One of our customers emailed in with some questions. They wanted to know about lower pH levels and higher iron levels & potential correlations and were seeing seeing sub Boron and excess irons in tissue samples.

After some research, near as I can tell boron and iron have no interactions. Both are however affected by calcium (See chart 1).

More calcium will reduce iron uptake. Boron and silicon help to increase calcium uptake.

In low pH excess phosphorus can reduce boron uptake

High potassium can reduce boron uptake

Boron deficiency

• Reduces growth of soil bacteria.
• Poor movement of sugar and carbohydrates in the plant.
• Affects timing of maturity, pollination, and reproduction.

Some old articles on boron and silicon:

• http://blog.calciumproducts.com/posts/proper-nutrients-are-key-for-proper-maturity-and-disease-management.cfm
• http://blog.calciumproducts.com/posts/boron-.cfm
• http://blog.calciumproducts.com/posts/silcon-the-forgoten-nutrient.cfm

What about Iron?

Injury due to high soil iron concentrations is not common under neutral or high pH soil conditions. Toxic situations occur primarily on acid soils (< pH 5.0) and where excess soluble iron salts have been applied as foliar sprays or soil amendments (poor quality limestone).

The first symptoms of iron toxicity are necrotic spots on the leaves. An unusual form of iron toxicity has been observed in Michigan on organic soils and high organic sands. Some iron-rich, low pH, low manganese soils create an environment in which an interaction between the iron and manganese in the soil reduces manganese uptake by plants. The symptoms observed on the plants are of manganese deficiency, but the low plant uptake of manganese is caused by excessive available iron in the soil.

http://web1.msue.msu.edu/imp/modf1/05209708.html

Toxicity Symptoms

Iron toxicity is primarily pH related and occurs where the soil pH has dropped sufficiently to create an excess of available Iron. (I think this statement is wrong, not low pH, low calcium is the issue cmd)

As with some other nutrients, the visible symptoms of Fe toxicity are likely to be a deficiency of another nutrient. Fe toxicity can also occur when Zinc is deficient, or the soil is in a "reduced" condition caused by very wet or flooded conditions. Excess Fe can result in Dark green foliage, stunted growth of tops and roots, dark brown to purple leaves on some plants (e.g. bronzing disease of rice). http://www.spectrumanalytic.com/support/library/ff/Fe_Basics.htm

High levels of nitrogen and potassium increase iron uptake

Excessive iron can reduce uptake of manganese, additions of sulfur improve uptake of manganese

High iron can reduce zinc uptake, and low zinc uptake is often found with low manganese

Iron excess:

• Interferes with phosphorus absorption.
• Requires use of higher levels of potassium to regulate.
• Can cause Zinc deficiency

To reduce problems with excess iron make sure you have adequate levels of calcium in your soils and the pH is at least 6.5. SupeCal SO4 gypsum and SuperCal 98G limestone are great ways to ensure proper nutrient uptake.

Glyphosate & crop nutrient interactions have been a topic of conversation during many of my recent visits with agronomists & dealers.  Some articles that discuss this in more detail:

http://blog.calciumproducts.com/posts/losing-the-glyphosate-resistant-pigweed-battle-we-can-help-you-get-back-in-the-fight.cfm

http://blog.calciumproducts.com/posts/controling-3-major-yield-robbers-in-2010.cfm

http://blog.calciumproducts.com/posts/glyphosate-induced-micronutrient-deficiency.cfm

I also found this article by Dr. Don Huber a very good summary of what is going on: http://www.fluidjournal.org/1gsdgfs-S10/S10-A4.pdf

As the summer weather continues to challenge us with excessive rainfall, many producers are now considering what their options may be for planting a summer forage for next winter's feed needs.  Dr. Stephen Barnhart, ISU Extension, has some excellent tips & recommendations in this article: http://www.extension.iastate.edu/CropNews/2010/0629barnhart.htm. 

One issue that Dr. Barnhart does not address is the need to monitor soil nutrients.  Some or all of the nutrients that were applied during this growing season may have been lost.  The only way to know for sure is testing of both the soil & tissue.  Make sure to include these tools as you consider what your next steps once things start drying up.  SuperCal SO4 is an effective tool in helping the soil & microbes begin to recover.

Be sure to check out this link to past stories:

http://blog.calciumproducts.com/posts/resources-on-flooding.cfm

The Ministry of Ag in India is including gypsum and lime as part of a 10 part plan to increase yields. If India gets it why are "experts" here in the United States so reluctant to promote the benefits of gypsum? See the whole ten part plan below.

Government Adopt Strategies To Increase Productivity Of Rice

 Gene Zimmerman, Quality Soil Nutrition, Wisconsin

          Grass and Alfalfa Mix sowed on April 15th, SuperCal SO4 was spread at a rate of 300 lbs around the field boarder.

Gene was very happy with the improvements in germination where SuperCal was used.

Go to our testimonial page for more pictures from Gene and to see other testimonials

Yield Starts Here is a blog for farmers, focusing on increasing yield and profitability by focusing on the soil. It is managed by Craig Dick, a Blogronomist and Sales and Marketing Manager at Calcium Products. Find other articles by Craig and guest writers at http://blog.calciumproducts.com/ .

US researchers found that soybeans associated with naturally occurring rhizobia had lower aphid densities than either the artificially fertilized plants or the plants inoculated with commercial rhizobia. They also found the same level of nitrogen in both soybean plants inoculated with natural rhizobia and those inoculated with commercial varieties. The researchers do not yet know what the natural nitrogen-fixing bacteria do to repel aphids.

To have proper nodulation you need oxygen in your soil and sulfur.

SuperCal SO4 should be in every soybean blend. SuperCal SO4 provides sulfur in the plant available sulfate form. SuperCal SO4 helps naturally aerate soils too! Without air and sulfur rhizobia cannot do their job and provide the soybeans with adequate nutrition.

Yield Starts Here is a blog for farmers, focusing on increasing yield and profitability by focusing on the soil. It is managed by Craig Dick, a Blogronomist and Sales and Marketing Manager at Calcium Products. Find other articles by Craig and guest writers at http://blog.calciumproducts.com/ .

Written by Greg Ervin, MS CCA, Regional Sales Representative

Achieving high yields consistently is the ultimate dream of most growers.  As we look ahead to the 2010 crop year, it is important to take time to identify potential yield robbing factors and establish actions for offsetting these negatives as they arise.  With plans in place, growers maximize the highest yield potential under their control.

What are some of the looming yield robbers farmers face in 2010?

The following are three concerns I heard from growers this winter:

Emergence problems associated with residue management.  If last year’s residues are only partially broken down and look to present a problem in consistent seed spacing and depth placement , consider creating a more conducive seed bed . This can be done through the use of light tillage and/or the use of Calcium in the forms of Gypsum (for higher pH soils) or Calcium Carbonate (for lower pH soils).  This added soluble Calcium leaches away soil toxins, leaving a soil structure that does a better job of managing moisture and providing more air to soil micro-life.   It also frees tied-up key nutrients from residues and soils making them more available to plants throughout the growing season.  

Soil micro-life is important to the efficient breakdown of plant residues.  With current herbicide technology involving Glyphosate, much of the beneficial micro-life in soils has been reduced to levels where efficient residue breakdown is not occurring (Huber 2010).  Spring and Fall residue treatment programs aimed at enhancing soil micro-life may be logical steps for growers to implement as means for reducing residues and reclaiming plant available nutrients from residues and soils. 

Gypsum is a good fit when considering residue management.  The soluble Calcium aids in creating improved soil characteristics, while the 17% soluble Sulfur in Gypsum acts as an excellent readily available food source for plants and also for expanding micro-life in the soil, accelerating the breakdown of residues.  Calcium Products, Inc. SuperCal S04 is an excellent source of Gypsum for these applications.

Plant Micronutrient tie-ups associated with herbicide use.  Current herbicide programs involving the use of Glyphosate are creating severe Micronutrient tie-ups in plants and in soils (Huber, 2010).  These tie-ups lead to nutritional deficiencies of plants, starving them to the point of reduced standability, reduced yields and inefficient dry-down of harvested crops. 

With today’s understanding of the compounding effects of Glyphosate on soils and plants, I am advising growers to ensure plants have adequate micronutrients available to build strong plant immune systems to fight-off fusarium energized in soils by Glyphosate (Huber 2010).  The addition of Calcium to soils in the Spring or Fall assists plants in building strong cell walls from readily available plant food nutrients released in soils by soluble Calcium. 

Plant tissue testing is an excellent analytical tool available for insuring adequate nutrient availability throughout the growing season.  Taken ahead of Glyphosate applications, Micronutrient levels can be monitored through plant tissue testing and corrected by adding needed Micronutrients with Glyphosate at herbicide application times. 

Growers should not underestimate the importance of Micronutrients to sustaining plant health in the quest for more consistent higher yielding crops.  Calcium Products, Inc.’s SuperCal 98G Calcium Carbonate Liming product is an efficient and cost effective way of meeting Calcium needs of plants, soils, and correcting lower testing pH areas in farm fields.

Compaction from wet soils.  For many areas of the country, wet Spring and wet Fall seasons have been very common place.  With wet weather at planting and harvest times comes compaction from operating farm equipment over fields in less than ideal conditions. 

Deep ripping of heavy field use areas can be of help along with Spring or Fall broadcast applications of Calcium to address whole field soil structure development and repair.  Calcium may not eliminate all symptoms associated with sever compaction; however overall Calcium helps loosen soils, increases the movement of air and moisture more efficiently through soil profiles, and enhances soil moisture storing capacities.  This, along with providing a more conducive soil environment for the proliferation of soil micro-life, goes a long way in repairing distressed soils and reclaiming yields in field areas affected from compaction.

Give us a call to discuss the advantages and cost effectiveness of including SuperCal products to your lineup of inputs this growing season.   These products are essential to a well-balanced fertility program, aiding you in your quest for consistently higher yields.
 

Written by Greg Ervin, MS CCA, Regional Sales Representative

From:

CROP NOTES for March 30, 2010

Iowa State University Extension Information for Northeast Iowa
By Brian Lang, ISU Extension Agronomist
911 S. Mill Street, Decorah, IA 52101
563-382-2949
 

Great Time to Setup a Sulfur Fertilizer Strip-Trial
Research trials on sulfur fertilizer for corn in northeast Iowa show positive results about 100% of the time on sands, 70% of the time on silt loam soils, 60% of the time on loam soils, and only 14% of the time on clay loam soils (all of these fields were without any recent manure history).  If you are on a silt loam (Fayette, Downs) or loam soil, how do you know if you will benefit? 

The sulfur soil test is no help in determining sulfur recommendations.  Plant analysis works good for alfalfa, but not corn.  We recommend a simple sulfur fertilizer strip trial to help you see if sulfur fertilizer will pay on your fields.  It’s easy.  Get a spreader with Calcium sulfate (gypsum) set to spread about 100 lbs of product per acre.  That will give you about 16 lbs of sulfur per acre.  Spread on your fields of interest leaving a large gap between spreader passes.  E.g. make a 60-foot spreader pass, skip over 120 feet, make a spreader pass, skip over 120 feet, make a spreader pass.  Now you have 6 strips, 3 with sulfur and 3 without.  Do this on as many fields that you are interested in.
 

Calcium Products Tip: Many dealers carry SuperCal SO4 pelletized gypsum!

There have been tests conducted that show SuperCal SO4 reduces the impacts of white mold. There are also well known University of Wisconsin plant pathologists that will attest (off the record) to gypsum's ability to reduce white mold.

Fertilizer and pesticide labeling laws will not allow us to say that SuperCal SO4 reduces white mold, since this would constitute a pesticide claim.

To find out more on White Mold and how calcium (a nutrient found in SuperCal SO4) improves plant health and defends the plant from white mold click here.

Yield Starts Here is a blog for farmers, focusing on increasing yield and profitability by focusing on the soil. It is managed by Craig Dick, a Blogronomist and Sales and Marketing Manager at Calcium Products. Find other articles by Craig and guest writers at http://blog.calciumproducts.com/ .

  Summary of Sulfur Strip Trials Conducted in Central and Northeast Iowa

Report extract:

Last fall Sulfur (S) strip trials were conducted by John Sawyer, Professor; Daniel Barker, Assistant Scientist; ISU Extension Field Agronomists Brian Lang, George Cummins, and Mark Wuebker. The product was aplied by Heartland Co-op, Innovative Ag Solutions, and Five Star Co-op.  Calcium Products, Inc. provided the SuperCal SO4 gypsum used in the central Iowa trials with Heartland Co-op.

RESULTS

Six of the ten field sites had a corn yield increase from the S application (Table 1).  The other four sites had no yield difference with or without S application.  This is a 60% response rate to S application, which is similar to other recent small plot research conducted in north central to northeast Iowa on S response in corn.  For the six responding sites, the average yield increase from S application was 9 bu/acre, with a range of 5 to 13 bu/acre.  These yield increases are large enough to more than pay for a S application (for corn, suggested rates are 15 lb S/acre for fine-textured soils and 25 lb S/acre for coarse-textured soils).

This initial strip trial work indicates that S deficiency is occurring across a wide geographic area of iowa from central to northeast Iowa, and at a frequency that justifies continued research on S fertilization and deficiency identification across Iowa corn and soybean production.

Calcium Products would like to thank everyone involved, especially the farmer cooperators!

In the Spring 2010 issue of Liquid Does it Better, from Agro-Culture Liquid Fertilizers, Cory Schurman the Agronomy Director for Agro-Culutre wrote a very nice article on balancing your soils for better yeilds.

Why would a liquid company talk about lime, sulfur, gyspum, and calcium? The answer is simple, guys like Cory are working for the farmer to help them raise a better crop. If reccommeding a product he doesn't sell increases yield, than you can bet he is going to let his customers know about it.

You can read Cory's article here and download past articles at http://www.agroliquid.com/newsletters/

Yield Starts Here is a blog for farmers, focusing on increasing yield and profitability by focusing on the soil. It is managed by Craig Dick, a Blogronomist and Sales and Marketing Manager at Calcium Products. Find other articles by Craig and guest writers at http://blog.calciumproducts.com/ .

I read everything I can get my hands on about plant health, I found this article on Clean Air Gardening.

There has been much talk this winter of Dr. Don Huber’s work on glyphosate induced micronutrient deficiency of crops. His work is even featured in this month’s issue of No-Till Magazine (Are We Shooting Ourselves In The Foot With A Silver Bullet?).

What is all the talk about and what does a farmer and an agronomist need to know? 

From the February, 19th issue of Changing Agronomy by Midwest Independent Soil Samplers.

"The (basic) soils in our region have a clay base and a common pH range of 7.0-8.2. Different clay types will determine a soils surface area, and likewise, soil-type dictates a soils cation exchange capacity. These physical properties (soil particle size) can directly impact the nutrient variability we experience in southern MN as compared to other parts of the north central region. The more sodic soils experience swelling and/or low permeability. Gypsum applications are often used to help amend these soils by exchanging sodium with calcium to enhanceleaching through the soil profile."

Our friends at CPS in East Chain and FC in Rake have for years been showing farmers that soils in this region will respond and are getting great results with SuperCal SO4.
 

Thanks to Paul for sending this our way!

Yield Starts Here is a blog for farmers, focusing on increasing yield and profitability by focusing on the soil. It is managed by Craig Dick, a Blogronomist and Sales and Marketing Manager at Calcium Products. Find other articles by Craig and guest writers at http://blog.calciumproducts.com/ .

One of the comments we get a lot is, what data do you have to support your product works? We have many trials that back our claims, yet many agronomists and farmers need more proof. Sales of SuperCal 98G and SuperCal SO4 have grown stedily every year since we started. The growth in our sales in from farmers trying the product and seeing it works for themselves.

What about the people that need more proof?

Seth Godin says it best in his blog;

Too much data leads to not enough belief

So why don't we have reams of data? Because if you've tried our products you know they work! Makes you wonder why some products work so hard to "prove" they work?!?

Yield Starts Here is a blog for farmers, focusing on increasing yield and profitability by focusing on the soil. It is managed by Craig Dick, a Blogronomist and Sales and Marketing Manager at Calcium Products. Find other articles by Craig and guest writers at http://blog.calciumproducts.com/ .

Welcome to 2010!  The next few months will be busy ones for everybody, including us.  We will be at the Servi-Tech Midwinter Conference this week, followed by the Practical Farmers of Iowa Annual Conference in Marshalltown (http://www.practicalfarmers.org/events/annual-conference.html).

Next week is the National No-Till Conference in Des Moines on January 13-16 (http://www.no-tillfarmer.com/pages/NNTC---National-No-Tillage-Conference-Home-Page.php), & we finish up January at the Nebraska Agri-Business Expo on the 27th & 28th (http://www.na-ba.com/events.htm).

The 1st week of February will find us at the Iowa Power Farming Show (http://www.iowapowershow.com/) in Des Moines (February 2-4), and we will be participating in the Agribusiness Showcase & Conference ( http://www.agribiz.org/) on February 9 & 10.

You can also check out our show calendar here: (http://www.calciumproducts.com/calendar.cfm)

We look forward to seeing you!

Calcium Products was pleased this week to host one of our dealers.  Harold Hartzler, and his family, visited our plant at Fort Dodge.  Harold has been a dealer for many years, but has decided to start reducing the pace of his activities, and turn over many of the business responsibilities to his grandsons.

Since Harold and his family live in Ohio, they elected to fly to Fort Dodge.  After staying overnight, the group toured the SO4 facility,  While there, they were able to observe the production process from start to finish.  They were impressed with the large storage area, bagging equipment, and emphasis on quality control.

Harold, Jeff, Josh & Corbin-thank you for coming to visit.  We enjoyed our time with you!

We are always pleased to introduce our people and products.  If you have questions, or would like to visit, just ask!

I just opened my planner this morning, I have those Franklin Covey, day insert sheets so I can try and keep everything strait. One of the things I like best about it is that there is a quote on each days sheet. I like the ones from historical figures best. Today’s was from Ben Franklin:

Cation ratios can help in identifying soil structure problems, and are a great tool for identifying problems. There is much research that has been done on the subject, most of which does not definitively show benefits to having the “right ratio” of Calcium to Mag. However many of these research papers also dicuss right N:S, MG:K, P1:P2 ratios.

Why are some ratios important and others not? Why are the proper ratios of nutrients important in animal and human nutrition and not in plant nutrition?

Research on Ca:Mg ratio was often based on total calcium and magnesium levels in a soil. The Mehlic 3 method of testing does not relate to the 'functional' fraction of calcium and magnesium in the soil, i.e. that proportion actively being exchanged between soil colloids, soil solution, plant roots, microbes etc.

A better way to truly determine Ca:Mg ratio would be to measure the soluble cations in the soil and take plant tissue samples. This would help to better determine a true plant available ratio. It is also important to point out that using Ca/Mg Ratios in isolation (without taking into account ppms) can lead to erroneous interpretations, calcium and magnesium levels can both be low, yet have an ideal ratio; or both can be high, yet have an idea ratio.

What is the correct Calcium to Magnesium ration?

As stated above, there is no definitive ratio, but our experience has shown that as long as the calcium and magnesium ppms are sufficient a Ca:Mg ration of 4:1 to 7:1 should offer a soil with better structure, better aeration, and better productivity.

Problems with high Mag Soils

Calcium is the element that causes the soil particles to move apart for aeration and drainage. Magnesium makes the particles stick together. One soil consultant has determined that is some soils the excess magnesium is held as trimagnesium ortho phosphate, Mg3(PO4)2-22H2O. Notice that the last part of the formula is twenty-two molecules of water. Is it any wonder that soils high in magnesium tend to dry and crack when water is tied up in a compound instead of available to plants? Note the two phosphates that are tied to the magnesium.

High mag soils cause potassium and calcium deficiency in plants. Soils with high magnesium tend to have poor structure. Typically these soils will have more sodium cations attached to the clay as well. Having high magnesium and sodium causes the clay particles to disperse when wet and set like concrete when dry.

The magnesium ions sitting on the clay surfaces have a 50% greater hydrated radius than calcium which causes these soils to absorb more water. This excess water tends to weaken the forces that hold soil particles to together resulting in less aggregate stability and greater dispersion of soil particles reducing infiltration rates and hydraulic conductivity (drainage). These soils tend to swell when wet and become very hard when dry, often forming a hard surface crust and becoming very difficult to till.
 
Excess magnesium causes a collapse of soil structure

Soils containing greater than 300 ppm of ammonium acetate extractable magnesium are considered high as well soils with base saturations greater than 15%. Soils that are saturated with magnesium can also show low potassium levels as of less than 100 ppm.

The addition of high rates of potash fertilizers can actually make matters worse and cause even more dispersion of soil particles. Potassium and sodium have similar properties, in sodic soils sodium causes lack of structure by causing dispersion of soil particles, soils tend to remain saturated and poorly drained.

For corn, 50-100 Mg ppm in soil and .25% to 1% in tissue is sufficient.

Correcting/Improving High mag soils

One solution for high mag soil is managing for soil quality with manures, crop rotation, and applying gypsum in an effort to displace magnesium. Gypsum is calcium sulfate, the sulfate ion mobilizes the magnesium out of the root zone, with calcium taking its place. Adding calcium carbonate can improve the structure of soil and build calcium levels faster.

Lime High pH Soils?
In the case of high mag soils the high pH is due to magnesium hydroxide, sodium hydroxides, and potassium hydroxides. pH has nothing to do with calcium, it only measures the hydrogen or hydroxide ion. Adding lime adds calcium, the stronger binding calcium cations displace the weaker held sodium (or magnesium) cations from the clay particles. Clay particles can then bond together with the calcium to form a well structured soil.

Application of potash in the starter at rates in the 30 pound range have shown much greater response than large application rates.  High rates of potash in the presence of high levels of magnesium (>600 ppm) can aggravate the dispersion of soil particles if crop rotation and manure additions are not practiced. Moderate rates of K applications are needed when potash is low to medium.

Guideline for Soil amendment use.

Photo credit DONTSOVA-PURDUE

Does your soil need a salt shaker?  Probably not, although it can happen through application of manure and/or byproducts that may contain sodium (Na) or excess salt (salinity), and through irrigation water.

Sodium has a dispersive effect on soil clays.  It can cause the clay particles to separate from each other, the particles will clog the soil pores, and cause a thin layer of slowly permeable material near the soil surface.  This effect is more serious in fine-textured soils than in coarse textured.  Soils with a high water table or poor drainage are more susceptible to salt or sodium accumulation.

Salinity can make plants work harder.  They must expend more energy to extract water from the soil.  Excess salinity can retard cell enlargement and division, as well as the production of proteins.  

Visible crop injury symptoms, such as leaf burn, are likely to occur only at high salinity levels.  However, yield losses can occur at lower levels, depending on the crop's sensitivity.  Corn & alfalfa are classified as "moderately sensitive", while soybeans are classified as "moderately tolerant."

Have more questions?  Start with a soil test.  If you or your agronomist suspect this may be involved, then talk with the lab where the samples are going.  I recommend Midwest Labs (www.midwestlabs.com), but most labs will be able to help you with this.  They may have specific guidelines that they recommend following to help you identify what is going on.

I eagerly look forward each year to enjoying the summertime treats.  Sweet corn and tomatoes head the list of my favorites.  However, with this year's cool summer weather, there has been a delay in enjoying the bounty. 

An article in the Des Moines Register, http://www.desmoinesregister.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2009907240378 talks about a delay in arrival, but suggests there will not a decrease in quality or taste.

I am hesitant to agree.  Our garden at home is filled with tomato plants ( I spent most of Saturday caging them with woven wire for containment & more support), and the plants are huge.  Many of them are at least 4' tall.  If you look really close, there is a 55 gallon drum, standing on edge, underneath the sprinkler.

I have also observed the onset of calcium deficiency, also known as blossom end-rot (http://blog.calciumproducts.com/posts/blossom-end-rot-.cfm).  I have broadcast SO4 in 3 separate applications this year, but intentionally omitted 2 plants.  These plants are showing symptoms of deficiency (water soaking on the fruit & leathery looking leaves).

My conclusion?  Many plants, including tomatoes, are growing more slowly this year.  Quality will also be affected, but having adequate nutrient availability (calcium) will help mitigate this.

Take care when applying SO4

I decided last week that our garden was needing some calcium.  The soil structure had declined considerably since earlier this spring, and it was becoming difficult to till (hoe).  I was also wanting to increase the quality of the potatoes and reduce the onset of blossom end rot in tomatoes(http://blog.calciumproducts.com/posts/blossom-end-rot-.cfm)

Thursday evening I applied SO4.  It was very difficult to get between the rows of potatoes, so I top spread the area, and then turned on the water for 2 hours.  Friday morning, my wife harvested some onions, which were near the potatoes, and was surprised that she couldn't stand to eat them.  She also couldn't stand to cut the tops off of more than 2-3 at a time without tears. 

Conclusion: the sulfur level in the onion had increased significantly.  Link:(http://www.coolquiz.com/trivia/explain/docs/onion.asp)

Lesson learned & a very evident (tearful) demonstration of the solubility of SO4.  In this case, less than 12 hours & 0.4" of water were sufficient for the product to break down & be taken up by the plant.  If you have plants that you don't want to more pungent (radishes, peppers), please take care when applying SO4.

While visiting with a dealer last week, I discussed the attributes of different sulfur fertilizer sources.  The final choice between ammonium sulfate and calcium sulfate came down to the cost for a unit (#) of sulfate sulfur.  Here is what my calculations showed (these prices are not suggested to be indicative of every particular situation, but only an example):

Ammonium sulfate (AMS), 21-0-0-24S, was costing $0.75 per unit of sulfur (nitrogen value set to 0).

Calcium sulfate (SO4), 0-0-0-17S-22Ca, was costing $0.59 per unit of sulfur (calcium value set to 0).

If the sulfur requirement for 5 Ton alfalfa removal is 30# (6# sulfur per Ton), the cost for sulfur nutrition from AMS was $22.50 per acre, with the SO4 providing the same 30# of sulfur, but for a cost of $17.70 per acre.  Net difference (savings) to the grower of $4.80 per acre.

Not a huge difference, but still a 20% decrease in cost.  With the economic challenges of livestock production today, every little bit helps.

SuperCal SO4, the right fit, right now. 

Just arrived back at the hotel after the 1st day of the 2009 Hay Expo.  Had a great time!

Jim & I talked with farmers about why they have problems with high potassium levels in their forages (need more calcium), how to overcome high magnesium soil levels (need more calcium), and ways to reduce the impact of high potash prices combined with low milk prices (need more calcium sulfate). 

All in all, a good day.  Crowd was a little less than I anticipated, but still a good day overall.

If you have the chance, look us up on Thursday.  We're in the Hay Industries Tent, on the north side.

Are you ready for hay season?

1st cutting alfalfa is underway.  Where I live in Northeast Iowa, the farmers have been working at it since Memorial Day.  I thought this would be a good time to review alfalfa's nutrient needs.

In general, alfalfa removes 12.5# Phosphorus (P), 40-50# Potassium (K), 30# Calcium (Ca), 6# Magnesium (Mg), 6# Sulfur (S) and 0.08# Boron (B) per ton of dry matter yield. Plants may remove higher amounts of these nutrients if soil test levels are in the High (H) or Very High (VH) levels.  This is known as luxury consumption.

Growing 5 Ton hay?  Then your crop will remove 62.5# P, 250# K, 150# Ca, 30# Mg, 30# S, 0.4# B.  With today's fertilizer prices, many growers are making sure that all nutrients are at optimum levels.  Sulfur deficiency is being diagnosed much more often than previous years. 

Where does SuperCal SO4 fit in?  With 22% Ca and 17% sulfate sulfur, it helps build and maintain plant structure, while also providing sulfur for use in protein synthesis.  I typically recommend 200# per acre annually.  This will provide 44# Ca and 34# S.  If you are experiencing problems with too much K in your forage, then increasing the amount of calcium available will help.  This has been a recurring problem with dairy cows in many operations.

SuperCal SO4, the right fit, right now.

As I drive down the road the sweet smell in the air reminds me summer is here. To me nothing says summer like fresh cut alfalfa (though I do not miss throwing small squares). This year in alfalfa fields, growming along the edges and in the low lying areas, I have noticed quite a bit of yellow flowers.

This weed is Yellow Rocket (Barbarea vulgaris). A winter annual or biennial with shiny green foliage and bright yellow flowers that may reach as much as 3 feet in height.  Primarily found growing in winter small grains, forages, and pastures. 

The preference of Yellow Rocket is full sun, moist conditions, and a fertile loam or clay-loam soil. Growth is less robust at drier sites with poor soil. A little shade is also tolerated. Most vegetative growth occurs during the cool weather of early to mid-spring.

Yellow Rocket is Also Known As...

 
If you have yellow rocket it’s because your management practices have made a great environment for it. Once we know what kind of conditions it likes we can take steps to select against it.

According to Weeds and Why They Grow, Yellow Rocket (Winter Cress) likes soils very low calcium, low in phosphate, high in potash, very high in magnesium. It likes soils low in humus, soils that are anaerobic, and moist.

To reduce the vigor and eliminate Yellow Rocket in alfalfa, cut the amount of potash applied and increase the amount of SuperCal SO4. Based on the type of environment that Yellow Rocket likes this makes a lot of sense.

Muraite of potash reduces humus, calcium and soil porosity, making it less aerobic and water logged. This makes for a perfect environment for Yellow Rocket. SuperCal SO4 increases soil calcium, porosity, and sulfur levels, exactly what alfalfa needs.

Did we mention that SuperCal SO4 cost a fraction of potash? That SuperCal SO4 increases feed value of alfalfa?

What are you waiting for the countdown is on to growing high quality alfalfa, now if the perfect time to apply SuperCal SO4 and launch yellow rocket out of your fields!

A farmer recently asked me about the use of elemental sulfur (i.e. Sulfur 90) for crop nutrition. I answered the question with a question of my own-Why were they considering using that product?

Their answer included less cost (questionable) and higher concentration of sulfur (true), along with better agronomic benefits (what???). There was a definite opportunity to provide basic agronomic education, regarding a) what can plants utilize, b) what else is present in the material and do we need it, and c) what other effects does the material have.

Sulfur is taken up by plants only in the sulfate (SO4) form, through the roots. Elemental sulfur must be oxidized in the soil to SO4 before it can be taken up by the plant. The time it takes for this conversion depends on the weather, the soil, and the product used. A great reference is found on the Back To Basics website, www.back-to-basics.net/agrifacts/pdf/b2b29a.pdf and www.back-to-basics.net/agrifacts/pdf/b2b29b.pdf. These 2 articles talk about the differences between sulfate and elemental forms, along with the conditions necessary for the conversion to sulfate.

Elemental sulfur has a place in crop production. It also has some drawbacks including being a very acidic product, and taking a long time before it is plant available.

If you need a plant available sulfur source, you need the sulfate form (calcium sulfate, potassium sulfate, ammonium sulfate). Make sure you understand all of the details about elemental sulfur, before making it part of your crop nutrition program.

This week there was a sad article on the sudden death of the Venezuelan polo horses. It's still not clear what has killed the horses. My opinion is that they were poisoned, though we will find out in a few days for sure.

This article reminds me of a book I had read, Bread From Stones. In the book they talk about how a Calvary group had a number of their horses mysteriously die. They found out that if they didn't keep the bedding straw clean that the horses could be overcome by ammonia.

The ammonia comes from the animals urine and in realatively low amounts can be fatal to horses. The OSHA guidelines for humans is 15 minutes at 35 ppm. Many of our confinement animal operations are much higher than this for the life of the animals.

At Calcium Products we take the health of animals seriously, but we also do not disregard the needs of the farmer. SuperCal SO4 can help keep ammonia low, bedding material high quality for fertilizer, animals happy, and farmers profitable.

I am in Fayetteville, Arkansas today to meet with Dr. Susan Watkins and her team to see how effective SO4 can be in poultry operations and to see if any of our experimental manure treatments are any better. We'll keep you posted on the results.

In an e-letter I received from AgProffesional.com  there is a good article on alfalfa response to sulfur. Trials conducted by Iowa State are confirming what Calcium Products' customers have always known.

This summer we will be teaming with Dr. Sawyer, and Extension Agronomist Mark Wuebker to continue their sulfur research on corn. http://blog.calciumproducts.com/posts/iowa-state-sulfur-research.cfm

"We are excited at Calcium Products to team with Dr. Sawyer and his staff." stated Larry Moore, President of Calcium Products. "It will be of great importance to Iowa farmers to finally quantify the impact of sulfur on production. I have seen a yield increase from sulfur on the farms I own and for many of our customers, SuperCal SO4 is the last thing they would cut from their fertility programs in tight years."

SuperCal SO4 is high quality natural gypsum finely crushed then pelletized. It contains 17% sulfur and is one the least costly sulfur products on the market today.

Additional Information

Sulfur is a structural component of amino acids, proteins, vitamins and enzymes and is essential to produce chlorophyll. It imparts flavor to many vegetables. Deficiencies show as light green leaves. Sulfur is readily lost by leaching from soils and should be applied with a nutrient formula. Some water supplies may contain Sulfur. For more information of the 20 other important crop nutrients click here.

Past blog post on sulfur and Iowa State

First it was your dog (melemine), then your child (lead toys), so you built a new house to start fresh. Now you are sick and the drywall is the cause. Over the past few years, hundreds of millions of pounds of Chinese drywall were imported and put in new construction. Now many of the residents of those homes have a number of mysterious illnesses.

The story from the AP only confirms our position of why you should avoid by-product gypsum. The imported Chinese drywall was made with fly ash, also known as flue gas gypsum. Now everyone is scambling to figure out what to do with the toxic drywall.

My guess is that someone will be hired to entice farmers to let them dump the millions of pounds of poison wall board on their farms. 

At Calcium Products, we have looked at recycling drywall a number of times. We have always come to the conclusion that the things that make good drywall, make for really bad soil ammendments.

Don't be fooled-things are free or cheap for a reason.!

Read the full article: AP IMPACT: Chinese drywall poses potential risks

SuperCal 98G and SuperCal SO4 have always been made to standards that are allowable for organic production. Over the past couple of years we have had increasing calls from our customers to have our products certified.

I am pleased to announce that SuperCal 98G and SuperCal SO4 are officially OMRI Listed.

“Since we didn’t have to make any changes to our production there won’t be any big changes in price or availability”, stated Larry Moore, President of Calcium Products. He continued, “Becoming OMRI Certified will make it easier for our organic customers to use our products.”

You can access documentation of our certification by going to the analysis pages of SuperCal SO4 and SuperCal 98G, or by going to http://www.omri.org/.

I like to read some of the different postings on various discussion boards regarding agriculture.  One of my favorite sites recently referred to an article that I found quite interesting.  Here is the link:

http://www.lesspub.com/cgi-bin/site.pl?332&ceNews_newsID=6043

This article discusses the role that calcium, when bound to a protein, has by prompting plants to make salicylic acid when it is threatened by infection or other danger.  Salicylic acid (SA), let’s see, it has been a while since chemistry class.  Oh yeah, it is related chemically to aspirin!  According to the director of the study, B.W. Poovaiah, it has been known that plants make SA for quite a while (> than 100 years), but the role of calcium in telling a plant to make SA has been unknown up to now.

Wow!  This is good stuff!  I mean one of the biggest reasons that I chose agronomy over animal science was a remark that I remember from freshmen orientation.  Animals give very specific, unmistakable indications when they are not feeling well or under stress.  Plants, well let’s just say that they are often more subtle about it.  But this article helps us understand that they too are not passive about putting together a defense plan to ward off infection.

The downside?  Plants that have high levels of SA will be very resistant to infection, but have slower growth.  Plants with too little SA will grow very rapidly, but are susceptible to infection.  Makes sense, many things in life & nature follow the rule that some is good but too much or too little causes problems.
 
Another great reason to make sure that you don’t neglect calcium nutrition when finalizing your crop plans for 2009.  SuperCal 98G & SO4 are both great sources of calcium, that’s why they are called Super!  Why not try some today & give your crop a head start (but not a headache).

From Iowa State Crop Notes for March 4 2009

Mark Wuebker will be conducting similar trials in the Des Moines/Ankeny area. Anyone interested in participating in these strip trials should contact Mark or Brian.

Mark Wuebker
ISU Extension Agronomist
1625 ADVENTURELAND DR STE A, ALTOONA, IA 50009-2249
Phone: (515) 957-5778
Fax: (515) 967-6164
Email: mwuebker@iastate.edu

Calcium Products will be assisting Iowa State in this research.

Just saw this article from Ag Proffesional:

Phytophthora root rot is a disease commonly a associated with low avialable soil calcium and low soil oxygen. See our previous article on root rot. Increasing the calcium increase root growth and vigor. Adding calcium to the soil will also increase oxygen to the soil helping to slow the pathogen.

Even if you have high pH you may be short on calcium. Hydrogen is the only thing that pH measures and has nothing to do with calcium availablity. SuperCal SO4 increases soil calcium and doesn't rasie pH.

SuperCal SO4 is an excellent way to inexpensivly reduce root rots. As an added benift you'll see a reduction in white mold too.

Think your getting a good deal from free product?

Think there might be a reason someone would pay you to use a product?

Wonder what else you get for "free" in power plant gypsum (coal ash, fly ash)?

This is a great article discussing the problems with power plant gypsum.

http://www.sciam.com/article.cfm?id=coal-ash-in-soil

SuperCal SO4 95% pure, has no Arsenic, and is currently under organic review.

Beside the fact that you’re making “free”, or at least very cheap Ammonium sulfate fertilizer, treating your manure with SuperCal SO4 makes it cheaper to heat your buildings.
This is due to a simple rule of chemistry called Specific Heat.

Specific Heat is the measure of the heat energy required to increase the temperature of a unit quantity of a substance by a certain temperature interval. In simple terms it is how much propane does it take to raise the temperature in your barn 1 degree.

When you use SuperCal SO4 to stabilize ammonia in the manure, it is not released to the atmosphere of the barn. The specific heat of ammonia gas is 1.55. Water’s specific heat is 1. Normal atmosphere is comprised of mainly Nitrogen (78%) and Oxygen (21%). The specific heat of Nitrogen gas is 0.777 and Oxygen is 1.33. Their combined specific heat is 0.885.

It takes 1.75 times more energy to heat ammonia as it does air! WOW!

Normal air has 78% Nitrogen, 21% Oxygen, 0.9% Argon, 0.03% Carbon Dioxide and the last 0.7% is comprised of 13 other elements. In poultry barns ammonia can quickly become the 5th or 6th most abundant element, when it should be the lest abundant. Ammonia levels can get as high as 220 ppm but generally range from 7 to 177 ppm

Simply put if it would take 88.5 gallons of propane to heat a barn with normal air content and it would take 155 gallons to heat a barn that is 125ppm ammonia. In barns that have high ammonia there is the added cost of running exhaust fans, and the cost of heating air only to have it sucked out.

You thought fertilizer was expensive!

There are also other costs of high ammonia:

During winter, when ventilation rates are low, the ammonia concentrations in many houses will exceed the levels recommended by industry groups of maximum 50 ppm at bird level. However Anderson et al. (1964) showed that ammonia levels as low as 20 ppm compromised the immune system of chickens, making them more susceptible to diseases and damaged the respiratory system of the birds.

Treating your manure with SuperCal SO4 will result in higher rates of gain and lower death loss.

Ammonia emission of more than 100 lb of ammonia per day per site triggers federal reporting requirements through the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA) and the Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-Know Act (EPCRA). According to Iowa State you could be emitting 1.5 lbs to 11.66 lbs per hour of ammonia.

Treating your manure with SuperCal SO4 will keep the government and paper work out of your life.

The U. S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has set a 15-minute exposure limit for gaseous ammonia of 35 ppm by volume in the environmental air and an 8-hour exposure limit of 25 ppm by volume. Exposure to very high concentrations of gaseous ammonia can result in lung damage and death.

So for about $0.12 per 100 birds you can make your own Ammonium Sulfate fertilizer, reduce the cost of heating and ventilating and increase your flock health, make more money and live to enjoy it!

We just can't tell you all the great benefits of gypsum, so we get really excited when someone else presents information on gypsum.

One person who has done some great research is L. Darrell Norton of the National Soil Erosion Research Laboratory.

Darrell conducted a two-year demonstrating successful results in reducing runoff volumes in agricultural applications. Addition of Gypsum to the soil not only improved infiltration, but also reduced run-off concentrations of Phosphorous and Atrazine. The study concluded that use of the gypsum amendment during application of fertilizer and herbicide treatments is a practical management approach in making agriculture more sustainable with respect to surface water quality. The findings were presented at the 9th Biennial Conference on Stormwater Research and Watershed Management.

In the January 2009 edition of the CSA News, The USDA-ARS in Kentucky and Arkansas are researching how Alum affects Ammonia Producing Micro-organisms in poultry litter.

They found that Alum reduced the bacterial population by 50% and a 3x increase in the fungal population. While the bacteria reductions lower the ammonia volatilization loss, the increase in fungus increases the N mineralization.

The story reports that this study will help researchers develop better litter amendments. View the report at http://jeq.scijournals.org/cgi/content/abstract/37/6/2360

Ok, so what is Alum and what are the other choices in treating litter?

Alum is caustic, makes soil acidic, reduces the ability of crops to grow once spread on your fields, and is expensive.

Another choice for treating poultry litter is PLT. In addition to being astronomically expensive, anyone who willingly applies PLT treated litter to their fields is going to experience massive increases in sodium levels (a much bigger concern than ammonia).

While research is good, there is currently a product on the market that will treat ammonia for pennies, is easy to handle, doesn't cause soil problems, and is safe and natural.

We introduced SuperCal SO4 for treating manure in past blogs, The Smell of Money and Treating Manure with SuperCal SO4, here is what really happens when using different products to treat manure.

Warning - Significant amounts of chemistry below!

Alum

Also known as hydrated aluminum potassium sulfate, and Aluminum Sulfate

Carries an OSHA safety warning of Hazardous

Cost $70 for a 50# bag

How it works
10 NH₃ + 10 KAl(SO₄)2 + 12 H₂0 = 10 NH₄(SO₄)2 + 10 KOH + 10 Al 

Ammonia - NH₃ is produced in animal manure by the breakdown of urea and in poultry manure by the breakdown of uric acid. The gaseous emission of NH₃ can be inhibited if converted to ammonium - NH₄. Alum - KAl(SO₄)2, is an acid that produces hydrogen ions - H when it dissolves. The hydrogen ions produced by this reaction will attach to ammonia to form ammonium, which further reacts with sulfate ions to form ammonium sulfate - NH₄(SO₄)2
Ammonium sulfate - NH₄(SO₄)2, is an inorganic chemical compound commonly used as a fertilizer. It contains 21% nitrogen as ammonium ions and 24% sulfur as sulfate ions. In the soil the sulfate ion is released and forms bisulfate, lowering the pH balance of the soil while contributing essential nitrogen for plant growth.

Potassium Hydroxide - KOH, also known as Caustic Potash is also produced. KOH is used in cleaning and disinfection.

Aluminum - Al, the final component of the reaction is a precipitation of aluminum.

Balancing Soil Nutrient Levels in Agriculture

Soil tests provide some great information to producers and consultants.  They ususally include such things as pH, buffer pH, and CEC along with nutrient levels like Phosphorus (P) and Potassium (K).  Some agronomists and producers look at the pH and then ignore everything else except for the recommendations based on yield.  This might not be the best strategy for long term soil health.

There are some people who advocate looking at the relative proportions of the cations (Hydrogen, Calcium, Potassium, Sodium, Magnesium) in the soil and trying to achieve a balanced level of fertility.  This would be equivalent to achieving a balanced livestock ration or human diet. 

A Virginia website which talks more about cation balancing can be found here:  www.vabf.org/soilre1.php . I think the author makes two very important points in the conclusion:

1) A foliar or tissue test will show what the plant is actually using.  This may be different than what a soil test indicates.

2) There is no substitute for the knowledge that a farmer has about the land he is managing. 

The smell of money, isn’t that what people say when they smell manure from hogs and cattle.

The main component of the smell is ammonia, a nitrogen source. While your neighbors may call it a nuisance, it’s really the smell of crop nutrients evaporating. This is called volatilization loss. With the cost of fertilizer high and the price for corn low, everyone is looking to reduce the cost of applied N.

Ammonia losses following land application of manure could reach up to 95% of the total manure nitrogen-ammonium (N-NH4) content. The amount of N-NH4 lost depends on the manure characteristics and the environmental conditions.

Research has demonstrated that SuperCal SO4 can effectively reduce ammonia losses through a binding effect. SuperCal SO4 combines with ammonia to create a complex salt that prevents ammonia loss, while increasing plant N uptake. Our customer’s claim they are saving over 50% of the ammonia normally lost to volatilization.

In addition to saving expensive nitrogen, SuperCal SO4 also adds sulfur to the manure making it a better fertilizer when applied to your fields. Our customers also report less foot problems in feedlot cattle and less disease in dairy dry stalls.

Do your bottom line a favor, repair relations with neighbors by adding SuperCal SO4 to your barns and lots. For rates and applications check out our past article Treating Manure with SuperCal SO4.

With all the saturated fields we had this past spring many farmers found large patches of soybean fields dying out. This is known as dampening off or Phytophthora root rot.

Did you know you have options other than replanting… if you start now with fall fertility.

Current recommendations to control root rot are:

• Choosing the right variety
• Improve soil drainage
• Fungicide seed treatments can be used to reduce the early season damping off
• Avoid applying high levels of potash

Many growers will not want to reduce their applied potash for fear of yield loss, fungicides have shown to help, tilling can improve drainage, and the variety that may yield the best under normal conditions may not have resistance to root rot.

What if there was a product that could improve soil drainage, making tile work better, add nutrients to increases soybean yields, and helps with potash uptake? What if you could replace a fertilizer you are already using and it costs less?

Lucky for you there is, its called SuperCal So4 pelletized gypsum. You can use it as your primary sulfur source since it has 17% sulfur in the sulfate form. That means it works right away in any pH. SuperCal SO4 help drainage tile works better, increases yields, and increases nutrient uptake.

While no University is currently doing any research on reducing root rot on soybeans with gypsum, lots are looking at gypsum on other crops. Gypsum has shown to reduce root rot on many other crops.

Root Rot in Avocado
Infection of avocado seedlings by Phytophthora cinnamomi in infested soil was decreased by 71% by the addition of gypsum soil amendments in replicated greenhouse experiments.
 
From: Effects of Gypsum Soil Amendments on Avocado Growth, Soil Drainage, and Resistance to Phytophthora cinnamomi. B. J. Messenger, J. A. Menge, and E. Pond, Department of Plant Pathology, University of California, Riverside 92521

Red Stele in Strawberries 
Gypsum applied at 6 tons/acre either in the fall or spring prior to planting strawberries significantly reduced the incidence and severity of red stele (Red stele is caused by the soil borne fungus Phytophthora fragariae) in the spring, one year after planting compared to untreated soil. The severity of red stele remained significantly lower in plots amended with gypsum applied at 6 tons/acre in the spring, compared to untreated plots for up to 2 years after  application.

 From:  Effect of rate and timing of gypsum soil amendments on the incidence and severity of red stele in strawberries  M.J. Celetti,  C. Kessel, P. Fisher, J. DeEl, Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs, Guelph, Ontario; Simcoe, Ontario

Note: Customers of ours have reported better results with 300# of SuperCal SO4 than 3 tons of gypsum sourced on the west coast.

Raspberry -- Root Rot
Cause: Root rot is a major disease complex of raspberry in the Pacific Northwest. Many fungi and fungus-like microorganisms associated with cane fruit root rots are associated with strawberry black root rot. Phytophthora fragariae var. rubi causes a typical wet-soil root rot on some red raspberry cultivars throughout the region.
Cultural Control: Amend soil with gypsum (6 tons/A) before making raised beds and planting.

From: http://plant-disease.ippc.orst.edu/disease.cfm?RecordID=954

Note: Customers of ours have reported better results with 300# of SuperCal SO4 than 3 tons of gypsum sourced on the west coast.

In a world of high priced fertilizers it’s nice that you have alternatives. Not only will SuperCal SO4 cost you less per pound of sulfur than anything on the market, you have the benefits of increased soil drainage, increased nutrient uptake, and reduction in soil borne disease!

SuperCal SO4 a real bargain in a high priced market.

From: http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/10/081017150732.htm

When Under Attack, Plants Can Signal Microbial Friends For Help

The finding quashes the misperception that plants are “sitting ducks”--at the mercy of passing pathogens--and sheds new light on a sophisticated signaling system inside plants that rivals the nervous system in humans and animals.

and

From: http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2004/10/041005075521.htm

How Roots Control Plant Shoots: Biologists Discover Gene That Helps Roots Limit Leaf Growth

University of Utah biologists discovered a gene that allows a plant's roots to tell the leaves to stop growing, presumably when water is scarce, soil is too compacted or other conditions are bad.

I found these two article very interesting, but what does that mean to a corn and soybean farmer? To grow higher yielding crops we really must focus more on the soil. These means much more than just N-P and K, it means making sure that the 20 nutirents for growth are available, that you do not have a hard pan, that the soil drains properly, has a good soil density so that benificial bacteria and biology can thrive to help you crops grow better.

We've been helping farmers develop better soil quality for over 10 years, SuperCal 98G and SuperCal SO4 is a good start... once you've taken proper soil samples. Contact one of our dealers or give us a call, now is the perfect time to get started making better soil!

Some harvesting is taking place and with that comes grain storage. How do you make sure that your grain stays in good condition when storing it on farm? Dry it with costly natural gas or propane, run the fans until Christmas, fumigate, pray???

I found this great article from Greg Patterson on Calcium Nutrition in Plants. If there are other crops calcium can improve the quality and longevity of storage why should grain be any different.

A number of our customers have mentioned that grain storage problems have all but disappeared once they started using our products. This is something we will be doing research on in the future.

While I have not run the numbers, but if your spending lots of money on drying costs and fumigation, you likely have low plant available calcium. Why not fix you soil, reduce your drying and storage costs and avoid a crop loss due to spoilage.

Congratulations to Farmers Cooperative in Rake, Iowa on the opening of their new dry plant! The agronomy team at Rake does a great job when it come to fertility planning and management. If you have not stopped by in a while, now may be a great time.

Thanks for making us a part of your open house and good luck this fall!

We have been testing our products for almost 20 years. We know they work, we know they are high quality, and we know they will improve your bottom line.

In fact we are so sure that we will “Prove It” to you. Work with one of our qualified dealers, apply SuperCal SO4 or SuperCal 98G, soil and tissue sample, (we’ll pay for them) record the yield at harvest.

For more details, go to http://www.calciumproducts.com/prove-it.cfm

Find out if your dealer sells SuperCal 98G and SuperCal SO4 on our dealer locator.

The price of fertilizer is continuing to climb. With the price of commodities it will be difficult for may to apply less fertilizer fearing a loss of yield. With proper management and knowledge of your soils you may just be able to apply less fertilizer and increase yields. In this memo from Midwest Labs, for customers with higher magnesium and higher CEC soils some options to increase Potassium availability;

Potassium availability, and/or rate of exchange, can be enhanced by one or more of the following:
1. Optimum potassium soil test levels per C.E.C. range and percent magnesium values.
2. K2O fertilizer applied in bands.
    a. Starter
    b. Surface band
    c. Subsurface band
    d. Combination of (a) + (b) or (a) + (c).
3. Improve soil aeration
4. Adequate exchangeable soil calcium.
    a. Calcium increases potassium adsorption into the plant (2).
    b. Use calcitic lime on acid soils excess in magnesium.
    c. Use gypsum where soil pH is greater than 6.4 on soils with excess magnesium.
    d. Calcium additions can help alleviate soil compaction zones and promotes good soil structure

From: SOIL & FERTILIZER MANAGEMENT CONSIDERATIONS FOR SOILS EXCESS IN MAGNESIUM

See more information from Midwest Labs

With corn silage season coming up this is a good time to talk about nitrate poisoning. Typically associated with drought and rain after dry conditions, there are other factors to that can cause high nitrate in forage crops. High rates of N, low or high levels of molybdenum, low sulfur, and low boron, and events that upset normal plant growth like early frosts.

New pastures are known to be high in nitrate, especially the faster they grow, the more toxic they can become. Hybrid ryegrass is one of the most dangerous. If reseeding pastures this fall make sure to add edible clover which normally do not have high nitrate levels.

Nitrate poisoning has been on the rise in the past decade, this could be due to the reluctance of today's generation to lime pastures (molybdenum levels drop with acid soils), increase use of urea on pastures, and less sulfur naturally being applied due to clean air laws.

Nitrate Toxicity is aggravated by:

• Excess N application in the autumn after a dry period of no growth
• Rain and warmth after a no-grow period
• Fast plant growth
• Stressed plants, from drought, hot wind, frost, and hail
• Low sunshine
• Fast eating by underfed, hungry animals
• Low pasture molybdenum - below 0.5 ppm, 1.6 ppm is optimum
• Molybdenum levels above 4 ppm, especially if pasture sulfur is low
• Low sulfur levels, below 0.25 ppm
• Low calcium and phosphorus levels
• Nitrate is highest in the morning, when rotating cattle wait until mid afternoon

While environment can have an impact on nitrate levels, having the proper soil nutrients in the proper levels is great insurance from nitrate poisoning. As a bonus you'll enjoy better pasture performance, and high gains from your animals.

Last week Morris Marsolek, consultant to Calcium Products, Jim Milam, Turf Sales with Calcium Products, and I spent a day in Los Angeles. While it was not really a vacation, the weather was a nice break from tornados, hail and down pours.

The reason for my trip was to meet the owners of Wallace Laboratories. Calcium Products has long relied on the expertise of Dr. Arthur Wallace and Dr. Garn Wallace.

Many agronomists and researchers in the Midwest may not have heard of the Wallaces, however west of the Rockies they are well known.

The Wallaces have over 70 years of combined experience in plant physiology, soil science, ecology and plant nutrition with over 600 publications. They have authored special issues in Soil Science, Journal of Plant Nutrition, Communications in Soil Science and Plant Analysis.

These articles cover, revegetation of disturbed lands, plant analysis to assess mineral needs of plants, determination of normal and abnormal nutrient concentrations, chelated micronutrients in plant nutrition, iron nutrition, excess trace elements in soil and plants, multiple action factors on plant growth and improvement of the physical properties of soil.

In addition to numerous publications and laboratory services, Dr. Garn Wallace also offers consulting. When we at Calcium Products have a question that we can not find the answer to, 9 times out of 10 Dr. Garn Wallace will be able answer it.

Thanks again for letting us visit, and keep up the good work!

Arthur Wallace, Ph. D., Professor Emeritus, UCLA, Department of Agricultural Sciences (Soil Science and Plant Nutrition). Dr. A Wallace organized the first Iron Symposia, which is still held every year at a different location around the world. He has written many paper about he benefits of gypsum and PAM.

Garn A. Wallace, pH. D. earned his doctorate degree from UCLA in the Department of Biochemistry. He worked as a research biochemist in the Laboratory of Biomedical and Environmental sciences before forming Wallace Laboratories with Arthur Wallace. Garn has over 100 publications in the fields of plant nutrition, soil science, microbiology, plant physiology, ecology, soil conditioners, mineral excesses, water relationship in plants, mineral toxicities etc.

Wallace Labs is located at 365 Coral Circle, El Segundo, CA 90245, (310) 615-0116.

http://www.wlabs.com/default.cfm

Many of the books written by Drs. Wallace are available on their website.

The cooler than normal weather, all the rain and higher humidity could mean the return of white mold.

White mold, also known as sclerotinia stem rot, is caused by the fungus Sclerotinia sclerotiorum. It appears as fluffy white mycelial growth, most prominently on the stems.
White mold is heavily influenced by weather and microclimatic conditions. Progress of the disease is favored by below-average air temperatures, high relative humidity, and soil moisture. When these conditions occur during the two weeks prior to peak flower on the lower stems, the disease incidence can be especially severe.

With higher commodity prices growers have been managing for higher yield levels. Many of the practices associated with these trends— shorter rotations, narrower rows, earlier planting—create a less healthy environment that favors white mold development.

At the Iowa State ICMC conference it was suggested to avoid white mold don’t try and grow high yielding soybeans. Thanks for the help!

You could try a variety that is resistant to white mold, but those varieties are usually lower yielding than the susceptible genetics.

If you want high yielding white mold free soybeans, start with the soil. I showed Craig Grau, Professor of Plant Pathology, University of Wisconsin- Madison our research on stopping white mold. He told me that yes gypsum applied before planting is a great preventative to white mold.

See our research on white mold. Don't give up on high yielding soybeans, start with Super Cal SO4, pelletized gypsum

Last weeks Iowa Farmer Today as an article in it “Crusted soils, uneven emergence prevail”. Its focus is on using a rotary hoe to alleviate crusted soils. It discusses damage to stand and that there is a cost in fuel and time to hoe a field.

While hoeing maybe your only option at this point in the season, wouldn’t be best to adopt practices that reduce or eliminate crusting. Applying 150 to 300 pounds of SuperCal SO4 will prevent crusting on most soil types.

Think you can’t afford it? For $15 to $30 per acre you can apply SuperCal SO4. What is the cost of hoeing, according to the University of Nebraska’s 2008 Custom farming rates, $12 per acre? What about yield loss due to stand count? What if the field is crusted enough that stand is reduced enough that you have to replant?

200 bushel corn, 10% yield reduction due to stand loss, at $5 corn = $100 per acre lost to crusting.

SuperCal SO4 is not just insurance for crusting and yield loss. SuperCal SO4 provides 17% sulfur. It is the only source of sulfur that does not cause soil acidity, is plant available and will cost you less than other fertilizers. Iowa State reports that 82% of the sites had a statistically significant yield increase to applied S fertilizer, and yield increases averaged 15, 18, and 38 bu/acre.

Use SuperCal SO4, eliminate crusting, increase yields, and sell the rotary hoe.

The current cost of fertilizer, corn, and land has many livestock owners wondering how to stay profitable. Unfortunately there are not quick solutions. This article on nutrient cycling in pastures should help. I have condensed it for quicker reading. 

Appropriate pasture management can enhance the nutrient cycle, increase productivity, and reduce costs. Two practical indicators of soil health are the number of earthworms and the percentage of organic matter in the soil.

Paddock design and stocking density can also affect the efficiency of nutrient cycling in a pasture system. Supplementation of natural fertility, based on soil tests, balances the soil's mineral composition, resulting in better plant and animal growth and increased soil health.

When nutrients cycle efficiently in a pasture system, they move through various soil organisms and pasture plants, then through the grazing animals, and back to the soil again as manure and urine.

With good management, nutrients can cycle quickly with minimal losses to air and water. Less fertilizer will be required, and this means increased profitability for the entire farm.

Good-quality soils produce good-quality pastures. Good-quality soils don't erode, since water flows quickly into the ground and is stored there. Good-quality pastures are springy underfoot, with deep green forage that covers the soil and a moderate amount of dead residue under the canopy. They produce nutritious forage with balanced mineral levels. Livestock find these forages palatable and thrive on them.

Producers create this kind of soil through good management. Using smart grazing strategies, testing soils regularly and applying fertilizers, lime, and organic amendments as needed.

Organic matter is critical for storing water and nutrients in the soil. It holds nutrients in plant-available forms that don't easily wash away. It creates an open soil structure into which water, dissolved minerals, and oxygen can move, ready for plants to use. It provides further nutrient storage in the soil and can disable certain plant toxins.

Trees, many broadleaf weeds, and forages such as alfalfa have taproots that go deep into the soil horizon where some grass roots cannot reach. The nutrients from these deeper soil levels are used by the plant, but become available at the soil surface once the tree leaves fall or the weeds die, decompose, and release their nutrients.

The roots constitute at least half the weight of a grass plant. Many native warm-season perennial grasses have root systems that reach six feet or more into the soil horizon. They occupy a huge underground area and form a network that holds the soil in place. Every year 20-50% of this mass, as well as all of the top growth in temperate climates, dies and becomes organic matter.

Grazing Livestock Affect Pasture Nutrient Cycles
Livestock feeding on pasture use a small proportion of the minerals they ingest in forages to build bones, meat, and hide. The rest is excreted in dung and urine. In general, urine contains most of the nitrogen (N) and potassium (K) wastes, and dung contains most of the phosphorus (P) the animals don't use.

Value Of NPK In Manure And Urine

When N and K are present at higher levels in the feed, they are excreted in manure. Phosphorus and some other minerals cycle through animals primarily in manure. It can take from six months to two years for manure to break down and for the phosphorus to cycle back into the plants. The speed of the cycle is affected by various biological agents as well as by mechanical means.

Grazing behavior has a big impact on nutrient distribution. In smaller paddocks, with high stock density, urine and dung are more evenly distributed than in large ones. Livestock are less selective in their grazing habits and space themselves more evenly within the area allotted for a grazing period. They will graze closer to dung piles and exhibit less avoidance of urine spots so that more forage is used for animal production.

In large areas, cattle act as a herd and go to water together. When water is available nearby, however, animals drink individually and return to graze in other areas. If they must travel in a lane to the water, manure will concentrate in these non-productive areas en route.

When there is not enough room at the water tank for all to water at once, those waiting will manure that area, concentrating nutrients where they are less likely to contribute to plant and animal productivity.

Good management helps distribute nutrients that will feed your pastures. Locating water, minerals, shade, and fly-control devices in different parts of the paddock also discourages nutrient concentration. It is even more beneficial if these high-use areas can be relocated for each grazing cycle or placed in areas that would not otherwise attract livestock use.

Supplemental feed, likewise, should be placed either where nutrients are needed or under the fence. The location should vary with each feeding.

Good management determines how effective the water cycle will be in pastures. If rainwater can enter the soil easily, runoff losses are less. Maximum infiltration of rainfall keeps groundwater tables charged up, wells running year round, and drought damage to a minimum.

Soil surface conditions that foster high rainwater intake are abundant ground cover (by living plants and surface litter) and good soil aggregation. The best-aggregated soils are those that have been in well-managed perennial grass. Though aggregation can be maintained under crops, the perennial activity of grass provides both aggregate-forming processes and aggregate-stabilizing humus.

Lime is a particularly important amendment in pasture management. While it has always been considered necessary for adjusting pH, there is growing evidence that the amount of calcium has important consequences for plant production and animal health.

High fertilization coupled with frequent harvesting of hay speeds organic matter decomposition and releases minerals faster than plants growing on the site can absorb them. As a result, nutrients are leached deeper into the soil, out of the reach of plant roots, or they are lost to run off.

The use of some commercial fertilizer is always an option to be exercised when necessary. However, continuing to look for ways to use natural systems to produce nutritious forage and healthy animals, while lessening one's dependence on purchased, non-renewable resources, is worthwhile.

SuperCal 98G is finely ground limestone pelletized for easier handling and mixing with other dry fertilizers.

SuperCal SO4 is finely ground pelletized gypsum, allowing you to fertilize with calcium and not raise pH.

Corn response to sulfur in Iowa is reported to give an increase in yield 82% of the time. Over half the states in the US have reported sulfur deficient soils. The clean air laws and reduced sulfur content of fuels has decreased the amount of sulfur reaching fields… and pastures.

Sulfur is use to build proteins, amino acids and enzymes. Forages grown with adequate sulfur will have a higher protein content and lower nitrate content.

Fertilizing your pasture with SuperCal SO4 has many positive effects on the amount and quality of the grass. This leads to higher intakes, improved gains and higher stocking rates.

Increasing the sulfur content of your forages will result increase meat-, wool- and milk production. The higher production is due increased dry matter, and cellulose digestibility, increased feed intake and improved nitrogen balance.

Dairy cattle performance can be improved as well. Improvements included a higher production of milk solids, milk fat, and milk protein and milk casein. The higher casein content raised cheese yields.

Under conditions of a sulfur deficiency, increased sulfur of beef cattle rations not only improved average daily weight gain, but also decreased feed costs per pound of gain and increased the carcass grading

Don’t let sulfur limit your production, add SuperCal SO4 your fertility program.

Our customers for years have told us that they are growing better corn and beans than ever with our products. Was it the calcium or the sulfur, or something else? For years Iowa State has told us that Iowa soils have enough calcium and sulfur, well calcium anyway. In the newest research they have found corn does respond to applied sulfur, 82% of the time.

Summary from Evaluation of Corn Response to Sulfur Fertilization in Northeast Iowa, John Sawyer
Corn grain yield increase to S fertilization has occurred with high frequency in these studies. Also, the magnitude of yield increase has been large. Across the two years and three studies, 82% of the sites had a statistically significant yield increase to applied S fertilizer. By study, statistically significant across-site yield increases averaged 15, 18, and 38 bu/acre. Analyzed across S rate, the economic optimum S rate was 14 lb S/acre for fine-textured soils and 24 lb S/acre for coarse-textured soils. This research indicates a dramatic change in need for S fertilization in northeast Iowa, and that S application is an economically viable fertilization practice on many soils.

Read the whole article here.

In case you’ve never used sulfur products their price is rising along with other inputs. Many dealers have reported not being able to source enough sulfur. Fortunately since SuperCal SO4 is made in Iowa from a natural mined source, its price has not risen as dramatically as other sulfur products. In fact using SuperCal SO4 in bulk at the universities recommendations will cost you $7.50 to $10.50 per acre, quite a bit cheaper than other products on the market.

While we have been sold out for over a year we have just finished our plant expansion and should be able to meet demand for the coming years. As an added bonus, SuperCal SO4 doesn’t cause soil acidity like ammonium sulfate, thiosulfate, or elemental sulfur does. Though we do sell lime is you want to add more cost to your fertilizer bill!

We have received a number of phone calls recently on SuperCal SO4 and SuperCal 98G for tomatoes. SuperCal SO4 is the best product on the market to eleminate blossom-end rot. As always start with a proper soil analysis, then add fertilizers and ammendments as need.

Blossom end rot:

Blossom-end rot is a nonparasitic disease of tomato, pepper and watermelon. Losses can vary from a trace to more than 50%.

Symptoms

The first symptom is a slight water-soaked area on or near the blossom end of the fruit. The affected area soon darkens and enlarges in a constantly widening circle until the fruit begins to ripen. The tissues are dark and shrunken and have a dry, leathery appearance. With pepper the rot is tan in color and should not be confused with sunscald, which is white. The affected area may be merely a speck or it may involve half or more of the fruit. Secondary microorganisms may grow on the decayed area.

Cause

Blossom end rot is caused by a lack of calcium in the developing fruit. This may be due to a lack of calcium uptake from the soil or to extreme fluctuations in water supply. Incidence of blossom-end rot is also increased where there is a low ratio of calcium to certain other nutrients such as potassium and nitrogen.

Control

Although the most desirable calcium levels for preventing blossom-end rot have not been determined, the application of lime (SuperCal 98G) to fields known to be low in calcium has helped to prevent the disease. Soil should be limed according to recommendations of soil analysis report, usually to pH 6.5-6.8. The use of gypsum (SuperCal SO4), at rates of 500 to 1000 pounds per acre (1 to 2 pounds per 100 square feet).

SuperCal 98G and SuperCal SO4 can be applied 2 weeks in advance of planting due to the fineness of the base material. Other lime and gypsum materials may need to be applied months in advance.

http://www.ces.ncsu.edu/depts/pp/notes/oldnotes/vg19.htm

Now is the time to start thinking about pasture fertilization. For many cattlemen the cost of fertilizers has them looking for alternatives to high priced N, P and S.

We have had a number of customers comment on the results they have witnessed with SuperCal SO4; higher stocking rate, reduced weeds, better cattle gains, and reduced vet bills. One skeptical customer applied SO4 to only one paddock of his rotational grazing pasture. When he moved the cattle off the SO4 applied section, the next day they busted down the fence to get back to that area. Cattle know where to find the best grass!

In grass legume mixtures SuperCal SO4 has many advantages of Ammonium Sulfate (AMS). First is cost, SO4 is almost half the cost of AMS, it doesn't cause acidity like AMS, and doesn't contain nitrogen. Established grass legume mixtures do not need extra nitrogen. If you fertilizer for the legume it will produce more than enough for the grass. If you fertilizer for the grass it will soon over-take and crowd out the legume.

Finally SO4 will increase water infiltration and holding capacity of your soil. By allowing more water to be held in the soil you can increase stocking rates since there will be more grass.

Forages the high priced fertilizers and find out what other cattleman have, SuperCal SO4 the better choice for pastures and forages.

Lots of rain last fall, long periods of snow cover reducing soil freezing, the potential for excessive spring moisture due to melting snow, Elwynn Taylor telling us were in the 19th year. What do they have to do with each other, extra compaction compounded by the threat of drought.

Causes of Compaction:  

Raindrop impact - This is certainly a natural cause of compaction, and we see it as a soil crust (usually less than 1/2 inch thick at the soil surface) that may prevent seedling emergence. Having optimum amounts organic matter and calcium can alleviate crusting.

Tillage operations - Continuous moldboard plowing or disking at the same depth will cause serious tillage pans (compacted layers) just below the depth of tillage in some soils. Corn roots have a penetrating force of 350-400 lbs/sq in. Alfalfa roots can exert up 700 lbs/sq in. Many tillage compaction layers can exceed 750 lbs /sq in of force to penetrate.

Wheel traffic - This is without a doubt the major cause of soil compaction. With increasing farm size, the window of time in which to get these operations done in a timely manner is often limited. The weight of tractors has increased to 20 tons today, from less than 3 tons in the 1940's. This is of special concern because spring planting and fall harvest is often done before the soil is dry enough to support the heavy equipment.

Minimal Crop Rotation - The trend towards a limited crop rotation has had two effects: 1.) Limiting different rooting systems and their beneficial effects on breaking subsoil compaction, and 2.) Increased potential for compaction early in the cropping season, due to more tillage activity and field traffic.

This past Sunday I was the featured guest on Highway 6 - Your Road to the Country, on 98.3 WOW-FM in Des Moines. It's the nations only full hour, live radio show devoted to living in the country. They talk about the issues that impact rural living and bring on guests that can help make living the lifestyle more enjoyable and profitable.

Highway 6 is not really a farm show; it is dedicated to acreage owners. An interesting note from last weeks show, according to the USDA anyone that files a schedule F with more than $1000 in income is a farmer. That would certainly include anyone that has a few acres and sells some hay to a neighbor, rents some pasture, or sells fruits and vegetables at the local farmers market.

So what was the point of us being on the program? We discussed the importance of liming in any fertility program, how having the proper soil pH can reduce the amount of fertilizer needed, and how using SuperCal SO4 can reduce runoff.

Thanks to the crew over at WOW and to the host Michael Libbie, I had a lot of fun and look forward to being a part of the show in the future.

This winter has been colder than many. The cost of natural gas and propane has been more expensive. The news has been full of stories of people not able to afford the rising cost of heating their homes. What about the folks that have large barns of animals? Not only are they feeling the heating crunch the cost of feed continues to increase. We have a solution to both problems.

Using SuperCal SO4 as a poultry litter treatment. SuperCal SO4 keeps the ammonia gas in manure from volatilizing. This means that there is less venting of buildings, keeping valuable warm air inside. Since ammonia’s molecular weight is less than normal atmosphere it takes less BTU’s to heat a building. Performance of birds will also be enhanced since they will not be breathing ammonia.

While reduction in building odor, decreased heating costs, and increased animal performance are great reasons for using a litter treatment, SuperCal SO4 will increase the value of the litter as a fertilizer. Since SuperCal SO4 keeps the nitrogen from volatilizing it is available to the plants in the field, resulting in higher yields and less high priced chemical fertilizer.

Application Rates for Poultry: 3-5 lbs per 100 birds per week for layers, 2-5# per 100 birds per week for broilers.

It is best to do applications every 10 days, but you can spread all of it when you put down new bedding. Example: 1000 birds for 8 weeks 3 pound rate, 1000/100=10x 8 weeks x 3 = 240 pounds.

Dairy: Up to 2-3# per head per week in dry stalls

Beef Feed Lots: 1-2# per head per week for animals ranging from 600-1000#

Swine: ½ to 2# per head per week for fattening barns and brood sows

These materials can be spread by hand, with a yard sized fertilizer spreader, an ATV spreader, or full size fertilizer buggy. For dry barns a seed pro-box on a stand works great as a holding/storage container. Just fill a five gallon bucket from the slide and spread a scoop full in each stall.

Does not contain sodium, or alum, both of which are toxic to plants!

If you missed it Dan Davidson with DNT blogged about gypsum last week. Dan reports that a study from the USDA ARS that gypsum can indeed curb run off.Check out the research here.

While gypsum does not solve all problems and can’t work create miracles, many will find that it is useful in their fertility program.

Click here to see if you should expect a response to gypsum.

Also a couple of weeks ago in the Iowa Farmer Today, there was an article by Catherine Kling, professor of Environmental Research Economics, the gist of the article was that there needs to be more government subsidizing of conservation practices to solve all the run off in Iowa. I wrote Ms. Kling suggesting that for lees than their budget we could treat every acre in Iowa with SuperCal SO4. There has been a wealth of research in addition to that by the ARS

• The solute concentration from gypsum makes soil aggregates more stable.
• Gypsum prevents crusting and aids water infiltration. (shainberg et al. 1989)
• In a study by ARS gypsum has shown benefits in reducing P run-off.
• L. Darrell Norton is at the USDA-ARS National Soil Erosion Research Laboratory, has also done research showing the benefits of gypsum in reducing N and P run-off.

In addition we are exploring a new product that can be handled and spread like dry fertilizer. One pound of active ingredient (AI) can effectively flocculate up to 10 tons of soil under ideal conditions. This can be done very cost effectively.

• The Denver Water Board sponsored a study of sediment run-off, 10 pounds per acre of AI showed a 95% reduction in sediment run-off.
• Colorado State University sponsored a study with AI, and showed a 80% reduction in sediment run-off.
• In a study conducted by Wallace & Wallace dry-broadcasted AI reduced erosion by 75%-100%. 
• Using the combination of gypsum/AI can simultaneously improve crop yields 10-25% or more while reducing runoff, effectively making the cost of application free.

We could treat all the cropland acres in Iowa (27m) for approximately $20-$30/a, or $650 million, the cost being provided by the landowner, and recouped it in higher yields. As expected I have not recieved a response in almost a month.

Last week the Des Moines Register reported farm run off from Iowa is damaging the Gulf of Mexico. The question is now are you going to take action or wait for government mandates, taxes, and restrictions on fertilizer use.

You can work now to increase yields, increase organic matter and water infiltration and holding capacity, or continue to watch you soil erode, taking with it valuable nutrients and assuring more regulation.

Soil amendments can be tricky; this is more due to the fact that soils and fertility contain so many variables. The best starting point is to have a complete soil analysis taken, and if your an irrigator a complete water analysis will also be helpful. Knowing only the pH or phosphorus and potassium levels is not enough to determine proper fertilization.

Once you have your completed soil analysis back, here is a list of items that can give you an idea if SuperCal SO4 will increase your yields.

1. When the soil pH is over 8.2 and maybe even if it is less.
2. When the subsoil pH is lower that 5.
3. When the soil particles disperse when water is added.
4. When water puddles on it.
5. When there is water logging in the soil.
6. When the soil crusts after irrigation or rain.
7. When there is excessive cracking of the soil after irrigation or rain.
8. When the soils contain clays that swell and contract.
9. When the soil contains clay that is very dusty when dry.
10. When intense rain falls on soil that is not acid and where nearly all solutes may be leached from the soil.
11. When no-till is used.
12. When organics (manure, composts, etc.) are simultaneously applied to the soil with gypsum.
13. When crops require the development of fruits or seeds.
14. When sulfur is deficient.
15. When exchangeable sodium percentage (ESP) is over 3 and defiantly if it is over 9.
16. When irrigation water contains substantial amounts of bicarbonate.
17. When irrigation water contains less than 200 parts per million of salts in solution (<0.3 mmho/cm).

Some of these problems can be corrected with as little as 100 pounds per acre, while others may take a few hundred pounds per acre. If your farm has one or more of the above conditions SuperCal SO4 deserves to be part of your regular fertility program.

Taken as an excerpt from Soil Conditioner and Amendment Technologies Volume I. This book and others on soil management can be found here.

It is true that NPK is used in greater percentages than calcium, but calcium is used more by weight and volume than any other nutrient. Calcium is rarely considered as a nutrient at all, only as a soil buffer to adjust pH.

Calcium should be considered the most important nutrient, and more than simply just a tool to move the pH scale. It plays a major role in the physiology of the plant, strengthening its physical structure, increasing nutrient uptake and protecting from disease. The importance of calcium in the soil, includes; the reduction of soil compaction, increased water infiltration, and helping to provide a better environment for the proliferation of beneficial bacteria. Some research even suggests that calcium plays a role in weed populations. To associate calcium only as a buffer of pH is agronomicly ignorant.

Calcium Benefits
Calcium neutralizes soil acidity
Improves soil structure and quality
Prevents soil crusting
Reduces soil salinity
Reduces erosion and phosphorous loss
Improves water penetration
Promotes root development
Calcium stimulates growth of "soil life", including nitrogen-fixing bacteria.
Every plant needs calcium to grow
Calcium helps create a healthy environment for your plants
Only nitrogen and potassium are required in larger amounts by plants
Once fixed, calcium is not mobile in the plant
It is an important constituent of cell walls and can only be supplied in the xylem sap
If the plant runs out of a supply of calcium, it cannot remobilize calcium from older tissues
If transpiration is reduced, the calcium supply to growing tissues will become inadequate
Calcium is found in many minerals in soil, but is relatively insoluble.
A common misconception is that if the pH is high, adequate calcium is present
High levels of other cations such as magnesium, iron, sodium, and potassium can increase pH
Plant available calcium determines the uptake of all other nutrients into the plant
It is the carrier of all other nutrients to the plant
As calcium content in the plant drops so can the protein, mineral and energy levels of the plant
Calcium is not considered a mobile nutrient, but can leach with excess nitrogen
Over fertilization of nitrogen and potassium will reduce calcium availability
High potassium levels reduces the uptake of calcium
You will usually find an increase in all mineral levels in a plant following the correction of low calcium
Calcium plays a critical metabolic role in carbohydrate removal.
Calcium neutralizes cell acids
Study after study shows calcium at the optimum level will decrease disease in most plants
Yield, quality, taste, shelf life and disease resistance are all functions of good calcium uptake

SuperCal SO4 and SuperCal 98G are great sources of calcium. Our pelletized processing makes it easy to add calcium to your dry fertilizer program. See your local dealer or give us a call to see how easy it can be to reduce input costs, and increase yields.

This week I attended the Integrated Crop Management Conference in Ames, IA. This was the first time I attended the program. I thought the group at Iowa State did a great job. I would recommend this program to all of our dealers.

Here are some overviews from 3 workshops.

Ag Weather Outlook, Elwynn Taylor.
 We are currently in a trend of increased demand for commodities. In a volatility measurement from the CBOT, this is the most volatile year since 1988. That volatility was caused by weather. The indexes he uses to predict the weather all point to a 70% chance of below trend yields. Couple the already high demand for grain with drought and the markets could go really nuts.
 As an agronomist looking at the volatility of the CBOT, fertilizer, and weather we should look to help our customers minimize risk.

An update on ethanol, biodiesel, grain markets, and implications for crop rotations for the next year, Robert Wisner

While ethanol continues to drive corn demand upward the main thing to consider is carryout. In 2004-05 carryout was 10 weeks, 2005-06 it dropped to 9 weeks. 2006-07 is estimated at 5 weeks, this is what is driving the markets. Dr. Wisner’s numbers show that over the next three years the carryout should range in the 6-8 week range. This should help keep the markets strong.

If there is a widespread drought next year, carryout could drop to 3 weeks. This is a critical level, and the markets will react with extreme volatility. This tells me that it may be more important to protect the downside of pricing, and not forward contract too much. Being conservative in marketing, while everyone else goes nuts will be the winning strategy.

Soybean White Mold: What we have learned since 1992, Craig Grau

The occurrence of white mold can be reduced by reducing factors that increase yield, or you could plant wheat. Not exactly things that are practical for most farmers. After the meeting I approached Dr. Grau, and asked him if he knew of any soil fertility situations where white mold could be reduced.

He said that increasing or decreasing certain fertilizers would make an impact on white mold. He then said that Gypsum would make an impact and would be a very good product to reduce white mold. Calcium Products conducted a study on using SuperCal SO4 to reduce white mold. Our research indicated a 9.8-bushel advantage from using SO4. This testing was done in 5 replicated trials.

I found it interesting that the message of the meeting was to reduce white mold, you should use techniques that are used in low yield environments. If there was an inexpensive product to add to your fertilizer program that is proven to reduce white mold, why not discuss it? At $5 beans SO4 would return $2 for every dollar spent. At $10 dollar beans SO4 would return over $4 for every dollar. Sure beats settling for 30-bushel beans.

For comparison I sent soil samples from the garden and field to International Ag Labs. International Ag Labs does a great job helping their clients develop better soils, not just increase NP&K levels.

As reported in past blogs about the importance of soil quality (A Pictorial of High Quality Soil, Improving Water Infiltration, and Quality Soil Update) I promised that I would run soil tests on the field and the garden (I am waiting on tests form another lab). There were some striking differences. The garden had almost double the organic matter, much better pH, and double the calcium content.

One of the main differences is pH, the field has a pH of 5.0 compared to the garden, which had 6.5 pH. 

Fun Facts: 

At a pH of 5.0 the potential yield of corn is reduced by 27%, soybeans by 21% and alfalfa by 91%.

At a pH of 5.0 1/2 of N, 1/3 of P, and 1/2 of K is unavailable for plant uptake.

At a pH of 5.0 nodulation is reduced up to 40%

Click here to view lab report

With the high costs of fertilizer and fuel, wouldn't it make sense to make those inputs work harder for you? Working to improve you soil quality makes high priced fertilizers more available to your plants, resulting in decreased costs. High quality soils allow irrigation water and rainfall to infiltrate into the pore space, making it available to plants. Ponding is the first sign that water is not entering the soil, eventually causing de-nitrification, and evaporating, wasting fuel, fertilizer, and lowering yield.

Adding SuperCal 98G pelletized lime and SuperCal SO4 pelletized gypsum to your fertility program will ensure your soils maintain the proper pH, superior infiltration rates, reduce future input costs, decrease soil erosion, and increase yields.

Calcium Products, lower input costs, higher yields, better soil

We at Calcium Products have been promoting quality soil for years. Our latest advertisement in Iowa Farmer Today is focusing explicitly on Soil Quality. Check out our previous posts on soil quality and look for our advertisements this winter in other farming publications.

Our products are key in increasing organic matter, soil flocculation, stabilizing nitrogen, and reducing erosion. In the past we have had to pull information from many, many research papers and websites to bring you  information on improving soil quality.

I have discovered a great website that should aid everyone in improving their soil quality. The site was created by the NRCS National Soil Quality Team, the National Soil Tilth Lab, NCERA-59 Scientists, and the Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Sciences, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.

Calcium is a key ingredient in improving soil structure and reducing fertilizer losses.

Having proper pH will improve nutrient utilization, reduce losses, improve the genetic ability of seed, and improve herbicide efficacy. SuperCal 98G is the best way to lime. It is finely ground high calcitic lime, pelletized to reduce drift and improve precision application.

For high pH, SuperCal SO4 is a high quality gypsum that is also finely ground and pelletized to reduce drift and improve performance. Gypsum has been recognized by the USDA to reduce phosphorus runoff.

Whether you have high pH or low Calcium Products has a product to help you reach your yeild goals while protecting your most important asset, your soil.

Calcium Products, lower input costs, higher yields, better soil quality

I just read an article from Corn and Soybean Digest by John Pocock. The main trust of the article is that 250- bushel average corn yield will be the norm by 2025. If that is the average there will be farmers averaging 300 bushels. The story states that to attain those yield goals either more irrigation is needed or a drought tolerant corn will need to be planted.

In order to reach 200 bushels a corn plant needs around 22 inches of water uptake. To reach 300 bushels the plant would need close to 33 inches of water uptake. The problem is that it usually only rains 16-21 inches a year in the corn belt.

I have two thoughts on that, instead of irrigation, increase the water infiltration rate of your soil, and variety won’t matter if you soil has as hard pan 4” down, the best hybrids will fail.

If your soil is a silt loam, it is going to hold about 2” of water per foot. If you topsoil is 5’ deep then the soil could hold 10” of water. In the case of the field in my previous blogs, I could only push a shovel in about 4”. That soil will only hold a little over 1/2” of water! Anything over that 1/2” will sit on the surface and evaporate or runoff.

With all the rain this we have had this fall, your soil profile should be full. However if you have a hardpan, sealed soil surface do to incorrect salt level or over tillage, than most of it ran off to the nearest river or lake. SuperCal SO4 pelletized gypsum, helps open you soil so more water goes into the soil to be available for plant use next spring.

It’s pretty amazing that the technology to reach high yield is already available. We are currently in the planning stages for testing to prove how SuperCal SO4 will increase the water infiltration. We’ll keep you posted!

Calcium Products, lower input costs, higher yields, making new technology work better

In the last blog we showed some pictures showing the difference in poor soil quality and good soil quality and its effect on water infiltration.

After 1 day of sun the ponding decreased, however an additional 0.5” resulted in ponding again, the garden did not pond.

Poor infiltration leads to in-season water stress. Water stress limits the development of young plants and reduces grain fill and development fruiting plants. Water stress also raises leaf temperature, which increases the likelihood of severe spider mite infestations.

Slow water intake reduces irrigation efficiency since a greater portion of the water applied is lost to evaporation. Finally, slow water intake increases the potential for compaction since planting and harvesting are often performed before the soil is sufficiently dry.

Slow water intake can result in prolonged standing water, which reduces the needed oxygen required for proper soil health. Standing water can cause N loss by waterlogging soil bacteria. The bacteria starving for oxygen, will scavenge oxygen from soil nitrate. As a side effect, these scavenging bacteria break down the nitrate molecules, causing de-nitrification.

The Common causes of poor infiltration are:
1. Compaction of surface soil from traffic.
2. High sodium content (Na) causes soil particles to be forced apart chemically (called deflocculation). This can result in surface sealing by reducing pore size.
3. Inadequate salt content of the surface soil is just as big a factor in slow infiltration as high content. Irrigating with low salt water (less than 250ppm) or excessive rainfall, which is very low in salt content eventually, leaches enough salts from the surface soil to reduce its structure. This creates smaller pore spaces, which have higher surface tension, and less permeability.
4. Subsurface soils with distinctly different texture are often overlooked as a water related problem. It does not cause slow infiltration at the soil surface; rather it limits downward movement of water into the lower root zone. Soils of different texture vary greatly in the number and size of air spaces through which water travels. When downward moving water encounters a zone of different soil texture, it must overcome the surface tension created by the different pore size. Saturated soil conditions occur above the layer until sufficient pressure (head) builds up to overcome this.

Suggestions for improving the infiltration rate:
1. After harvest, dig in several locations to test for compacted soils 8-10 inches below the surface. If you can stand on the shovel without it penetrating, consider chiseling the soil after harvest when the soil is dry. Chiseling can correct surface soil compaction from traffic and can markedly improve water infiltration. However depending upon the soil type, some growers find discover chiseling lasts for only two or three irrigations. Soil analysis, amendments and winter cover cropping are need for longer-term management.
2. Soil sample. Include only the first inch from several locations. Sample areas with good and bad intake rates separately. Request a basic salinity analysis including a SAR (sodium adsorption ratio) or ESP (exchangeable sodium percentage). Also ask that the gypsum requirement be calculated. Soils with total salt content (EC) less than about 1.0 mmho/cm often benefit from gypsum application. This raises the beneficial salt content of the surface soil and improves structure. Soils with SAR or ESP values greater than about 7 can also benefit from SuperCal SO4 application by displacing sodium salts with calcium from the gypsum. If you do not understand the results of your soil analysis, let us know we can help you understand it.
3. Sample your main water source. Irrigation water can be either low or high in salts, depending on your location. Continual use of low salt water causes soil to loose structure. Use of high salt water causes the soil surface to seal shut. SuperCal SO4 application on the soil in the spring will restore or remove the salts and improve water intake.
4. Soils not showing compaction of salt problems require investigation at greater depths with a backhoe. Have an individual knowledgeable about soils and roots present to assist you in their evaluation. Soil layering creates resistance to water movement and root development. Such conditions are difficult to impossible to correct. Deep ripping with the intent of modifying subsoils lacking a hardpan will not solve a soil stratification problem. The benefit of deep ripping is usually gone by the next season as the soil reassumes its original structure. Adjustments in irrigation management or investment in a low volume system allowing more precise water application is usually of greatest benefit.
5. Cover cropping often improves poor surface structure. Cover crops can produce many tons of dry matter per planted acre if allowed to grow until almost mature. As it decomposes, it creates humus, which is important to improving soil structure. Great numbers of pores are also created from the decayed roots. This is not a quick fix! Research and grower testing, show three years of regular cover cropping is needed before improvements were noticeable.

Calcium Products, lower input costs, higher yields, better water infiltration

We talk a lot about having good soil quality. What does that mean exactly for the farmer. When it rains excessively for a couple of days, you'll be in your field a day or two before your neighbors. Roots will penetrate deeper with less energy required, which means more energy goes to grain development. Deeper roots mean more access to moisture and better standablity.

The following are some pictures showing the difference between a quality soil and a poor soil.

click on the pictures for a close up

 This is a picture of my garden and a neighboring field. This has been a garden for two years. The field is a corn soybean rotation. It was field cultivated this spring, then planted to seed corn.

 This is a shovel in the end rows. I stepped on the shovel with one foot, placing all my weight (260#) on it. It only penetrated 3-4". This is pretty compacted, with poor water infiltration. Note corn roots generally cannot penetrate more than 300 psi. My estimate is that the shovel had over 350 psi on it.

 This picture shows the hole I dug in the end rows. It became impossible to dig after 14". I had to use the shovel as a pick to chip away the soil.

 This picture shows the tillage line about 4" down. You can see the soil is saturated to that point, after that it is moist, but not wet.

 Just for comparison I stepped on the shovel 150 yards out into the field. It did not go in much farther than on the end rows. Also you can see excessive ponding of water signifying poor structure, poor infiltration, and compaction.

 This picture shows the shovel in the garden. It slid in all the way very easily with about half my weight applied.

 This is the hole dug into the garden. It dug easily to a depth of 21". Note no saturation of soil.
In the field the shovel only penetrated 4", in the garden the shovel easily penetrated 12". If the shovel cannot penetrate the ground roots will not be able to either. The volume of soil available for plants in the garden is 3x the amount in the field. Why not find a way to farm more of the ground you have, by farming it deeper.

 This picture shows that the tillage line is approximately the same as in the field. Having proper structure allows the water to percolate through the soil

 This picture shows the poor soil structure. There are no aggregates visible and water is standing. Excessive ponding leads to denitrifcation.

 This picture shows that even after 2.5" of rain there is still structure. The soil aggregates do not breakdown. This allows the soil poor space to fill with water or air not fine soil particles.
      
 This is a side by side photo of the three areas. This right photo shows the end rows, lots of ponding and compaction. The middle photo shows some improvement in the field. The left photo is the garden, which has little compaction, and great infiltration.

We hope this helps give you and idea of what to look for when assessing you soil. Improving soil structure will allow your fertilizers to work more efficiently with less volatilization, detrification, and erosion. High quality soils reduce compaction allowing expensive genetics to work better. Lastly having a high quality, deep soil allows more soil volume for crop production, in other words it's like getting free ground to farm!

SuperCal 98G pelletized lime and SuperCal SO4 pelletized gypsum are the first steps in developing quality soil.

Calcium Products, lower input costs, higher yields, better soil  

Dan Davidson with DTN does a great job with is blog. If you haven’t checked it out I recommend it. His article “Mainstream or Sideline Agronomy” got me thinking.

Mainstream agronomy has become popular agronomy. Popular agronomy has us thinking that if we use the latest and greatest, then we too can achieve top yields. While many of these products do a great job, most have forgot about the basics, and are failing to reach top yields.

As the saying goes what’s old is new again. Many top growers are returning to the basics. Since no one has the patent on improving soil organic matter and bulk density, they do not get much promotion. Many sideline agronomic practices are really the basics that everyone has forgotten.

I was speaking with a farmer at a farm show; he said that he was not getting the yield his neighbors did. He was not sure why. I asked if he had done soil samples, he said yes, but they were not back. I started to explain that when working to improve fertility, there were no silver bullets, his reply was, I would be happy with a plain old lead bullet.

This is a pretty typical of most people, give me something that works fast, is cheap and solves my problem. The successful farmers know that true solutions are never easy, seldom cheap, but actually solve the problem!

In the quest to apply quick fixes, and new technology, many have forgot the basics. The top growers sited in Dan’s article have not. They start with the soil; they don’t treat it like dirt. They understand that having the right amount of air in the soil has a big impact on yield. They understand the difference between adequate levels and the right levels of pH, and nutrients. Through their own hard work (i.e. understanding the basics), and on farm testing they know what works on their soils.

Top growers know that SuperCal 98G pelletized lime and SuperCal SO4 pelletized gypsum are basic steps in improving and maintaining soil quality. Top growers demand SO4 and 98G, they demand the best. They know that taking care of basics is where the yield is made.

Calcium Products, lower input costs, higher yields, not popular - effective

Were not going to talk about the handy and tasty vegitable spray. We want you to introduce you to PAM, a.k.a polyacrylamides. While increasing soil quality and organic matter to combat soil erosion is the ultimate goal, PAM is a product that can help today. There have been many acres of marginal ground broken in the last year, some soil is highly erodeable, some is of poor quality. SuperCal 98G and SuperCal SO4 will help improve the soil structure over time, PAM can help reduce erosion and increase infiltration the moment it’s applied. 

PAM is an environmentally friendly, water-soluble substance that  binds soil into particles that are too large to be carried away by typical runoff. PAM binds particles of silt and clay together, making them more resistant to erosion.

In the U.S., PAM’s are used extensively in potable water treatment, for dewatering of sewerage sludges, washing and pealing of fruits and vegetables, clarification of sugar juice and liquor, in adhesives and paper in contact with food, as thickeners and suspending agents in animal feeds, in cosmetics. No significant negative impacts have been documented for aquatic, or crop species when PAM is applied at recommended concentrations and rates.

PAM has proven to

• Reduce sediment runoff soil loss 80% - 98%
• Increases water infiltration up to 60%
• Lowers concentration of nitrogen, phosphorus & pesticides in runoff water
• Reduces hardening and crusting of soils
• Aids in plant growth on high-grade slopes
• No bioaccumulation in crops
• Cost effective and time saving

Conservation practices that require additional field operations usually occur during busy periods in the farming schedule are also avoided. Furthermore, conservation practices that reduce sediment loss such as; sediment ponds, vegetative filter strips or buried-pipe waste water systems, still lose most of the clay-sized solids, the soil component most critical to sustained soil fertility. These solids also are most linked to pesticide, and nutrient loss in run-off waters.

Halting erosion prevents exposure of soil not treated with herbicides, thus reducing potential late-season weed problems. Applied pesticide and fertilizer inputs are better retained on the field. Uniform water infiltration from upper to lower field ends, has shown to improve potato yield and grade, and reduces the risk of nitrate leaching.

Many farmers, who have viewed traditional conservation practices as cumbersome, intrusive, or ineffectual, and expensive, adopt PAM as an attractive inexpensive alternative. The typical $15 to $35/acre per crop is partially or entirely returned by savings in erosion-related field operations, improved infiltration, water conservation, or crop responses.

We hope this short introduction to PAM gives you some ideas to help your marginal, and highly productive irrigated ground be more productive. This article was condensed from polymersinc.com. Read the entire article here.

It's been a busy summer for us at Calcium Products. The website got a face lift, the SO4 plant has been expanded, and new products have been developed and tested.

The building for the expansion has been completed. We are now waiting for the last of the production line equipment. We are hoping for the installation of the equipment to be finished before the end of the year.

Bag Storage and Production facilities in Fort Dodge.

There has been incredible demand for SuperCal SO4 this past year and we are currently sold out for the rest of the year. The plant expansion will allow us to increase production of SuperCal SO4 by 50%.

We have been testing a number of new products over the summer. While most are still in the development stage, and I cannot talk much about them, I can talk about HydraSave. HydraSave is our Ultra Premium Greens Grade Gypsum. HydraSave is an ultra small prill, eliminating the dust that comes with powdered products, but allows you to spread it in the morning, water and play golf with no residual product.

We will be launching HydraSave in spring of '08. We have already received a number of request from top course superintendents across the midwest. We have tested this product for a number of years, it transformed Spring Valley, see what it can do for your course.

This fall proves to be busy as well. The tradeshow circuit is in full swing. We had a booth at the Redwood Falls Farm Show, and talked with many of customers and friends from Minnesota and Iowa. This coming weekend we will be down at Springfield, MO at the Ozark Fall Farm Fest.

It is that time of year for fertilizer and lime spreading. We have been working hard to explain the difference of 98G over ag lime. I think the following picture explains it best.

The lime truck is off the picture to the left, you can see the lime starting to drift across the road.

I don't know anyone that would throw money in the air, watching it blow across the county. This is exactly what happens when you spread ag lime. The portion of lime that does you any good, does not even land on your property.

Make your expensive fertilizer work harder for you, buy lime that actually lands in your field. Use SuperCal 98 Pelletized lime.

Calcium Products, lower input costs, higher yields, keeping you informed

This week’s issue of Iowa Farmer Today features a guest opinion column by Kendall Lamkey. The focus of the article is the decreasing quality of Iowa soil. We argree with most of the article; the soil is our number one resource, soil gets treated like dirt, Iowa soil is being depleted rapidly, and organic matter does not get enough focus.

He is also right on track that the degradation of the soil is linked to human health, plant production, and water quality. I am not sure that we necessarily need new approaches to preserve and maintain the soil. We need to do a better job of marketing the basics of fertility and soil management.

Soil management is not easy, sexy, or exciting. There is no instant gratification like with tillage (which generally degrades the soil). There is no sense of accomplishment like watching the corn emerge through the soil. Understanding cations and anions takes more time than 0.7 x yield goal. Soil management is hard, that’s why most people ignore it.

Calcium Products is committed to helping you improve your soils. We have been doing it for over ten years. SuperCal 98G and SuperCal SO4 are key components to improving your soil. We have developed these products to make the old hard and difficult process of amending the soil easy and efficient. Keep checking back, we’ll continue to bring you information and ideas to improve your soil, yields, and bottom line.

I as I drove across Iowa last week I couldn’t help but notice that there was a lot of silage being chopped. In some areas the corn was extremely good with yield estimates in the 220 range, while others areas yields were estimated at 70 bushels.

This fall will you treat the fields chopped for silage like the fields where just the grain was harvested? Will you adjust fertilizer rates in the sections of the fields that were chopped?

When 200-bushel corn is chopped for silage the following nutrients are removed.

Phosphate 120#       Potash 260#     Calcium 42#     Sulfur 32#

When 200-bushel corn is harvested for grain the following nutrients are removed.

Phosphate 70#         Potash 52#       Calcium 4#      Sulfur 14#

Chopping generally requires that the extra nutrients removed be replaced with increased fertilizer rates. Removing the stover removes 10x as much Ca, 5x as much K, 2x as much S, and 2x as much P. In addition to the nutrients lost, removal of up to 6 tons of stover can lead to a decrease of organic matter since it is not returned to the soil.

Please do not misunderstand; I am not against chopping corn for silage, there are many great benefits to it as a feed source. I am against poor soil. Soil that is low in nutrients such as calcium, sulfur, phosphate, and potash grow poor crops.

Low organic matter is the main cause for many other problems; compaction, poor structure, poor nutrient holding capacity, poor water holding capacity, erosion, crusting, diseases and carbon dioxide release. Crop residues are about 40% carbon. Residue turns into organic matter that releases CO₂ throughout the growing season.

Having poor OM can short your corn crop the number one nutrient needed for growth (we’ll get into this more this winter).

The bottom line is SuperCal 98G is the best source for lime, and a great source of carbon dioxide. 100 pounds of 98G will supply all the calcium removed by chopping and supply some carbon that is removed as stover. SuperCal SO4 is a great source of soluble calcium and sulfur. 100 pounds of SO4 will supply half the calcium removed and all the sulfur. Whether you have high pH or low we can help you grow high yielding corn.

Calcium Product, lower input costs, higher yields, more silage

It seems like every week I see more corn blown down. This fall many agronomists and farmers will spend hours finding the right hybrids to avoid lodging next year. Picking the right hybrid for your situation is important, and hybrids with good roots should be used.

How much time will you spend finding ways to improve soil quality and fertility? We think taking care of the soil is even more important than hybrid selection. Soils that have good physical properties will make a strong rooting hybrid perform even better.

SuperCal SO4 increase water and oxygen infiltration in the soil. This creates a friendly environment for beneficial insects and bacteria, which increases rooting, reducing lodging. 

SuperCal SO4 contains 17% sulfur in the sulfate form. Sulfur is key in converting nitrate to ammonium N. Having high amounts of sulfur ensures that expensive nitrogen in fully utilized, resulting in a stronger, better yielding plant.

 DKC 52-40, Winnebago County, IA

Applied 300 lbs, SuperCal SO4	No SuperCal SO4

This customer noticed that the untreated portions of his field had more down corn. A walk of the field showed that stalk quality was much better in the SuperCal SO4 treated area, the ears were bigger and more filled out. In the non-treated area the corn was germinating on the ear!

We will post pictures of the field and will have yield maps available after harvest to see what the yield difference was between SuperCal SO4 and the untreated lodging corn.

Calcium Products, lower input costs, higher yields, better hybrid standablity

Like health care costs, crop inputs have risen sharply in the past few years. Not only has the cost of inputs raised, the number of inputs has continued to increase. With today’s high yield goals and high dollar investment to raise a crop every input is considered to raise a better crop.

What does it take for today’s producer to reach their yield goals; an N stabilizer, side dressing, foliar feeding, seed treatment, stacked hybrids, herbicide, fungicide, insecticide, stock chopping, and/or heavy tillage to remove crop residue, dirt work to fill in gullies. I realize not everyone has these problems, or does all these steps every year, but if you’re doing more than 3-4 of these every year there may be another cause of your problems.

The symptoms are one or more of the following; poor nitrogen utilization and leaching, seedling diseases, soil crusting, excessive weed pressure and hard to eradicate weeds, white mold and other foliar disease, nematodes and other insects, poor organic matter, residue that does not breakdown, and erosion.

Diagnosis -- POOR SOIL QUALITY

Many of today’s newest agricultural inputs are great tools, but are relied on as a solution. They are only treatments for a pre-existing condition. Improving your soil is the curative. If your soil quality is already great, why not implement preventive steps to keep it that way. It is much easier to keep you soil in optimal condition than to improve it.

SuperCal SO4 & 98G are key components for many of our customers fertility programs. Helping them improve their soil, leading to increase yields, and reduced costs. We can show how to do the same, as well as other tools and techniques for soil improvement. Look for future posts on soil quality improvement in the future.

Calcium Products, lower input costs, higher yields, better soil

This week in the Iowa Farmer Today, Tim Hoskins reported on “Mineral deficiency cropping up in alfalfa fields”. Iowa Farmer Jeff Ryan turned to Brian Lang Iowa State University crop specialist for Northeast Iowa. Mr. Lang worked out that the poor yield was due to a sulfur deficiency.

It is not clear in the story who recommended the solution, but it will be nothing but headaches for Ryan. Ryan applied 100 lbs. of Ammonium Sulfate (AMS), at a cost of $17 per acre.

Wow! $0.70 per pound of sulfur!

Then factor in the unintended costs of AMS. AMS is one of the most acidifying fertilizers on the market. It takes 5-7 lbs of SuperCal 98G, or 15-20 lbs of AgLime to neutralize the acidity caused by AMS. Add $5 to $20 per acre to the fertilizer bill for lime.

Don’t forget the unintended cost of stand reduction from the added nitrogen in alfalfa. There are many reports that show even 20 lbs on N on established alfalfa can reduce stands up to 2/3 rds. Add the cost of spaying weeds in alfalfa...$6-20 per acre? Add the cost of reseeding with today’s fuel prices...$30-50 per acre?

The cost of applying AMS could easily be over $40 per acre, for 100 lbs.

We think the best solution is SuperCal SO4.

Cost of 100 lbs of SO4 $6.50

Per pound of Sulfur, $0.38 (17% sulfur, in sulfate form)

We just saved Mr. Ryan 50% on his fertilizer bill. Still not convinced?

SuperCal SO4 does not have nitrogen in it. No unintended stand loss, no acidifying effects. The 22% calcium actually helps offset uptake of Potassium. Income from premium for low K alfalfa $$$? Income from higher feed value of alfalfa $$$? 

University of Wisconsin studies show as little as 25 lbs per acre of sulfur can increase first and second cutting alfalfa yields by as much as 20%. Our research shows 45% increase in yield when using SuperCal SO4. Including SuperCal SO4 in your alfalfa fertilizer program assures you that your alfalfa has higher protein and feed value, and improves stand density and longevity, creating more tonnage.

Let’s review the choices, do nothing and continue to lose yield, apply AMS and pay $40 for 24 lbs of sulfur and have other problems to solve, Apply 200 lbs of SuperCal SO4 for less than $17 per acre, and create additional income.

Calcium Products, increase yields, reduce costs, higher quality alfalfa!

How do you decide when to settle for adequate over exceptional?  Many of us do settle for adequate over exceptional, quite a bit of the time actually. The difference between success and failure is knowing when only exceptional will do.

How many of us seek out and buy Snap-Onwrenches for the toolboxes on our equipment? Some might, I have lost the box of the tractor or left the tool in the field, so for me a wrench from Bomgaar’sdollar bin is adequate for quick field repairs.

Snap-On is the best in the world, with a lifetime warrantee, last forever, but if there is chance of losing it in the field, I’m not going to sweat losing the dollar wrench.

I have never heard of anyone say happily “I just bought this great stock, it does not perform that well, I’m not making much money on it, but I heard that stocks were great to buy.” When it comes to investments only exceptional performance is good enough.

For many of our end users their biggest investment is their land. Are adequate yields good enough for you, or do you strive to have exceptional yields? If adequate yields are ok then adequate fertility and soil quality is good enough.

If you’re striving for exceptional yields start with developing exceptional soil on your farms. An exceptional farm always brings more at a sale; exceptional farms create an exceptional income, and allow the landowner to adequately survive times of drought, poor price, and high input costs.

SuperCal SO4, and SuperCal 98G are exceptional products. Many of our customers report exceptional transformations in their fields. Over the next few months we’ll bring you their stories. Give us a call, or stop by one of the Calcium Products dealersto find out how to develop exceptional soil on your farms.