The objective of a recently published study conducted by University of Illinois plant physiologist Dr. Fred Below and recent doctoral graduates Dr. Ross Bender and Dr. Jason Haegele was to identify which secondary macronutrients and micronutrients demand attention in a new era of soybean production.
Historically, many soybean fertility programs are based on the philosophy of “make do with what’s left.” But progressive growers are finding it’s important not to forget this crop’s primary job is to pull nutrients out of the soil, and that those nutrients need to be replenished.
Sulfur deficiency in corn can masquerade as nitrogen deficiency. Boron deficiency in soybeans may remain hidden — the only sign being a yield below optimal.
A balanced crop nutrition program isn’t done boosting yields after the seed is planted. The role of proper nutrition in preventing disease is often overlooked.
Justus von Liebig, a 19th century German chemist, made great contributions to the science of plant nutrition and soil fertility. While Carl Sprengel, a German botanist, formulated the “theory of minimum,” Liebig investigated and popularized the scientific concept we know today as “Liebig’s Law of the Minimum.” This concept demonstrates that plant growth is not controlled by the total amount of available resources but by the scarcest.
Vegetable plant roots absorb nutrients through two distinctly different sequential processes. First, the nutrients must move from the soil to the surface of the plant roots. Second, the nutrients must be able to cross from the outside to the inside of the plant roots. Once the nutrient gets inside the plant, the nutrients can move upward to the leaves and developing vegetable.
High seed prices, volatile commodity markets, unpredictable weather: It’s a long list of big concerns that keeps farmers up at night. It’s those concerns that make the details that drive return on investment of paramount importance. Details like micronutrients.
Manganese (Mn) is an essential plant mineral nutrient, playing a key role in several physiological processes, particularly photosynthesis.