Re: Water quality

Posted by 2002sliverado on July 05, 2017 at 11:57:04 from (216.16.75.34):

In Reply to: Water quality posted by David G on July 04, 2017 at 10:29:50:

This discussion is likely to get about as lively as those on what brands and weights of oil people should use in their tractors, trucks, or cars. I grew up on a farm. I worked on that farm. All I ever wanted to do was take over the farm and earn a living from that. Long story short, my parents for year essentially tried to chase me off the farm on account of their own reasons, as well as having the family farming operation involved in significant differences of opinions on how to manage that farm based upon two generations involved, with the second generation being divided into to very separate camps. I went on to college and obtained a 4 year degree in agricultural business administration and applied economics. I worked professionally in retail agriculture for 13 years and obtained my Certified Crop Advisor accreditation. I maintain that accreditation to this day. I did begin farming part time on the family farm about 10 years ago, when my father semi-retired. I no longer work in retail agriculture and have been on a different career path for over 15 years. This career path has given me tremendous opportunities for personal and professional growth. Anyway, I used to be a big proponent for late fall application of anhydrous ammonia, which is still allowed in our part of the country. As our weather patterns have changed, particularly our precipitation, I started the migration away from fall nitrogen application to spring nitrogen application, and in the past 3 years have split applied nitrogen in the spring. I feel with the high amount of rainfall we obtain in the mid-May to mid-June timeframe, we are losing more nitrogen now than ever before in my lifetime. Last year, I feel that split shot really paid off, and likewise the year before. Since it is too early in the year to offer much now, my second application of nitrogen and the results will be something I can offer comment on after harvest. An interesting read about nitrogen is the nitrogen cycle itself. Nitrogen is a difficult nutrient to have a firm handle on. I feel in the past, prior to our rainfall events being what they are today, we did not lose a great deal of nitrogen, as I felt we did not have the amount of rainfall to move nitrogen out of the root profile to the extent we have today. A corn crop needs nitrogen, in which I do not think anyone will disagree with me on this point. If one could "spoon feed" nitrogen throughout the growing season, that would be ideal. Early nitrogen, applied at or before planting gets into the roots and helps jump start the corn. I have seen the benefits of this over time, as it can act like a "starter fertilizer" treatment. Keeping the corn a healthy, green color will equate to better yields, as yellowing clearly demonstrates some stress. There is another graph out there that shows nitrogen uptake of corn during the growing season, with the highest uptake starting at around V4-V6 as rapid growth takes place and continues on past the flowering stage. Nitrogen placed out there for the crop converts to a nitrate form of nitrogen, which is mobile with the movement of water in the soil. As long as there is soil moisture migrating down and out of the root zone, along with that moves nitrate nitrogen. When our summer months arrive, the corn crop is taking soil moisture out of the soil profile and picking up the nitrogen out of that root zone.

Management of nitrogen has not become easier, particularly when we consider ground and surface water contamination/impairment. As I have noticed, our rainfall seems to be coming more in torrential downpours delivering multiple inches of measurable water in a matter of an hour or a few hours, rather than in showers and gentle soaking rains that lasted numerous hours and added up to less than one inch. When things dry up, they seem to really dry up. We have entered a difficult cycle that has perpetuated itself. I base this on my own experiences. We have more information available in terms of productivity and we are trying to improve that productivity down to something much smaller than an individual field. With the amount and intensity of rainfall, we have had to improve drainage in our crop production fields to get rid of excessive water. The production loss from intense rainfall events on my own farm today that could have been sustained and accepted (the production loss) on the frequency of once every 10 to 15 years, has necessitated the investment of tile drainage because these rainfall events are coming 6, 7, or 8 out of every 10 years. As a result, there has been an increase in the nitrate loading to tile drainage water going into our river, lakes, and streams. Wood chip bio-reactors are a management tool to lessen the nitrate loading coming from tile drainage water. So are wetlands. I am looking into creating a wetland in a lower lying area on our farm. This area had been a problem area to obtain a crop from once out of every 3 or 4 years, but about 10 years ago, it was getting more challenging to get a crop out of it every other year, and now it is a challenge 4 out of 5 years. I am looking to establish that wetland and running tile drainage water into that wetland for pre-treatment before the water ends up in the adjacent river.

There is a lot of pressure on the agricultural community regarding water impairments. I battle those pressures on my farm and in my professional workplace. I am not one to point fingers, and I am an avid supporter of agriculture. I do not consider myself to be a liberal tree-hugger. I am not sure if agriculture can continue to deflect the accusations and the pressures placed upon the industry by the environmental "hactivists." What I can suggest is that we, as agricultural producers, cannot win every battle, and that we must be open to trying new practices. I am not suggesting we have to try each and every one, but we should at least be observant and open to trying those we can employ on our own farms, which is something that I have done on ours.

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