New Zealand
November 25, 2008
After three years of development
and comprehensive in-field testing, a new crop management tool
for maize grain and silage production is available.
AmaizeN is a yield and nitrogen-fertiliser forecaster designed
to help growers maximise return from fertiliser inputs as well
as meet regulatory requirements.
Growers enter crop and soil details and AmaizeN calculates the
most economic N fertiliser applications for their crops based on
average weather conditions. Actual weather data for the past
five seasons has also been included so growers can compare
AmaizeN with their actual yields.
Research coordinator with the Foundation for Arable Research
(FAR), Andrea Pearson, says the forecaster is easy to use and is
designed to be loaded on to a home computer from CD.
"This is a really important tool for the maize industry. Not
only will AmaizeN help growers to improve profitability, it also
demonstrates to regulatory authorities that the maize industry
is serious about the responsible use of N fertiliser."
Ms Pearson says, “Nitrogen is extremely mobile in the soil, and
maize has a rooting depth of at least one metre so a 15cm soil
sample can easily underestimate the existing soil N status. By
soil sampling deeper to get a better picture of how much N is
available to the crop, substantial fertiliser savings can be
made.”
AmaizeN has been developed by
Crop & Food Research and funded by FAR, FertResearch, MAF’s
Sustainable Farming Fund and Environment Waikato.
Crop & Food Research scientist Paul Johnstone says farmers and
growers were interested in a tool that would help them tailor
fertiliser programmes to individual paddocks, not just whole
farm systems.
"Right from the start, our aim was to develop a user-friendly
tool that met the needs of both the silage and grain growers. We
had great feedback from growers and industry representatives who
trialled this tool for us and assisted us in refining the user
interface."
Nitrogen fertiliser requirements are calculated by a soil N
model, which takes into account the potential yield of the crop
as well as the existing soil N pool and that which will be
released during the season. This allows growers to use the
supply of ‘free’ soil nitrogen before paying for fertiliser N.
Importantly, the forecaster not only predicts when growers can
save money by not applying fertiliser, it has also highlighted
where specific crops may require more N than the grower
initially thought, translating into a yield benefit. AmaizeN
will also produce a nutrient report to satisfy local regulatory
requirements.
Ms Pearson says the AmaizeN CD comes with a small and simple
booklet of instructions, including a guide to collecting soil
samples. Growers seeking a free copy of AmaizeN can contact the
FAR office by phone on 03 325 6353 or email
far@far.org.nz |
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