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Grasses, Pastures & Hay
another soil fertility question
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<blockquote data-quote="SRBeef" data-source="post: 740092" data-attributes="member: 7509"><p>In addition to the above comments, another issue is the "form" of the fertilizer. When you apply chemical P & K it is not all available to the grass/crop in the next season. Only about 1/3 of it is in many soils. And this "availability" is also affected by the soil acidity or pH.</p><p></p><p>An important thing about fertilizer to remember is that N (nitrogen) is very mobile in the soil. In wet years it can leach down below where the roots can reach it. </p><p></p><p>P & K (phosphorus and potassium) on the other hand are NOT very mobile in the soil. Applied on the surface as usually done in a pasture it may stay mostly on or near the surface and move down only very slowly over a period of years.</p><p></p><p>In my area of WI there is also a natural shortage of B (boron) and S (sulphur). These are only needed in small amounts but can make a big difference in the productivity of a pasture. It is important to request "micronutrient" analysis in your soil tests every so often to check the need for micros.</p><p></p><p>In many soils lime needs to be applied regularly to keep the pH up. With the pH up in the 6.5 range the P & K is much more available. With a low pH soil there can be a lot of P & K out there with almost none of it useable by the plants.</p><p></p><p>So in the end you need to figure on adding Lime every couple years, nitrogen almost every year (unless you have a good stand of legumes) and P & K & micros in small amounts but regularly.</p><p></p><p>The CEC of the soil (cation exchange capability) of the soil will also have an effect on the need for fertilizers. Low CEC (5-10) soils tend to be like sand and don't hold much of anything. Higher CEC (15-20) soils tend to have better organic activity and can store and convert a lot of manure etc into useable fertilizers. So there is no one simple answer to your original question. Keep soil testing but also get some help interpreting it. It can show a lot of fertilizer there but you can still have a dificiency. I hope this helps. Jim</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="SRBeef, post: 740092, member: 7509"] In addition to the above comments, another issue is the "form" of the fertilizer. When you apply chemical P & K it is not all available to the grass/crop in the next season. Only about 1/3 of it is in many soils. And this "availability" is also affected by the soil acidity or pH. An important thing about fertilizer to remember is that N (nitrogen) is very mobile in the soil. In wet years it can leach down below where the roots can reach it. P & K (phosphorus and potassium) on the other hand are NOT very mobile in the soil. Applied on the surface as usually done in a pasture it may stay mostly on or near the surface and move down only very slowly over a period of years. In my area of WI there is also a natural shortage of B (boron) and S (sulphur). These are only needed in small amounts but can make a big difference in the productivity of a pasture. It is important to request "micronutrient" analysis in your soil tests every so often to check the need for micros. In many soils lime needs to be applied regularly to keep the pH up. With the pH up in the 6.5 range the P & K is much more available. With a low pH soil there can be a lot of P & K out there with almost none of it useable by the plants. So in the end you need to figure on adding Lime every couple years, nitrogen almost every year (unless you have a good stand of legumes) and P & K & micros in small amounts but regularly. The CEC of the soil (cation exchange capability) of the soil will also have an effect on the need for fertilizers. Low CEC (5-10) soils tend to be like sand and don't hold much of anything. Higher CEC (15-20) soils tend to have better organic activity and can store and convert a lot of manure etc into useable fertilizers. So there is no one simple answer to your original question. Keep soil testing but also get some help interpreting it. It can show a lot of fertilizer there but you can still have a dificiency. I hope this helps. Jim [/QUOTE]
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