Environmental advocates in states along the Mississippi River have won a round toward a long-term goal of having federal standards created to regulate farmland runoff and other pollution blamed for the oxygen-depleted “dead zone” in the Gulf of Mexico, and problems in other bodies of water.

If crop color remains poor even after a week of drying soils and good growing conditions, then it is possible that N movement to below the rooting depth is affecting the ability of the crop to grow out of this problem.

An early May storm that soaked Paulding County cleared up nearly a day ago, and the drains buried beneath Terry McClures farm fields are doing their job. The white plastic pipe that funnels water into a ditch along County Road 48 helps keep the 4,000 acres of soft, red winter wheat from becoming a swamp.

A lot of careful consideration goes into selecting which fertilizer should be added to a crop, but all the decisions have been made, little thought is then given to what actually happens next.

Including starter fertilizer with any fertility program can play a big role in getting corn off to a vigorous start, but a key component to maximizing starter fertilizer applications involves managing the interplay between phosphorus and zinc.

Producers are tempted to apply nitrogen in February because it is easy to drive across the field and there is no competition with other farm activities.

Treated wastewater solids called biosolids are sometimes used by farmers to boost soil nutrient levels.