Dairy and no-till crop producers will be interested in the results of research being conducted at Myron Wehr’s farm.
A field day will be Aug. 20 at 1 p.m. at the farm located on state Route 46 in New Waterford, Ohio.
Kevin Elder, executive director of the Ohio Livestock Permitting Program will be the speaker for the program and present Interpretation of Ohio’s Manure Application Regulations.
For more information or directions to the field day, call 330-424-7291.
Gary Graham, North District extension specialist, natural resources, and the author are conducting research on the effects of liquid dairy manure application methods and timing on yield of no-till corn.
The key. We used two manure application methods (a Balzer tank (B) with shank injectors and an Aerway (A) tillage and manure distributor tool towed behind a Husky tank) to compare fall (F) and spring (S) applications, incorporated (I) and surface (S) applied.
We are comparing these applications of manure to Myron’s liquid nitrogen with Guardian (LNG) program and his liquid nitrogen program without Guardian (LN). Guardian is a nitrogen fertilizer stabilizer.
All fertilizer is applied at planting. Starter fertilizer was applied to all plots. Where manure was applied, no liquid nitrogen fertilizer was applied.
Enough manure (11,800 gallons per acre) was applied to theoretically provide all the nitrogen needed for a 150 bushel corn crop.
The research project is a complete randomized block design with 10 treatments replicated four times.
Treatments. The 10 treatments are as follows:
* FIA – Fall manure incorporation with Aerway tool.
* FIB – Fall manure incorporation with Balzer tank.
* FSA – Fall manure surface applied with Aerway tool.
* FSB – Fall manure surface applied with Balzer tank.
* SIA – Spring manure incorporation with Aerway tool.
* SIB – Spring manure incorporation with Balzer tank.
* SSA – Spring manure surface applied with Aerway tool.
* SSB – Spring manure surface applied with Balzer tank.
* LN – Liquid N at planting.
* LNG – Liquid N with Guardian at planting.
Nitrogen. Pre-sidedress soil nitrate N testing was conducted to determine whether enough N was available for the corn crop.
Since manure was applied, we also ran a soil ammonia (NH4) test and added the results to the nitrate N test for a total available N per acre estimate. Total soil nitrogen was not tested.
The nitrate N totals from samples run June 18 and the ammonia N totals from samples run on June 25 are in micrograms per gram of soil (or parts per million).
To express total soil inorganic N in pound per acre, the two tests are added together and the total multiplied by two to get pound inorganic N per acre.
More details. The accompanying table shows the pre-sidedress N results by treatment with three others omitted (in parentheses).
In-depth look. Additional information about the research plots and results will be provided at the field day.
Visitors will be able to see the effects of manure and fertilizer treatments on plant populations, plant color and height, and crop residue cover.
Equipment used to apply manure to the plots will be on display and will be demonstrated weather permitting. Cold drinks will be served, compliments of the Columbiana-Mahoning Extension Corn and Soybean program committee.
Complete results of the research will be published in the Ohio State University Extension Agronomic Crops Team’s On-Farm Research Projects bulletin.
Sponsors. Sponsors of the research include: Myron Wehr Farms, Pine Hill Jersey Farm, Aerway Equipment Inc., Witmer Implement, Campbell Brothers Farms, Conklin Products, Agland Co-op, Ohio Dairy Producers Research Committee, Warner Sustainable Agriculture Grant Program, and the Columbiana Soil and Water Conservation District.
(The author is an agricultural extension agent in Columbiana County. Questions or comments can be sent in care of Farm and Dairy, P.O. Box 38, Salem, OH 44460.)
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