Balancing

Making fertilizer decisions is even more challenging in this high-cost environment.

Maximizing a return on investment in fertility expenses begins with a good soil test, according to Matt Essick, Pioneer agronomy manager.

“A soil test for phosphorous and potassium that shows we’re in the high or very high category for a field can indicate that we can possibly skip a year of fertilizer application in those fields,” Essick said. “However, if we skip a year of fertilizer application, we do need to keep in mind that the next crop is going to remove some of that fertility from the field and will eventually need to be replaced.”

Essick added that applications of P and K at higher than economically optimal rates in a particular year can offset fertilizer requirements in future years. Both P and K are relatively stable in soils and can be “banked” for later use if economically advantageous.

Growers may also adopt a nutrient sufficiency management plan. This philosophy focuses on applying the minimum amount of inputs needed to maximize profitability in the year of application, with little concern for future soil test values or requirements.

Build-and-maintain fertility programs contrast with the nutrient-sufficiency approach in that they are not intended to maximize economic returns in any given year. harvested acres, a drop from 631.89 million bushels in 2021. Harvested acres were unchanged from 2021.

Rather, they are designed to provide flexibility and consistent economic returns over the long-term by removing P and K as yield-limiting factors.

“Regardless of which method growers go with, a few general rules of thumb apply: Always fertilize when soil test levels fall below the optimal range, avoid applications on high-testing soils and, when in doubt, fertilize based on expected rates of crop removal,” Essick said.

Tom C. Doran can be reached at 815410-2256 or tdoran@shawmedia.com. Follow him on Twitter at: @AgNews_Doran.

Nationwide

Corn for grain production in the United States was estimated at 13.7 billion bushels, down 9 percent from the 2021 estimate.

The average U.S. corn yield was es - testing in both phosphorous and potassium in our corn plots,” Deutmeyer said. “It also replicated in soybean plots where we had a 20-bushel difference between our low-yielding soybeans plots and our high-yielding soybean plots. There’s a very strong correlation in both phosphorous and soil test potassium levels as we move between those different yield levels.”

Optimum Phosphorous

For phosphorous, trials found optimum yields were achieved when soil test levels ranged from 30 to 50 ppm.

“In our soil sample initiative, we found that 51 percent of the fields that our customers had that we were doing research in tested very low to low phosphorous levels,” Deutmeyer said. “Phosphorous is important for a whole bunch of different plant processes as well — photosynthesis, cell division, respiration, energy transport, storage and many other items.”

Livestock

For livestock producers utilizing manure as a fertilizer, Deut- timated at 173.3 bushels per acre, 3.4 bushels below the 2021 record high yield of 176.7 bushels per acre. meyer referred to data that found when phosphorous soil test level reached 100 ppm or higher, yields decreased.

Record high yields were also estimated in Idaho, 216 bushels per acre; Minnesota, 195; Virginia, 167; West Virginia, 168; and Wisconsin, 180.

U.S. soybean production in 2022 totaled 4.28 billion bushels, down 4 percent from 2021. The average yield was estimated at 49.5 bushels per acre, 2.2 bushels below 2021.

“There may be too much of a good thing. Take a look at your soil test. If you have fields approaching 100 ppm or above of phosphorous, it would probably be a really good idea to move those manure applications to another field,” he said. “Not only can high phosphorous levels start to potentially limit and decrease yield, phosphorous is also a water quality concern, as well. The algae blooms that we see in our lakes, rivers and ponds are primarily due to excessive phosphorous.

“In summary, shoot for soil test potassium levels of 200 ppm to 250 ppm range. On phosphorous soil test let’s shoot for 30 to 50 parts per million range. That way we’ll be able to maintain those yields near 100 percent potential and that really almost weather proofs us a little bit in regards to protecting us from Mother Nature.”

Tom C. Doran can be reached at 815-410-2256 or tdoran@shawmedia.com. Follow him on Twitter at: @AgNews_Doran.

For folks living in the country, that type of retaliation is no problem most of the time. City dwellers may end up with a hefty fine if they decide to shoot a pest in the middle of the night while their neighbors are sleeping less than 100 feet away. Other than that, Clark Floss recommends to spoil your chickens. Give ‘em a sun room in the chicken house. (No, seriously!)

Iowa families know how excited their kids get when they’re around chickens, too. Clark Floss says the little ones love looking around for the eggs in the coop and in the hiding spots all around the yard. Chickens can also be an excellent educational tool into the world agriculture, a child-friendly introductory lesson into Iowa farm life.

Sometimes chickens can be stubborn. Sometimes they lay more eggs than people know what to do with. Sometimes they just stop laying eggs. Sometimes they get into trouble, or trouble finds them. Some- times it seems like you are putting too much time and effort into keeping predators away. But a farm is not complete without them, Clark Floss says, and they create great memories.

Soybean planted area for the nation, at 87.5 million acres, was up less than 1 percent from the 2021 planted acreage. Soybean growers harvested 86.3 million acres, up slightly from 2021.

Record high soybean yields were reported in Arkansas, 52 bushels per acre, and Mississippi, 54.

Tom C. Doran can be reached at 815410-2256 or tdoran@shawmedia.com. Follow him on Twitter at: @AgNews_ Doran.

“My dad was getting eggs in a five-gallon bucket one day,” she recalls. “He was out in the cattle yard and he tripped coming over the fence. I saw it, of course, and all those eggs went flying. We still talk about Dad and those eggs and laugh about it.”

— Christopher Braunshweig