Effective Nutrient

Management:
Insights from
Prairie Organic
Joanne Thiessen Martens Grain Farms
University of Manitoba
Organic Alberta Conference
February 17, 2017
 Energ
The makings of a y
plant
40-45% Carbon
Air and
40-45% Oxygen Water
5-6% Hydrogen
1-2% Nitrogen
1% Potassium
0.5% Calcium
0.1-0.3% PhosphorusSoil
0.25% Sulfur
Micronutrients
Latshaw, 1924. Elemental composition of the corn plant. J. 2
Agric. Res.
What is effective nutrient
management?
For Crops
Right nutrients Healthy
Right amount growth
Right time Good yields
High quality
For Soil (especially soil biology)
Right nutrients
Energy (C source) Healthy
Right conditions growth
Physical protection High activity

High 3
How are organic farms
different?
Convention Organic
al
Nutrient Synthetic Carbon-based compounds
source fertilizers plant / animal materials
Unprocessed mined
materials
Nutrient Highly Mostly insoluble
form soluble
Nutrient Rapid (in Slow (in most cases).
release most cases) Need biological and/or
chemical processes to
become available.
Addition Every year Every few years 4
How to Add Nutrients?
N fixation

P, K, S
5
When to Add Nutrients?
N: 2-3 years

P, K, S ???
6
Nitrogen
Cycle
http://www.waikato.ac.nz/__data/as
sets/
image/0013/151033/NitrogenCycle
.jpg

Field
observations

Soil Plant Nutrient

tests tests budgets 7
Nutrient Management
Program 2016
Green Manure Bioassay:
Overview
A tool to help with assessment of
soil fertility and diagnosis of
deficiencies especially P.
Measures functional soil fertility.
Why the green manure crop?
Not limited by N more sensitive to
other nutrient deficiencies

9
Green Manure Bioassay:
Overview
What do we measure?
Biomass production
Legume, non-legume, weed
components
Nutrient concentration (send to
lab)
Soil samples (for comparison)
Field observations

10
Green Manure Bioassay:
Phosphorus
Soil P vs. Plant P concentration
12.00
10.00
8.00

Plant P % 6.00
4.00
2.00
0.00
0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70
Soil P ppm

11
Green Manure Bioassay:
Sulphur

Soil S vs. Plant S Concentration

0.50

0.40

0.30
Plant S %
0.20

0.10

0.00
0 20 40 60 80 100 120 140 160
Soil S kg/ha 0-15 cm

12
Effects on the Next Crop:
P Uptake
20

15 P uptake
10 of Green
Following Crop P uptake (kg/ha)
5 Manure vs
Next Crop
0

Green Manure P uptake (kg/ha)

13
Effects on the Next Crop:
GM Characteristics
100 100
80 80
60 60
Crop N uptake kg/ha 40 Crop N uptake kg/ha 40
20 20
0 0
0 500010000 1.0 2.0 3.0 4.0
Green Manure Total Biomass (kg/ha) Green Manure %N

100 100
80 80
60 60
Crop N uptake kg/ha Crop N uptake kg/ha 40
40
20 20

0 0
0 20 40 60 80 0 20 40 60 80

Green Manure % legume Green Manure % weeds

14
Effects on the Next Crop:
GM Nutrient Uptake

100 100
50 50
Crop N uptake kg/ha Crop N uptake kg/ha
0 N
0.0 100.0200.0
0
0.0
P
10.0 20.0
Green Manure N uptake (kg/ha) Green Manure P uptake (kg/ha)

100 100

50 50
Crop N uptake kg/ha Crop N uptake kg/ha
0 K
0.0 100.0200.0
0
0.0
S
10.0 20.0
Green Manure K uptake (kg/ha) Green Manure S uptake (kg/ha)
15
Nutrient Budget: Overview

Nutrient Nutrient
Imports Exports

NUTRIENT
BALANCE
(surplus; 16
Nutrient Budget:
Overview
Measures nutrient flows imports,
exports, balance
Identify and quantify trends over time
(nutrient depletion vs. accumulation)
Types of budgets:
Whole-farm budget (whole farm, one year)
Rotation budget (one field, whole rotation)

17
 Whole-farm Nutrient Budget:
Integrated Beef and Grain Farm
TOTAL: Whole AVERAGE: Lb
BUDGET SUMMARY Farm per Acre
Production Component lb N lb P lb K lb S N P K S
IMPORTS
351 18.
N fixation - total 25 1
Green manures 6195 3.2
Pasture 7056 3.6
2187
Hay/silage 4 11.3
Seed - total 482 58 98 30 0.2 0.0 0.1 0.0
Soil amendments -
total 46 30 0 0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0
356 18.
TOTAL IMPORTS 53 88 98 30 3 0.0 0.1 0.0

EXPORTS
Crops and crop 918 126 153 18
 Whole-farm Nutrient Budget:
Hay and Grain Farm no manure added
TOTAL: Whole AVERAGE: Lb
BUDGET SUMMARY Farm per Acre
Production Component lb N lb P lb K lb S N P K S
IMPORTS
168 29.
N fixation - total 17 0
Green manures 4782 8.2
1203
Hay/silage 5 20.8
Seed - total 434 63 88 36 0.7 0.1 0.2 0.1
Soil amendments -
total 0 0 0 0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0
172 29.
TOTAL IMPORTS 51 63 88 36 7 0.1 0.2 0.1

EXPORTS
Crops and crop 119 501 20.
products - total 07 800 8 671 6 1.4 8.7 1.219
 Whole-farm Nutrient Budget:
Hay and Grain Farm manure added
TOTAL: Whole AVERAGE: Lb
BUDGET SUMMARY Farm per Acre
Production
Component lb N lb P lb K lb S N P K S
IMPORTS
1040 17.
N fixation - total 8 9
Green manures 0 0.0
1040
Hay/silage 8 17.9
Seed - total 411 55 82 32 0.7 0.1 0.1 0.1
Soil amendments - 3030 644 290 709 52. 11. 50. 12.
total 6 8 16 3 3 1 0 2
4112 650 290 712 70. 11. 50. 12.
TOTAL IMPORTS 5 3 98 5 9 2 1 3

EXPORTS
Crops and crop 645 111 14. 11. 20
Recommendations:
Nutrient budgets
What numbers should we aim for?
Need long-term approach balance over time
Depends on starting point building up;
maintenance; drawing down

Need to replace all the exported nutrients?

Wont the soil biology take care of it?

21
 Long-term Organic vs. Conventional
Alternative Cropping Study: Scott SK
microbial biomass is reduced in the organic system
Microbial biomass

40.0
nmolPLFAg1soil

30.0

ANN

20.0 PER

10.0

0.0
CON ORG
Management system 22
Source: Bobbi Helgason, AAFC.
 Long-term Organic vs. Conventional
Alternative Cropping Study: Scott SK
microbial function (soil enzyme activities) is reduced

carbon nitrogen phosphorus

cycling cycling cycling

Adding crop residues

increased microbial biomass
and activity in organic but
only temporarily.
Hypothesis: microbes 23
Source: Bobbi Helgason, AAFC.
 Finding a balance
between
Providing Providing
everythin nothing
g

Tough
love
Healthy soil http://cropandsoil.oregonstate.edu/content/

biology soil-microbes

+ Adequate
nutrients 24
 Impact of compost addition
on yields:
Glenlea Long-Term Rotation
Grain yields, 2016 Hay yield, 2016
35 6
30 5
25 We
ed 4
20
com
Bu/ac 15 n! petit Ton/ac 3
io
10 2
5 1
0 0
Wheat Flax Hay
No compost
25
 Impact of manure on next
crop:
Farmer experience
80
70
60
50
40
30
Lb/ac
20 No manure (winter
10 wheat)
0

No manure Manure

Add Need good

weed Manure (spring
nutrient 26
wheat)
Recommendations:
Diagnosing nutrient deficiencies

Watch for signs of nutrient deficiency

Soil test
Green manure bioassay
Visual assessment
Nutrient budget to identify trends

27
Recommendations:
Supplying adequate nutrients
Growlegume-heavy green manures, cover crops,
and/or forages for N supply
Replace depleted P, K and S. How much??
Balance out the amount exported?
Just enough to prime the system?

Consider prevention rather than cure

Add nutrients before deficiency occurs

28
Phosphorous management in organic
farming in response to soil P availability

Preventative management zone

No P
No P additions
required, but Limited P
additions additions
required AMF crops P
should be required additions Not possible to
focus critical farm without P
additions

Phosphorous availability in the organic system

29
Recommendations:
Support soil biology
What do soil organisms need?
Conditions temperature, air, water
Raw materials nutrients, carbon
Physical protection
Provide this by:
Minimizing tillage
Maintaining living roots and soil cover
Providing refuge habitat
Adding crop residues frequently
Adding nutrients when needed
30
Questions?

J.ThiessenMartens@umanitoba.ca