Phosphorus Management
The article “Phosphorus Nutrient Availability and Uptake” was presented by www.farmprogress.com on March 1, 2023, discussing the need for the element phosphorus (P) in corn and soybean crops. This article stated that only 20% to 25% of soil applied P is available to the plant in the year that the fertilizer is applied because of chemical and biological parameters in the soil environment. Thus, it is very important to understand how to manage P availability for the crop from both applied P and P that is already in the crop’s environment.
This article discusses how important P is for the plant early in the growing season. P is a key nutrient in root and shoot development, seedling vigor, energy, and reactions such as respiration and photosynthesis. However, the article points out that the amount of P taken up by corn and soybeans reaches very high levels during seed set. Figures 1 and 2 show the levels of uptake of P during the various growth stages for corn and soybeans.
These figures show that it is very important to have available P for the crop later in the growing season. The Growers Program helps with this by the use of in season foliar sprays and by helping the soil microbiological life release P from the soil environment during the entire growing season. The Growers Program method for making P available to the crop throughout the entire growing season utilizes the element P very efficiently which help the farmer deal with possible future nutrient regulations.
The article closes by stating that best management practices need to be used with P fertilization to make sure nutrient management regulations are being followed by the farmer. Controlling the amount of used P is very important for environmental issues, climate change issues, and preservation of a key crop element that could be difficult to obtain in the future.
This is an excerpt from the Summer Growers Solution (2024) written by Jim Halbeisen, Growers Director of Research & Education.
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