Today I'd like to talk a little bit about soil fertility. Something that seems to be a rule for most of the professionals and individuals involved in our beloved agriculture.
There are so many type of soils, enviromental conditions (like different climates for example) and cultural practices (adopted tillage system and many other practices unknown for many).
What's the most accurate way to manage fertility ?
And here's where many people make the 1st mistake when managing either small or large farm operations; SOIL SAMPLING.
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| Take the soil sample with the probe |
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| Get a descent soil core |
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| Put it in a ziploc bag and write date, location and field #. Do it several times so you get a few cores per bag. |
After you get your soil samples taken and submitted to the lab you'll get the results and that's the hard part, interpret the results.
My recommendation is to create a soil fertilization program according to the results that we obtain from the soil test. Knowing where we are standing at will give us a better understanding of what do we need to put down and how much of that specific item do we need.
Something really important to consider when making a nutrient program is to know the Crop Extraction Rate (I call it CER) so we can find out how much is the crop going to take away from the soil. My formula is fairly simple; Fertilizer amount = Soil Test Results - CER (expressed in ppm). If balance is negative multiply by -1.
Have a good one !
Have a good one !
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