4-7 IAN P and K Drop

 As corn growers know all too well, surviving today’s highly competitive economic environment depends upon investing wisely in areas that provide positive return. And with corn prices moving up and up, and global demand for grains increasing, corn production is no different. As growers plan for 2011, they must balance the choice between minimizing input investment to protect liquid cash and maximizing profit through higher yields.

No simple task, when the two are so intertwined. In corn production, fertility is responsible for about 40 percent of the crop’s yield, based on multiple university studies. And, fertilizer is proven to provide growers a positive return on their investment (ROI).

Here’s Agronomist Dr. Dan Froehlich “For 2011, growers can’t afford not to apply phosphorus and potassium,” “Soil test trends reported recently by the International Plant Nutrient Institute indicate soil test levels for P and K continue to fall, likely causing a negative impact on yields.

“With the price adjustments we’ve seen to fertilizer and grain prices during the past year, the return on investment growers will receive for fertilizer is actually in line with levels from 2006 and 2007,” Froehlich points out. “It’s not too late for growers to work with their local fertilizer dealer to understand the importance of balanced crop fertility, nutrient interaction and soil nutrient levels in order to apply the proper nutrition that will maximize crop production and, ultimately, yields.”