The term soil health is used interchangeably with soil quality, but in this article I prefer the use of soil health because it is a more appropriate term in defining soil functions as a living and dynamic natural system. Soil health is a condition, or status, of the soil at a certain place and in a specific environment as compared to a certain reference or benchmark condition.

After talking with many farmers throughout Ohio during this years Extension meetings, one common question keeps popping up: What about nitrogen application to soybean? Yes, soybean plants have high nitrogen requirements due to the high protein content of grain. On average, approximately 4 pounds of nitrogen is removed per bushel of grain.

Cover crops can be excellent systems to capture excess nutrients and reduce the risk of erosion over the winter months. The most common cover crop used is wheat but other species are gaining popularity.

From visiting with retailers the past month it is very apparent there will be a major shortage of dicamba for burndown again this spring. A number of folks from different retailers have stated that they have been allocated only a fraction of all the dicamba they sold two years ago.

The NRCS and film maker Robin "Buz" Kloot, PhD, have teamed up to develop a series of short videos focusing on the science of soil health.

Todays modern agricultural practices are dependent on the use of commercial fertilizers to boost productivity levels to new heights. Some call nitrogen the transformational nutrient for its contribution to the dramatic increase in productivity that has occurred since the 1950s.

Some producers are taking advantage of frozen ground conditions to apply nitrogen to wheat fields or manure to corn fields. While this practice reduces the risk of compaction or rutting of fields, there are other factors to consider. Applications to frozen ground are at higher risk for runoff and loss of those nutrients.

UC research has shown that conservation agriculture practices such as cover cropping and no tillage are generating additional "ecosystem services" in West Side cotton and tomato production.

Many times the differences in attaining higher net income for soybean producers can be directly tied to the timing of planting. Recent research showed yields averaged approximately 1/3 bushel per acre less for every day planting was delayed.

Grain producers and seed representatives are working to react to an emerging market in the poultry industry for non-GMO corn and soybeans.