07/26/06 Trio of energy estimators

With the steep run up in fuel and fertilizer prices its imperative that farmers apply only what's needed when it's needed. The NRCS has developed an energy estimator for nitrogen. KNIGHT "A simple tool that helps a farmer weight this practice versus that practice, this form of nitrogen versus another, manure versus commercial." That's Bruce Knight, the chief of the Natural Resources Conservation Service who says farmers do calculate these kinds of things but they may be using outdated information. KNIGHT "The spreading cost of any manure may be very different now and may be much more cost effective today than it was a year ago or certainly five years ago." Knight says that farmers using the estimator can look at four different crops. If a producer has bids or has pre-purchased fertilizer those costs can be plugged in. But it doesn't end there. There's an estimator for energy costs for irrigation water use and the differences between convention and alternative kinds of tillage. You'll find the three energy estimators at the USDA website, www.nrcs.usda.gov. Voice of Idaho Agriculture Bill Scott