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Better Soil Health Means Less Fertilizer
by LuAnn Rolling, Allamakee County District Conservationist
One-third of the fertilizer applied to grow corn in the U.S. each year simply compensates for the ongoing loss of soil fertility, leading to more than a half-billion dollars in extra costs to U.S. farmers every year, according to new research from CU Boulder published in Earth’s Future.

Using fertilizer doesn’t just cost farmers money. It also comes at an environmental cost. A large portion of the global greenhouse gas emissions caused by agriculture - 24% of global emissions in 2010 and 10% of U.S. emissions in 2018 - comes from fertilizer production. This means that steps taken to reduce fertilizer use also helps address rising greenhouse gases.

Practices like regenerative agriculture will reduce the costs and environmental impacts of fertilizer use. Healthier, more fertile soils can capture more carbon, hold more water and keep excess nutrients from running off.  Cover crops such as clover, cereal rye, annual ryegrass or radishes, among others, are touted for improving soil organic matter, which in turn improves nutrient cycling, alleviates compaction concerns and increases water-holding capacity. A study published by Ohio State University last year found that a 10% improvement in certain soil health measurements increased relative yields by an average of 5% across N fertilizer rates.  Bottom line: good soil health means getting more “bang for your buck” spent on fertilizer.

Dakota Lakes Research Farm, run through South Dakota State University near Pierre, S.D., is a farming cooperative owned by 500 farmers, and it works with farmers that operate up to 20,000 acres. By applying no-till, cover crops and complex rotations these farmers reduced their diesel, fertilizer and pesticide use by half. Their yields went up once they rebuilt organic matter, and they spend less on inputs to do it.

David Brandt farms near Caroll, Ohio. Brandt grows corn, soybeans and wheat but he also seeds cover crops, some a mix of 10 or 12 different plant species.  Brandt has been no-tilling for 44 years and added cover crops 20 years ago. On average, he’s only adding 24 pounds of N and using 1 quart of glyphosate per acre for a corn crop, and in 2015 he was spending $320 an acre to grow 180-bushel corn and making $400 an acre profit on $4 corn.

Longtime Bismarck, N.D., no-tiller Gabe Brown added another dimension to regenerative agriculture by integrating livestock to boost his cropping system.  He’s also growing mixed species of cover crops that he allows his cows to graze to help cycle nutrients back into the soil. 

Rather than terminating his cover crop through winter kill or spraying it with a herbicide, Brown lets the cows graze it, turning it into beef. The cows function as self-propelled methane digesters and they convert the standing biomass into manure, a nutrient source more readily taken up by plants.

Bottom line, improving soil health can reduce fertilizer usage while maintaining yields, but producers need to start now to make this happen.  We would love to work with producers to start them on the road to less fertilizer use and improving the environment and their profitability.