nitrogen Smart podcast series
• Nitrogen Smart educational program

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Click here to listen to all Nutrient Management Podcast episodes.

For the latest nutrient management information, subscribe to the Nutrient Management Podcast wherever you listen and never miss an episode. And don't forget to subscribe to the Minnesota Crop News daily or weekly email newsletter, and to our YouTube channel. Be sure to like UMN Extension Nutrient Management on Facebook, follow us on X (formerly Twitter), and of course visit our website.

If you have questions or comments, please email us at [email protected].
Support for the Nutrient Management Podcast is provided by Minnesota's fertilizer tonnage fee through the Agricultural Fertilizer Research & Education Council (AFREC). Learn more at MNsoilfertility.com.

In episode 12 of the Advancing Nitrogen Smart series Brad and Dan talk in detail about nitrification inhibitors. What are the two types of inhibitors, and what are best practices for incorporation? How do soil type, temperature, and precipitation factor into farmer decision-making? How much time does a nitrification inhibitor buy you? In what circumstances should inhibitors be avoided altogether? These answers and many, many more on today's episode.

TRANSCRIPT

Guests:

• Brad Carlson, Extension educator (Mankato)
• Daniel Kaiser, Extension nutrient management specialist (St. Paul)

Additional resources:

Nitrification inhibitors and manure: Do they work?Video: What to know about nitrogen inhibitors and other enhanced efficiency fertilizersA difference in degrees: Fall application efficiency at 50 FahrenheitNitrogen Smart---

Click here to listen to all Advancing Nitrogen Smart podcast episodes.

For the latest nutrient management information, subscribe to the Nutrient Management Podcast. And don't forget to subscribe to the Minnesota Crop News daily or weekly email newsletter, subscribe to our YouTube channel, like UMN Extension Nutrient Management on Facebook, follow us on X (formerly twitter), and visit our website.

If you have questions or comments, please email us at [email protected].

Advancing Nitrogen Smart is proud to be supported by the farm families of Minnesota and their corn check-off investment through Minnesota Corn.

By: Jack Wilcox, Extension communications generalist

Access to unbiased, research-based information is essential for farmers and agricultural professionals. On the Advancing Nitrogen Smart podcast series, Extension educator Brad Carlson and Extension nutrient management specialist Dan Kaiser examine and unpack the latest in nitrogen management research and recommendations, enabling farmers to make their own best decisions to maximize profits and minimize nitrogen loss to the environment.

The Advancing Nitrogen Smart podcast series just turned 10! (episodes old). If you haven't listened yet, you can tune in here. Here's what we've covered so far and what you can expect from us in the near future.

Advancing Nitrogen Smart episodes:

Ep. 1 - N Placement Brad and Dan launch our series with a detailed discussion about the first of the 4 Rs - placement. What should Minnesota farmers know about depth, incorporation, loss pathways, and more to help achieve optimal nitrogen efficiency?

Ep. 2 - Best Management Practices (BMPs) How are nitrogen BMPs calculated, and how do they change over time? What should growers keep in mind regarding regional adjustments in the BMPs? What kinds of risks are the BMPs designed to address? How do the 4 Rs figure into Minnesota's nitrogen best management practices?

Ep. 3 - Carryover N Brad and Dan explain what carryover nitrogen is, how and when to test for carryover nitrogen, and what to keep in mind when considering this potential N fertilizer credit in Minnesota.

Ep. 4 - Sidedressing What are the growth stages critical to effective and efficient sidedressing? What are options for assessing whether to add supplemental N, and how should they be used? How do wet conditions affect yield, and are rescue treatments economically advantageous? What sensing methods are available (such as drones) and what are their pros and cons?

Ep. 5 - Soil water storage Brad and Dan identify the various ways that the soil stores water, and how nitrogen transforms in that soil under different climate conditions. They discuss field saturation and the water budget, heat units and how to track them, and how these trends have changed throughout Minnesota over the last 60 years.

Ep. 6 - N Transformation up close We take a look at the nitrogen transformation process in our 6th episode. Brad and Dan talk in greater detail about temperature conditions, rainfall vs. drainage, and what makes knowing this information so valuable to Minnesota farmers and ag professionals

Ep. 7 - Nitrogen pools What are nitrogen pools, and where do we find them? How is N actually consumed by the plant, and what forms of N will plants take up more readily? What are some potential signs of N deficiency in the plant? How do nitrogen pools relate back to the 4 Rs, like timing?

Ep. 8 - Timing What makes understanding timing central to using nitrogen efficiently? Should growers apply in fall, and if so, what source should be avoided? Between which growth stages does corn take up the bulk of a field's N? What do weather extremes teach us about optimal timing? Do some timing decisions negatively affect farmers' finances? In what ways? Brad and Dan break it all down.

Ep. 9 - Your optimal N rate What makes both over-application and under-application of nitrogen counter-productive in terms of yield? How does a Maximum Return To Nitrogen rate (MRTN) approach differ from a yield-based approach? What are long-term environmental consequences of over-application, and how does this relate to a farmer's operation? What are some ways to address in-field variability when determining N rate?

Ep. 10 - Fall manure application Extension manure management specialist Melissa Wilson joins Brad and Dan to talk about some of the most important dos and don'ts of fall manure application. How much time can nitrification inhibitors buy you after application? What's the optimum soil temperature for application, and what if you can't wait? What are characteristics of manure from different sources, and how can they work to your advantage?

What's coming up?

In the upcoming weeks, look for episodes on (among other things) a history of nitrogen rate decision-making, what different rate variability studies have shown, predicting rate needs going forward, and a discussion on fertilizer types.

Advancing Nitrogen Smart is proud to be supported by the farm families of Minnesota and their corn check-off investment through Minnesota Corn.

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Click here to listen to all Advancing Nitrogen Smart podcast episodes.

For the latest nutrient management information, subscribe to the Nutrient Management Podcast. And don't forget to subscribe to the Minnesota Crop News daily or weekly email newsletter, subscribe to our YouTube channel, like UMN Extension Nutrient Management on Facebook, follow us on X (formerly twitter), and visit our website.

If you have questions or comments, please email us at [email protected].

In this episode of the Nutrient Management Podcast, our panelists discuss liming in detail. What kind of variation is there in liming recommendations? Since pH changes aren’t instant, when is the best time to apply limestone? Is lime application economically justified, and in what circumstances? What should growers know about selecting liming materials? What other bits of advice do our panelists recommend?

TRANSCRIPT

Guests:

• Daniel Kaiser, Extension nutrient management specialist (St. Paul)
• Carl Rosen, Extension nutrient management specialist (St. Paul)
• Jeff Vetsch, U of M researcher (Waseca)
• John Jones, Soil Fertility, plant nutrition, and nutrient management research, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign

Additional resources:

• Soil test pH and liming: Common questions and answers
• Lime needs in Minnesota
• Liming materials for Minnesota soils
• Fertilizer Recommendation Support Tool (FRST)

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Click here to listen to all Nutrient Management Podcast episodes.

For the latest nutrient management information, subscribe to the Nutrient Management Podcast wherever you listen and never miss an episode. And don't forget to subscribe to the Minnesota Crop News daily or weekly email newsletter, and to our YouTube channel. Be sure to like UMN Extension Nutrient Management on Facebook, follow us on X (formerly Twitter), and of course visit our website.

If you have questions or comments, please email us at [email protected].
Support for the Nutrient Management Podcast is provided by Minnesota's fertilizer tonnage fee through the Agricultural Fertilizer Research & Education Council (AFREC). Learn more at MNsoilfertility.com.

This episode of the Nutrient Management Podcast is our annual fall fertilizer outlook for 2024. After such a challenging growing season throughout most of the state, how do things look headed toward harvest? Since most of the state went from being too dry last year to too wet this year, how should this affect the approach to fertility management? What role will fertility play in sound financial management this fall? What advice do our panelists give growers as we head into the fall?

TRANSCRIPT

Guests:

• Daniel Kaiser, Extension nutrient management specialist (St. Paul)
• Brad Carlson, Extension educator (Mankato)
• Jeff Vetsch, U of M researcher (Waseca)
• Fabian Fernandez, Extension nutrient management specialist (St. Paul)

Additional resources:

• Are you overspending on fertilizer?
• 2024 Certified Soil Testing Laboratories
• Nitrogen Fertilizer BMPs for Agricultural Lands

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For the latest nutrient management information, subscribe to the Nutrient Management Podcast wherever you listen and never miss an episode. And don't forget to subscribe to the Minnesota Crop News daily or weekly email newsletter, and to our YouTube channel. Be sure to like UMN Extension Nutrient Management on Facebook, follow us on X (formerly Twitter), and of course visit our website.

We want to hear from you. If you have questions or comments, please email us at [email protected].

Support for the Nutrient Management Podcast is provided by Minnesota's fertilizer tonnage fee through the Agricultural Fertilizer Research & Education Council (AFREC). Learn more at MNsoilfertility.com.

In this episode of the Advancing Nitrogen Smart series, our two experts discuss nitrogen pools. What are nitrogen pools, and where do we find them? How is N actually consumed by the plant, and what forms of N will plants take up more readily? What are some potential signs of N deficiency in the plant? How do nitrogen pools relate back to the 4R's, like timing?

TRANSCRIPT

Guests:

• Brad Carlson, Extension educator (Mankato)
• Daniel Kaiser, Extension nutrient management specialist (St. Paul)

Additional resources:

• Will soil microbes deliver nitrogen to my crop? Yes, but not in a predictable way
• Nitrogen
• Understanding nitrogen in soils

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Click here to listen to all Advancing Nitrogen Smart podcast episodes.
For the latest nutrient management information, subscribe to the Nutrient Management Podcast. And don't forget to subscribe to the Minnesota Crop News daily or weekly email newsletter, subscribe to our YouTube channel, like UMN Extension Nutrient Management on Facebook, follow us on X (formerly Twitter), and visit our website.

If you have questions or comments, please email us at [email protected].

Advancing Nitrogen Smart is proud to be supported by the farm families of Minnesota and their corn check-off investment through Minnesota Corn.

In this episode of the Nutrient Management Podcast, we’re talking about phosphorus fertilizer guidelines in Minnesota and throughout the Midwest. What are current state guidelines throughout the region, and are they satisfactory? Should farmers forgo taking a soil test to measure P levels, or should the test be prioritized? Might state phosphorus guidelines need to be revised, and if so, in what ways? What guidance or advice pertaining to phosphorus guidelines would our panel tell growers?

TRANSCRIPT

Guests:

• Daniel Kaiser, Extension nutrient management specialist (St. Paul)
• Antonio P. Mallarino, Professor emeritus, nutrient management, Iowa State University (Ames, IA)
• John Jones, Soil Fertility, plant nutrition, and nutrient management research, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, (Urbana-Champaign, Il)
• Dorivar Ruiz Diaz, KSU Professor, Soil fertility and nutrient management, Kansas State University (Manhattan, KS)

Additional resources:

• Phosphorus and potassium
• Corn fertilizer guidelines
• What is the best soil test option for phosphorus?
• FRST Fertilizer Recommendation Support Tool launches nationwide to digitize crop nutrient management
• No P, no problem? Skipping phosphorus fertilizer application may make agronomic, economic sense (October 2022)
• Confused about differences in phosphorus fertilizer sources? Here are the facts.
• 5 things to know about removal-based P and K strategies (November 2022)
• P and K “fixation” in the soil: What you need to know (November 2022)
• September 2022 podcast: P and K fertilizer guidelines: Why do they differ from state to state?

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For the latest nutrient management information, subscribe to the Nutrient Management Podcast wherever you listen and never miss an episode. And don't forget to subscribe to the Minnesota Crop News daily or weekly email newsletter, and to our YouTube channel. Be sure to like UMN Extension Nutrient Management on Facebook, follow us on X, and of course visit our website.

If you have questions or comments, please email us at [email protected].
Support for the Nutrient Management Podcast is provided by Minnesota's fertilizer tonnage fee through the Agricultural Fertilizer Research & Education Council (AFREC). Learn more at MNsoilfertility.com.

In the 6th episode of the Advancing Nitrogen Smart series, we’re taking an up-close look at the nitrogen transformation process. We’ll talk more about temperature conditions, rainfall versus drainage, and what makes knowing these details so valuable to Minnesota farmers and producers (as well as growers around the world).

TRANSCRIPT

Guests:

• Brad Carlson, Extension educator (Mankato)
• Daniel Kaiser, Extension nutrient management specialist (St. Paul)

Additional resources:

• Nitrogen
• Understanding nitrogen in soils - Nitrogen Transformation
• Video: What to know about nitrogen inhibitors and other enhanced efficiency fertilizers

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Click here to listen to all Advancing Nitrogen Smart podcast episodes.

For the latest nutrient management information, subscribe to the Nutrient Management Podcast. And don't forget to subscribe to the Minnesota Crop News daily or weekly email newsletter, subscribe to our YouTube channel, like UMN Extension Nutrient Management on Facebook, follow us on X (formerly Twitter), and visit our website. 

If you have questions or comments, please email us at [email protected].

Advancing Nitrogen Smart is proud to be supported by the farm families of Minnesota and their corn check-off investment through Minnesota Corn.

In this episode of the Nutrient Management Podcast, we’re talking about manure application in 2024. What’s the value of manure today, given that fertilizer prices are still elevated compared to 2018 and 2019? What does long-term research show us about manure’s value, and how might this information benefit growers and producers? Which manure best management practices (BMPs) help growers be most efficient? In what ways has ManureDB benefited farmers since its launch one year ago? What’s on the horizon for manure management?

TRANSCRIPT

Guests:

• Melissa Wilson, Extension manure nutrient management specialist (St. Paul)
• Chryseis Modderman, Extension educator (Morris, MN)
• Mary Keena, Extension livestock environment management specialist, North Dakota State University (Carrington, ND)
• Amy Schmidt, Livestock manure management engineer, University of Nebraska-Lincoln (Lincoln, NE)

Additional resources:

• Manure Management
• ManureDB
• Long-term Cropping Systems Study (NDSU)
• Manure and minimum tillage: How to balance soil health and nutrient loss goals

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For the latest nutrient management information, subscribe to the Nutrient Management Podcast wherever you listen and never miss an episode. And don't forget to subscribe to the Minnesota Crop News daily or weekly email newsletter, and to our YouTube channel. Be sure to like UMN Extension Nutrient Management on Facebook, follow us on Twitter, and of course visit our website.

If you have questions or comments, please email us at [email protected].

Support for the Nutrient Management Podcast is provided by Minnesota's fertilizer tonnage fee through the Agricultural Fertilizer Research & Education Council (AFREC). Learn more at MNsoilfertility.com.

In the 5th episode of the Advancing Nitrogen Smart series, we’re talking about the ways the soil stores water, and how nitrogen transforms in that soil under different climate conditions. We’ll discuss field saturation and the water budget, heat units and how to track them, and how these trends have changed throughout MN over the last 60 years.

TRANSCRIPT

Guests:

• Brad Carlson, Extension educator (Mankato)
• Daniel Kaiser, Extension nutrient management specialist (St. Paul)

Additional resources:

• Nitrogen BMPs, MN Dept of Agriculture
• Ecological and Water Resources Mesonet, MN Dept of Agriculture
• National Weather Service Temperature and Precipitation Map

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Click here to listen to all Advancing Nitrogen Smart podcast episodes.

For the latest nutrient management information, subscribe to the Nutrient Management Podcast. And don't forget to subscribe to the Minnesota Crop News daily or weekly email newsletter, subscribe to our YouTube channel, like UMN Extension Nutrient Management on Facebook, follow us on Twitter, and visit our website.

If you have questions or comments, please email us at [email protected].

Advancing Nitrogen Smart is proud to be supported by the farm families of Minnesota and their corn check-off investment through Minnesota Corn.