Nitrogen - Articles

How Nitrogen Fertilizers React with the Soil

September 9, 2024

Anhydrous ammonia (82% N) is applied as a gas from high pressure tanks through tubes and anhydrous knifes that inject ammonia (NH3+) six to eight inches below the surface to minimize (NH3+) escape into the air.

How Controlled Release Nitrogen Affects Strip-Cropped Corn

August 27, 2024

Research on corn-soybean strip-cropping has demonstrated higher yields on the edge rows of corn and reduced yield on the edge rows of soybeans.

Use Cover Crops to Tackle Palmer Amaranth

The timing of termination is crucial for producers trying to control challenging weeds by planting into a rye cover crop.

By Elizabeth Hodges posted on August 7, 2024 | Posted in Termination

Source: Farm Progress

With Palmer amaranth becoming more herbicide-resistant, producers are pushing to find new ways to control it, such as using a rye cover crop to suppress it.

Study Highlights Benefits of Multi-Species Cover Crop Mixes

By Jordan Strickler posted on July 24, 2024 | Posted in Seeding Practices, Soil Health

Source: Phys.org

A University of Kentucky study titled "Productivity benefits of cereal-legume cover crop mixtures under variable soil nitrogen and termination times" suggests that mixing cover crops is a beneficial strategy for modern agriculture.

Soybeans and Cover Crops Can Work Together for Better Soil Health, Yields

Cereal rye biomass helped curtail weeds and reduce soil temperature

June 1, 2024

Source: Morning Ag Clips

There are many benefits when using cover crops in a crop rotation including reduced erosion from wind and water and improved soil organic matter.

Which Cover Crops Bloom Early Enough to Benefit Following Corn Crop?

By John Hart posted on April 2, 2024 | Posted in Soil Health, Termination

Source: Farm Progress

A benefit of legumes is that they can mine nitrogen, phosphorus, and potash from the subsoil. Frame said a goal of the research is to discover if those nutrients from the cover crop can be used by the cash crop following the cover crop.

How Cover Crop Species & Termination Time Affect N Release

By Gustavo Pesini, Tuana Ferreira de Almeida, and Andrea Basche posted on August 7, 2023 | Posted in Soil Health, Termination

Source: University of Nebraska-Lincoln Institute of Agriculture and Natural Resources: Cropwatch

While later cover crop termination in the spring can allow for more biomass accumulation, such later termination can change the C-to-N composition of the plants impacting residue decomposition. Therefore, identifying the best time for cover crop termination to provide optimal N cycling benefits can help farmers make decisions about cover crop management.

Growing Nitrogen with Legume Cover Crops

Nitrogen is an essential nutrient for plant growth, but price fluctuations of fertilizers leave farmers looking for alternative solutions. Planting legumes as a cover crop can increase soil nitrogen and perhaps even reduce reliance on fertilizers.

By Brook Wilke posted on May 12, 2023 | Posted in Soil Health, Investing in Regenerative Ag

Source: Michigan State University Extension

Nitrogen is an essential nutrient for plant growth, but price fluctuations of fertilizers leave farmers looking for alternative solutions. Planting legumes as a cover crop can increase soil nitrogen and perhaps even reduce reliance on fertilizers.

Winter Cover Crops Could Reduce Nitrogen in Drainage Water by 30%

April 25, 2023 | Posted in Soil Health

Source: University of Illinois

As Corn Belt states seek ways to curb nitrogen flow from farms into the Gulf of Mexico, new University of Illinois research adds evidence for winter cover crops as an important part of the solution.

Scientists Identify Cover Crops That Keep Nitrogen in Soil

July 25, 2022 | Posted in Seeding Practices, Soil Health

Source: High Plains Journal

To keep nitrogen where it can do the most good, a team of ARS scientists is developing new techniques for cover crop breeders. Their goal: to help the breeders identify plants whose extended underground root systems (known as the rhizosphere) are most effective at keeping nitrogen in the soil.