Edge-of-field monitoring on 17 farms in Wisconsin and Minnesota highlights the need for no-tillers to apply ‘P’ under the soil surface and sample soils at varying depths.

Scientists now know that the increase in dissolved reactive phosphorus (DRP) runoff that’s been plaguing the western Lake Erie basin is mostly coming from farms located in the Maumee watershed.

As increased levels of dissolved phosphorus are identified as a major concern dealing with the increased algal blooms found in Lake Erie, some folks have been pointing a finger at no-till as the cause. Yet the facts regarding phosphorus runoff in the Western Lake Erie Basin watershed near Toledo, Ohio, don't back up that argument.

Phosphorus management is best understood by balancing the close-up view against the big picture.