UMN Extension Nutrient Management Podcast

On this episode of Advancing Nitrogen Smart, Brad and Dan take some of the mystery out of variable rate N. What are we trying to accomplish when we use a variable rate management practice? What kinds of field conditions might benefit from VRN, and which conditions should be avoided with VRN? How might the other 3 R's (Timing, Source & Placement) play a part in rate decision making? All that an...

Today on the Nutrient Management Podcast we discuss nutrient management for irrigated crops in Minnesota. How many irrigated acres are there in Minnesota? What are some of the benefits and risks of irrigation? In what ways can risks be mitigated - through timing, cover crop adoption and / or other general soil health practices? What should growers know about the latest irrigation research in Minne...

This month's episode of the Nutrient Management Podcast is all about sulfur. Fertilizer guidelines go through changes periodically, but are there any upcoming changes to the sulfur fertilizer guidelines specifically? What does current research tell us about managing sulfur for Minnesota crops? Were there any surprising results? Should growers proactively add sulfur to crops out of caution, or is t...

This week on Advancing Nitrogen Smart Melissa Wilson and Brad Carlson talk about manure sampling and testing. What are some sampling guidelines to be aware of in Minnesota? How variable is nitrogen in one type of manure, and then from type to type? How could changes to a farmer's overall operation affect manure nutrient content? How should manure samples be stored? Safety is huge - what do farmers...

Today on the Advancing Nitrogen Smart podcast series, Brad and Dan tell us how the Maximum Return to Nitrogen (MRTN) approach to N rate recommendations is calculated. What does the MRTN actually measure for farmers? What's the reason the MRTN recommendations were created? What kind of / how many rate trials are used to build the dataset? Does the MRTN rate recommendation approach work well in all...

Today on the Nutrient Management Podcast we discuss on-farm research. On-farm research has been here for decades - so what's new about it? What are management practices that might be easier to evaluate and which might be more difficult? What are the design criteria that farmers need to have in place in order to be successful? What kinds of problems have the panelists encountered while conducting o...

On this episode of Advancing Nitrogen Smart we discuss methods and tools to account for soil and weather conditions as you execute your nitrogen management strategy. Which tissue and nitrate testing options are the most beneficial, and when should you test? How does understanding the nitrogen cycle help you interpret these results? How do drought and /or saturated conditions affect available nitro...

Today on Advancing Nitrogen Smart we’re talking about the nitrogen cycle and managing soil fertility. What does 'the nitrogen cycle' mean, and how does it affect your management strategy? In what ways do temperature and moisture slow down or speed up nitrogen's window of usability? What are nitrification, denitrification, volatilization, mineralization and immobilization? How well do inhibitors wo...

Cation exchange capacity and cation balancing are the topics of the day in this episode of the Nutrient Management Podcast. What are the definitions of cation exchange capacity and cation balancing? How is CEC measured, and are those estimates reliable? What does the research say about CEC and CB and their role in a nutrient management strategy? What should farmers remember about cation exchange c...

Today on the Advancing Nitrogen Smart Podcast we discuss nitrogen fertilizer management and surface water issues. When did we first become aware of nitrates appearing in surface water? What are some of the effects, and who is being affected? What are Minnesota's current nitrate-reduction strategy benchmarks - and are we on target to meet them? What are some of the challenges and success stories Mi...

It's the end of March, which means it's time for the annual Spring Fertilizer Outlook. What are field conditions like throughout Minnesota? What early fertilizer application options might MN growers want to consider? Which early fertilizer application practices might MN growers want to avoid, and why? What are growers excited - or hesitant - about? What about N carryover credits in this more typic...

A lot of the conversation about nitrogen management centers around environmental issues, and in particular, nitrate levels in groundwater and surface water in Minnesota. Today we’ll discuss N management and nitrate levels in groundwater. What are some effects of elevated nitrate levels in both infants and adults? When were elevated levels first discovered in Minnesota? How do different soil types...

Today we talk with four panelists throughout Minnesota about nutrient management and cover crops. What are some results of new research looking into incorporating covers into a nutrient management strategy? What are some of the specific rotations being measured, and why? What do farmers need to know about new manure management regulations and cover crops? How much of MN has incorporated covers? Th...

Today we’re talking all about nitrogen-fixing biologicals. What's the best definition of a biological or biostimulant? Are they fertilizers, pesticides - or neither? In what ways do they interact with nitrogen in the field? Where and how are biological products tested? Which environmental factors might impact biologicals? How should they be properly transported and stored? How can farmers assess w...

Today we’re talking all about variable rate nitrogen. What underlying information do we need to make decisions about VRN? What areas in the field might be prone to N loss? Should you only add extra N to high-yielding areas, or could a low-yielding zone also show positive responses? What effect could your overall management strategy have on a variable rate response? All this and more on today's epi...

Here we are in 2025. Today on the Nutrient Management Podcast, our panelists talk about how the practice of nutrient management has changed over the last quarter century. How have precipitation levels - and perceptions about precipitation - changed? What came before the current Maximum Return To Nitrogen management model, and what did the change address? How has U of M research contributed to sulf...

Nitrogen conservation and water quality are the subject of today's Advancing Nitrogen Smart episode. There's lots to cover so we're splitting the episode up into two parts. Today in Part 1, Brad Carlson and Jeff Vetsch unpack different conservation solutions, and what might be achieved from their adoption. In what situations might buffer strips, cover crops, and corn genetics play their part? What...

We continue our conversation about nitrogen conservation and water quality on Advancing Nitrogen Smart. Today in Part 2, Brad Carlson and Jeff Vetsch continue discussing new technologies that may help address nitrogen loss, such as passive sensors and crop modeling systems. How might future tools such as AI play a part? How is precision testing affected by timing? In what ways can hybrid engineeri...

Today on the podcast we focus on soybean nutrient management. Our four soybean and nutrient management panelists from across Minnesota and North Dakota explain their research trials, and discuss some preliminary results in the region. Also, what should growers keep in mind as we transition into 2025? What are the panelists' concerns about IDC? That and much more on our last episode of 2024.  Guest...

After spending last episode talking about the background and history of nitrogen rate recommendations in Minnesota, today on episode 14 we’re talking about what to keep in mind as you begin predicting your nitrogen rate needs. How do yield, and nitrogen use efficiency (NUE) factor into decision making? Are there any N rate databases available to Minnesota growers? What are the pros and cons of a v...

Today Brad and Dan explore the background and rationale behind nitrogen rate recommendations in Minnesota. How have Minnesota's N rate recommendations evolved over time? What data does the MRTN approach take into account? How are these N rates organized? Guests: Brad Carlson, Extension educator (Mankato) Daniel Kaiser, Extension nutrient management specialist (St. Paul) Additional resources: What...

Nitrogen loss: Lessons learned from the 2024 growing season is the big topic on today's episode of the Nutrient Management Podcast. What N application practices looked particularly bad in 2024? Some farmers are saying they are no longer going to apply fall N based on how 2024 played out. Is this warranted, or is it an overreaction? Is there any data back from split-application trials, or evaluatio...

In episode 12 of the Advancing Nitrogen Smart series Brad and Dan talk in detail about nitrification inhibitors. What are the two types of inhibitors, and what are best practices for incorporation? How do soil type, temperature, and precipitation factor into farmer decision-making? How much time does a nitrification inhibitor buy you? In what circumstances should inhibitors be avoided altogether?...

Today we’re talking all about fall application. What's the first thing farmers should know about applying in fall? What’s the difference in N efficiency at 50 the degree threshold versus even a 55 degree threshold, and then when have those degree dates happened historically? Guests : Brad Carlson, Extension educator (Mankato) Daniel Kaiser, Extension nutrient management specialist (St. Paul) Addit...

In this episode of the Nutrient Management Podcast, our panelists discuss liming in detail. What kind of variation is there in liming recommendations? Since pH changes aren’t instant, when is the best time to apply limestone? Is lime application economically justified, and in what circumstances? What should growers know about selecting liming materials? What other bits of advice do our panelists r...