SOYL are advising farmers that variable rate application of nitogen this season will help to deliver at least 3%/£25 per ha at harvest.
The team at SOYL say that differences in availability of nitrogen caused by a mild and wet winter means that many crops are now particularly uneven with patchy forward areas, which is exactly the kind of situation where targeted nitrogen will improve plant performance and efficient use of nutrients.
Warm soil temperatures this winter have created a continual mineralisation of organic material, releasing more nitrogen available for plant uptake. However, this organic matter is mineralised into ammonium ions which are held in the soil but then nitrified into nitrate ions which are then very leachable. Elsewhere, high winter rainfall has added to losses of nitrogen in soils. The overall impact of all of these factors varies significantly locally depending on a number of factors including local weather and soil type. The end result is this season’s crops are developing very inconsistently, with some areas very forward and other areas further behind. This variation is apparent between farms and often differences can be seen even in the same field.
Farmer Graham Potter, of W Potter & Sons in North Yorkshire who uses SOYLsense said: “Variable rate nitrogen is a necessity, especially in a wet season like this. Crops are showing massive variation in growth and development coming out of winter and would be impossible to manage manually. SOYLsense provides me with the ability to view my entire farm at a glance and make management decisions based on this information. This will be my fourth season using the service. Fields are consistently yielding higher and producing even crop canopies which are easier to manage agronomically and ultimately easier to harvest. Early crop management is key to achieving an optimum canopy at harvest, with all the technology and information at my disposal I am doing everything I can to achieve this.”
