Revised Beef Cattle And Dairy Manure Nitrogen And Phosphorus Crop Availability Ranges

The Using Manure Nutrients for Crop Production publication (PMR 1003) has recently been updated with revised beef cattle and dairy manure nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) crop availability ranges (Table 1, page 4). As shown below (bold values indicate revisions), beef cattle and dairy N availability ranges are now 30-50 percent of total nutrient applied and P ranges are 80-100 percent of total nutrient applied.

 

 

Changes were made based on current research results from Iowa and neighboring states.

 

In addition to the change in nutrient availability ranges, this text was added at the end of the section “Manure Nutrient Availability Values” (page 4):

 

“The ranges in nutrient availability are provided to account for variation in the proportion of organic and inorganic N and P forms, bedding type and amount, manure sampling and analysis variation, and application importance at different P and K soil test levels. See the footnote in Table 1 for further information on variability in manure nutrient availability.”

 

The publication also includes the new URL for the revised Corn Nitrogen Rate Calculator website.

 

The Using Manure Nutrients for Crop Production publication includes information about manure nutrient availability for crops, manure nutrient supply, manure nutrient application recommendations, adjusting for manure nitrogen volatilization, and more. You can download the revised document online for free at the Extension Store.

 

Video: Evolution of Beef Cattle Farming

The Clear Conversations podcast took to the road for a special episode recorded in Nashville during CattleCon, bringing listeners straight into the heart of the cattle industry. Host Tracy Sellers welcomed rancher Steve Wooten of Beatty Canyon Ranch in Colorado for a wide-ranging discussion that blended family history and sustainability, particularly as it relates to the future of beef production.

Sustainability emerged as a central theme of the conversation, a word that Wooten acknowledges can mean very different things depending on who you ask. For him, sustainability starts with the soil. Healthy soil produces healthy grass, which supports efficient cattle capable of producing year after year with minimal external inputs. It’s an approach that equally considers vegetation, animal efficiency, and long-term profitability.

That philosophy aligned naturally with Wooten’s involvement in the U.S. Roundtable for Sustainable Beef, where he served as a representative for the Colorado Cattlemen’s Association. The roundtable brings together the entire beef supply chain—from producers to retailers—along with universities, NGOs, and allied industries. Its goal is not regulation, Wooten emphasized, but collaboration, shared learning, and continuous improvement.