By Luke Gatiboni
Dry soils reduce the availability of soil nutrients to plants and also affect how well lime and fertilizers work after they are applied. Lime and dry fertilizers need soil moisture to dissolve, react, and release nutrients. For example, if lime was recently applied and conditions remain dry, you can expect a delay in the increase of soil pH. It may take longer than the usual 2–3 months to see the full effect and reach the target pH. The same is true for dry phosphorus (P) and potassium (K) fertilizers. These products need moisture to dissolve their granules and release nutrients into the soil.
We have received reports from farmers in North Carolina who recently applied lime or dry fertilizers and then pulled soil samples but did not see an increase in soil test levels. The question is whether they should reapply fertilizer to protect the crop they are planting. The short answer is no. The lime and nutrients are still in the soil; they just have not dissolved yet. Once soil moisture improves, they are expected to begin working as intended. Also, most agricultural fields in North Carolina have medium to high soil test levels of P and K. Because of that, the residual P and K already present in the soil are usually sufficient to support crop growth early in the season, even if recently applied fertilizer has not fully dissolved yet due to dry conditions.
The situation is somewhat different for nitrogen (N) fertilizers, especially in corn. Corn needs nitrogen early in its growth. In North Carolina, the most common practice is split nitrogen application, with a smaller amount applied at planting (starter N) and the remainder applied later in the season. However, corn does not rely only on N from fertilizers.
Source : ncsu.edu