Are You Ready for Nutrient Management?

By Sara West

Nutrient Management 

Specialist, Fillmore SWCD

Would you like help creating a nutrient management plan for your farming operation? With the help of the Fillmore County SWCD, we can come up with a nutrient management plan before the new growing season arrives. By taking the time to understand your needs, goals and objectives related to nutrients on your operation, we can come up with a plan that both saves you money and helps protect the environment.

What are nutrient management plans? Nutrient Management Plans are whole farm plans that help producers understand how to best use multiple nutrient sources to meet the needs of their crops. These plans make sure that all nutrient sources, including alfalfa and manure, are properly credited and that applications locations are tracked. By knowing which fields require nutrients and at what rates, farms can optimize their use of both on-farm nutrient sources and commercial fertilizers, potentially resulting in increased crop productivity and/or decreased farm input expenses. Better nutrient management equals greater profits and a healthier environment.

Farmers are stewards of both land and water. And to put it simply, nutrient management saves money on fertilizer and improves water quality – a win-win. Here’s just some of the ways nutrient management can benefit both your soil and your wallet:

• Decreases the amount of fertilizer used;
• Decreases the amount of use and maintenance of fertilizer equipment;
• Decreases fuel and labor costs;
• Decreases the runoff of fertilizer into ditches and eventually rivers and lakes!
• Helps budget, supply, and conserve nutrients for plants;
• Minimizes agricultural non-point source pollution;
• Properly utilizes manure or organic by-products as a plant nutrient source;
• Protects air quality by reducing odors, nitrogen emissions, and the formation of atmospheric particulates.

Contact Sara West at the Fillmore SWCD to begin or update your Nutrient Management Plan before spring planting is here. 507-887-0240 or sara.west@fillmoreswcd.org.