Close to Lake Michigan and spread out across three counties, Drozd Family Grain has extremely diverse soil that rarely freezes, which makes crop fertility an interesting challenge.

A second-generation farmer, Jake is in the corn, soybean and milo fields alongside his dad and brother. They concentrate on crop production and fertility, knowing that their soil holds the most potential to push yields to new levels.

With an eye on soil health, Jake takes fertility to the next level by:

• Spreading potash after harvest and addressing pH issues with lime (sandy soils pose a challenge for holding calcium
• Placing N and P in a 2×2 run (2″ on side and 2″ below seed) and adding micronutrients and biologicals in-furrow
• Utilizing K-Mag® in the spring for the available K and Mg and adding MicroEssentials® SZ when the soil requires it
• Sidedressing N and K in-season and fertigating to meet immediate needs

“At some point, we’ll all figure out biologicals because we all want the same thing. It’s good for the industry. I want to be at the forefront and see how they do in the real world now.”