Applying fertilisers containing nitrogen and sulphur means the grass uses nitrogen more effectively, you get more kgs of dry matter per kg of nitrogen that you apply
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It’s the time of year again where early nitrogen applications are up for debate. We would recommend applying 50 – 75 kg N/ha of YaraVera Amidas (20 – 30 kg N/ha) for these early N applications. They should only be applied when you can travel with a tractor, and without any major rainfall event forecast in the next 48 hours and soil temperatures are above 5.5 degrees and rising.
The benefit of spreading this low rate of N early is a large increase in growth rates in March and early April. A grass yield response of 13 to 16 kg grass dry matter per kg N applied is typical at this rate applied in February. Many farms this year lost out on an estimated 500 – 700 kg of grass dry matter growth over the course of the year due to missing fertiliser N applications up to mid-March. Delaying this early application reduces overall grass grown.
Heavy rainfall rather than low soil temperatures has been the main cause for missed or late early N applications, but there have been missed opportunities in many cases where early N could have been spread.
The environmental risk associated with slurry spreading in early spring is greater than the application of 50 – 75 kg/ha of YaraVera Amidas when applied in the correct conditions. Have the fertiliser product you need in the yard and ready to spread. Instead of waiting to spread the whole grazing block, apply it first on areas that are likely to respond best, such as those drier, warmer and recently reseeded paddocks.
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