Fall can be a good time to apply dry phosphorus (P) and potassium (K) fertilizers because of lower workloads and drier soils. A fall dry fertilizer application can also increase P and K availability for crops planted in the spring by giving the fertilizer prill more time to undergo natural weathering and breakdown in the soil compared to spring applications.

However, just because you apply 300 pounds of P and K this fall, it doesn’t mean that all 300 pounds will be available to next season's crop. Soil physical, chemical and biological properties combined with weather conditions all play a role in fertilizer availability. Even under the best conditions, an application of dry fertilizer on its own is usually not very efficient. In the first season after application, only about 10-30% of applied P and 20-60% of applied K is typically available for use by the growing crop.

For a higher rate of fertilizer efficiency, Titan XC can be applied to dry fertilizer blends, increasing the efficiency of applied P and K fertilizers by an estimated 30%. This contributes to a number of benefits, including improved plant performance (as seen in the photos below from Dassel, Minnesota), as well as a positive yield response.

Cathy and Martin Quigley struck gold in the 2020 Ohio Wheat Yield Contest, coming in first in their district with a yield of 93.34 bushels per acre. 

What were the keys to Quigleys' success? First, selecting the right wheat variety, the right planting date and the right rate was important. The Quigleys, who live in Clinton county, used Dyna-Gro 9862, a soft red winter wheat, which they planted October 7, 2019.

Having an effective and efficient fertility program was another key to their success. Agricen’s biocatalyst technology was an integral part of the Quigleys' fertilizer program, with Titan XC applied at 1 pint per ton to their fall fertilizer blend and Extract PBA applied at spring topdress in a "weed and feed" application with UAN and broadleaf chemistry.

Does a pre-emergence application of Extract PBA increase soybean yields, and does it provide a return on investment?

In recent on-farm, replicated research conducted by Ohio State University (OSU) Extension, Extract PBA checked off both boxes, showing a positive yield benefit and a positive net return to the grower.

Cover crops provide many benefits that can improve the health of soil, water, and the following crop. However, they can also pose some drawbacks. In the spring at planting, cover crop skeletons can interfere with seed to soil contact. They can also stress the seedling by interfering with access to sunlight, requiring the planted crop to stretch so that it can reach above the cover crop canopy.

Extract PBA provides an efficient way to manage cover crop skeletons so that growers can avoid these issues and give the coming crop a nutritional boost. These Nutrien Ag Solutions trials conducted in Ohio show how an application of Extract PBA can break down cover crop skeletons to release nutrients for the following crop. 

After a fertilizer application, hungry crops must wait for nutrient mineralization to occur before the applied nutrients are available to use. To speed up and enhance this process, growers can utilize Extract PBA as a nutrient release tool to improve nutrient availability and uptake. As seen in this winter wheat trial, the result is noticeably better plant performance when compared to plants grown on untreated acres.

The trial, which was conducted in heavily manured fields in Ohio, looked at the effect of adding 1 gallon per acre of Extract PBA to a grower's existing fertilizer program of 28% UAN. Wheat plants in the untreated plot were planted on October 24, 2016, while plants in the Extract-treated plot were planted a month later, on November 25, 2016. Photos were taken in April 2017.

In Northern Ohio, Nutrien Ag Solutions conducted trials to evaluate the benefits of making a fall residue or spring pre-emerge application of Extract PBA (1 gallon per acre). In these trials, Extract was applied on corn stalks in fields where soybeans would be planted as the next crop. The data shows great potential for a growers' return on investment, with healthier plants and higher pod counts when Extract PBA was used. 

In the trial results shown below, the plants from the treated areas have a more robust structure to support higher yields. Pod clusters are also tighter, with more per node compared to plants from untreated strips in the test plots.

By Brian Cornelious, PhD, Director of Applied Sciences