Time to focus on nitrogen use efficiency
TAILORING fertiliser applications to match soil and crop nutrient requirements can help increase nitrogen use efficiency (NUE) and maximise investment in fertiliser and nutrition products next season.
This was a key focus on Origin Fertilisers’ stand at CropTec, where recent trial work will be on show highlighting the importance of understanding how different nutrients interreact to increase fertiliser availability to the plant. Trials involving applying molybdenum as a fertiliser coating have delivered significant improvements to NUE.
Using molybdenum in this way had helped improve the sustainability of nitrogen – helping the crop take up more of the N quicker rather than losing it to the environment and increased the return on investment as growers are achieving more from the same inputs, it was revealed.
Origin NUE-Trition products are key to this, aimed at helping users increase NUE and measure it more effectively to understand where gains can be made.
Origin will also be displaying the latest results from a trial involving DigestIt, a single application biological treatment that has been used in digestate for the first time. Results included a 20.3% increase in ammonium nitrogen and a 29% reduction in oven dry solids.
Digest-It also improved the workability of the digestate, making it easier to pump and apply, reducing fuel use and wear on machinery. The results illustrate that the same amount of land can have 13% more digestate spread on it before NVZ limits are reached.
“Making current fertiliser strategies go further and being more efficient with applications will be essential this year, and targeted nutrition can play a big role in this,” said Peter Scott, technical director at Origin Fertilisers.
“If farmers are looking carefully at fertiliser spend,
we want to be helping them to apply the right product, at the right time, in the right place and at the right rate and
not leave the soil and crop lacking in nutrients that will have a detrimental effect on yield and quality.”