Is There Any Value to Starter Fertilizers on Soybeans?

May 02, 2022

By Dorivar Ruiz Diaz

Soybean is a crop that can remove significant amounts of nutrients per bushel of grain harvested. Because of this, soybeans can respond to starter fertilizer applications on low-testing soils, particularly phosphorus.

Typically, corn shows a greater response to starter fertilizer than soybean. Part of the reason for that is that soils are generally warmer when soybeans are planted than when corn is planted. The typical response in early growth observed in corn is usually not observed in soybeans. However, yield response to direct soybean fertilization with phosphorus and other nutrients can be expected in low-testing soils.

K-State guidelines for soybeans include taking a soil test for phosphorus (P), potassium (K), sulfur (S), zinc (Zn), and boron (B). If fertilizer is recommended by soil test results, then fertilizer should either be applied directly to the soybeans or indirectly by increasing fertilizer rates to another crop in the rotation by the amount needed for the soybeans.

The most consistent response to starter fertilizer with soybeans would be on soils very deficient in one of the nutrients listed above, or in very high-yield-potential situations where soils have low or medium fertility levels. Furthermore, starter fertilizer in soybeans can be a good way to complement nutrients that may have been removed by high-yielding crops in the rotation, such as corn and help maintain optimum soil test levels.

Banding fertilizer to the side and below the seed at planting is an efficient application method for soybeans. This method is especially useful in reduced-till or no-till soybeans because P and K have only limited mobility into the soil from surface broadcast applications.

However, with narrow row soybeans, it may not be possible to install fertilizer units for deep banding. In that situation, producers can surface-apply the fertilizer. Fertilizer should not be placed in-furrow in direct seed contact with soybeans because the seed is very sensitive to salt injury.

Soybean seldom responds to nitrogen (N) in the starter fertilizer. However, some research under irrigated, high-yield environments with sandy soils suggests a potential benefit of small amounts of N in starter fertilizer.

Visual differences with starter P fertilizer on low testing soils

Figure 1. Visual differences with starter P fertilizer on low testing soils. Photo by Nathan Mueller, former K-State Agronomy graduate student and current Associate Extension Educator at the University of Nebraska West Central Research & Extension Center.

Source : ksu.edu

Video: Moving Ag Research Forward Through Collaboration

BY: Ashley Robinson

It may seem that public and private researchers have different goals when it comes to agricultural research. However, their different strategies can work in tandem to drive agricultural research forward. Public research may focus more on high-risk and applied research with federal or outside funding, while private sector researchers focus more on research application.

“For me, the sweet spot for public private sector research is when we identify problems and collaborate and can use that diverse perspective to address the different aspects of the challenge. Public sector researchers can work on basic science high risk solutions as tools and technologies are developed. They then can work with their private sector partners who prototype solutions,” Mitch Tuinstra, professor of plant breeding and genetics in Purdue University’s Department of Agronomy, said during the Jan. 10 episode of Seed Speaks.

Public researchers they have the flexibility to be more curiosity driven in their work and do discovery research. This is complimentary to private research, which focuses on delivering a product, explained Jed Christianson, canola product design lead for Bayer CropScience, explained during the episode.

“As a seed developer, we worry about things like new crop diseases emerging. Having strong public sector research where people can look into how a disease lifecycle cycle works, how widespread is it and what damage it causes really helps inform our product development strategies,” he added.

It’s not always easy though to develop these partnerships. For Christianson, it’s simple to call up a colleague at Bayer and start working on a research project. Working with someone outside of his company requires approvals from more people and potential contracts.

“Partnerships take time, and you always need to be careful when you're establishing those contracts. For discoveries made within the agreement, there need to be clear mechanisms for sharing credits and guidelines for anything brought into the research to be used in ways that both parties are comfortable with,” Christianson said.

Kamil Witek, group leader of 2Blades, a non-profit that works with public and private ag researchers, pointed out there can be limitations and challenges to these partnerships. While private researchers are driven by being able to make profits and stay ahead of competitors, public researchers may be focused on information sharing and making it accessible to all.

“The way we deal with this, we work in this unique dual market model. Where on one hand we work with business collaborators, with companies to deliver value to perform projects for them. And at the same time, we return the rights to our discoveries to the IP to use for the public good in developing countries,” Witek said during the episode.

At the end of the day, the focus for all researchers is to drive agricultural research forward through combining the knowledge, skills and specializations of the whole innovation chain, Witek added.

“If there's a win in it for me, and there's a win in it for my private sector colleagues in my case, because I'm on the public side, it’s very likely to succeed, because there's something in it for all of us and everyone's motivated to move forward,” Tuinstra said.