Hoorman’s soil health

New agricultural research

Recent soybean research by Dr. Rafiq Islam, Ohio State University shows benefits from using sulfur fertilization and small doses of aspirin or salicylic acid (SA, a fulvic acid) to increase soybean yields. Soybeans are planted on about 86.5 million USA acres. Yearly increases in soybean yields have been flat and with lower prices, farmers are looking for ways to get higher yields. Hot weather, drought, flooding and other environmental issues have caused soybean yields to stagnate.

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New strip till research

Dr. Jodi DeJong-Hughes has been doing strip till research in Minnesota for the past 20 years comparing it to conventional tillage practices on both corn and soybeans. She says the two most common questions farmers ask about are “Does Strip till allow my soils to warm up and dry out in the spring”, and the second is “Will crop yields suffer (decrease) with strip till.” Dr. DeJong-Hughes as set up her research trials to test those two farmer assumptions.

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Roundup (Glyphosate) Alternatives

Roundup (chemical name glyphosate) is the most common used herbicide in the world. However, due to weed resistance and human health concerns, it days may be numbered. How will farmers control weeds chemically if this product is gone? The following is a highly technical summary of herbicide alternatives to using Roundup (common name) or glyphosate.

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Increasing nitrogen & phosphorus efficiency

Plants need both Nitrogen (N) and Phosphorus (P) to grow well. A lack of these two elements limits growth. Farmers apply N & P fertilizer, especially to corn, to increase yields but there is a limit. Since the 1900’s, N fertilizer applications have increased 5X or 500% while P fertilizer inputs have increase 76%. Too much N fertilizer ties up soil P levels and other nutrients. A recent study looked at how farmers may be able to reduce N fertilizer inputs while increasing crop yields and enhancing P fertilizer use efficiency. P fertilizer stocks are running low in the USA (expected to be depleted by 2050), so farmers need to start thinking about how they can use our existing stocks of P fertilizer better, both mined and in the soil, to enhance yields.

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Bird Flu Update

The price of eggs has soared and consumers can blame the Bird Flu virus (Avian Influenza or H5N1 virus). Egg prices may increase another 20% in 2025 before decreasing. Darke and Mercer county had two new outbreaks, 1.4 million birds in Mercer County. Bird Flu affects dairy and beef cattle, swine (hogs), even cats, and dogs. Currently, there are at least 100 million poultry affected by Bird flu and at least 11,000 cases in wild birds identified. . The Bird Flu is especially high in wild bird populations and has been around at least since the 1900’s. The problem is it now has moved into domestic livestock farms.

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Dwayne Beck insights

Dr. Dwayne Beck, retired researcher, shared insights on arid farming at the Louisville National No-till meeting last week. Dwayne Beck managed the Dakotas Lake Research Farm in Pierre, SD for many years. Here are some insights.

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