Category Archives: Manure

01Nov/18

Building Soil Organic Matter Takes Time

Our “instant” culture gravitates to testimonials about how to rapidly increase soil organic matter by 1% within 1 to 3 years. Conversations with lenders and landlords regarding rewards on manure applications and multi-species cover crops investments would likely be easier if financial rewards or measured soil physical properties came quickly.

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28Sep/18

Maintaining soil fertility is important for soil health

Maintaining soil fertility is important not only for profitable crop production, but also soil health. In a long-term P and K fertility trial, we can see that there is much greater residue cover in plots that have received adequate potash applications over time compared to where no K was applied. Application of P had minimal to no effect on residue cover.

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01May/18
Research demonstrates that animal manures can produce both environmental and productivity benefits over the commercial fertilizer it replaces.

Manure’s Impact on Yield, Nitrogen, and Carbon

Manure is often viewed by many as an environmental liability.  However, if manure is applied at rates equal to or less than the nitrogen (N) requirement of a crop, can manure produce environmental benefits over commercial fertilizer?  This was the focus of an Asian research group which summarized the results of 141 published studies from Asia, Europe, and the U.S. comparing manure substitution for fertilizer. This article summarizes the “Take Home Messages” from this research paper.

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01Feb/18
Manure being applied in the corn field, using a drag-hose system.

Can Manure Improve Soil Health?

Is there a correlation between soil health (or soil productivity) and manure? A Missouri team analyzed many soil health related variables and manure land application details, based on data collected under the Missouri Cover Crop Cost-ShareRead More…

08Jan/18
Trophic levels of the soil food web

Soil quality impacts of agricultural and municipal biosolids applications

Background Soil health management refers to the preservation and improvement in soil physical, chemical, and biological properties to maximize the productive capacity of soil. Cover crops and reduced tillage are promoted for improving soil health; however,Read More…

01Dec/17
Value of beef open lot manure assuming crop benefits from potassium supplementation and 5% increase in yield. Estimated manure value is $28/ton.

What is the Economic Value of Manure?

Manure has value.  That value may result from improvements in soil quality, increases in yield, and replacement of commercial nutrient required for crop production.   Previous articles on manure’s value have focused on its soil health,  environmentalRead More…

01Nov/17
Photo of rainfall simulation study

Setbacks Reduce the Concentration of Manure Constituents in Runoff

What setback distance is required to reduce the concentration of manure constituents in runoff to background values? John E. Gilley, Aaron J. Sindelar, and Bryan L. Woodbury, researchers with the USDA-Agricultural Research Service, examined the effectsRead More…