A fourth-generation Alabama farmer says adopting the 4R nutrient stewardship strategy has improved fertilizer efficiency on his operation.

Drew Wendland, who farms in Autaugaville, says the soils in his part of the state have limited nutrient holding capacity, making efficient fertilizer placement and timing especially important for his sandy Coastal Plain-type soils.

"Getting the right products in the right places at the right time adds that consideration to help you be more economically viable," he says.

The 4R framework—right source, right rate, right time, and right place—was developed as a science-based approach to nutrient management, promoted by The Fertilizer Institute and land-grant university researchers as a way to align crop productivity with reduced environmental losses.

To help reduce runoff, Wendland says he has installed grass waterways and buffer strips on his farm.

"The main benefits of a 4R program on our farm are just making sure that we don't have as much nutrient loss to rainfall and leaching," he says. "We are splitting the applications and choosing a product that's going to be available at the right time to help us get better nutrient use efficiency."

Splitting applications, as Wendland describes, is a common 4R tactic: rather than applying a season's nutrients at once, farmers divide applications across growth stages so crops can take up more of what is applied before it moves off-field.

Wendland raises cotton, corn, sesame, oats, soybeans, wheat, and cattle in Autaugaville.

He is part of The Fertilizer Institute's 4R Advocate program, which highlights the importance of implementing nutrient management practices according to the 4R principles. The program annually recognizes farmers and their nutrient advisers who demonstrate successful 4R implementation, sharing their practices with peers across U.S. agriculture.

Source: Brownfield Ag News