Farmer-Led Research

Mike Reicherts applied 141 lbs of purchased nitrogen and compared that to corn sidedressed with the same amount of manure nitrogen. Only about half the nitrogen in unincorporated liquid manure is available to the crop. Despite this, the …

In the past two years that PFI cooperators have used the late spring soil nitrate test, nitrogen rate trials in corn have paired a “high,” or typical rate of N with a low rate recommended by the test. …

Two other oats trials can be found in the table of tillage experiments. Both compare oats on ridges to oats on flat ground. Tom Frantzen found similar yields between the two practices. Paul Mugge observed a nearly 12 …

The other soil fertility trials relate to one of four areas: starter fertilizers, banded phosphorus and potassium, sulfur, and “biologicals.” PFI trials in 1990 did not close the book on any of these subjects, but they continued to …

Since 1987, PFI cooperators have conducted trials of ridge-till with and without herbicides. This continuing work has helped raise awareness of the potential of ridge tillage in managing weeds without herbicides. For the past two years, ISU botanist …

There has been continuing interest among farmers in the use of winter cover crops to protect and improve the soil. PFI cooperators have built an overseeding rig from a used high clearance tractor in order to sow cover …

This year 16 side-by-side comparisons of nitrogen fertilizer rates were conducted by PFI cooperators. The results are shown in Table 1. In each trial, the “high rate” was chosen by the cooperator to be moreor-less the customary rate …

In the early part of the 1989 growing season, symptoms of potassium deficiency were evident in many ridge-tillage fields in Iowa. The same phenomenon was reported by extension workers in Minnesota who examined ridge-till fields in that state. …

There were several trials in 1989 that belong in categories by themselves. Three of these are reported in Table 7. Steve Leazer has been told by his neighbors that rootworm insecticides are advisable even in first-year corn if …

Three cooperators compared different tillage systems in 1989. Each trial involved ridge tillage in some way. Table 5 shows the data. Todd Hartsock found similar yields in ridge-till and conventional corn. Ron Rosmann obtained significantly higher soybean yields …

THE EMPHASIS OF SUSTAINABLE AGRICULTURE WITH LESS USE OF CHEMICAL FERTILIZERS, HAS PRODUCED MORE BIOLOGICAL PRODUCT SALES PEOPLE AT THE FARMERS DOOR. SOME BIOLOGICAL PRODUCTS CLAIM TO RELEASE NUTRIENTS, LOOSEN THE SOIL AND FIX NITROGEN FROM THE AIR. …