Class
Article
College
College of Agriculture and Applied Sciences
Department
Plants, Soils, and Climate Department
Faculty Mentor
Jeanette Norton
Presentation Type
Oral Presentation
Abstract
The world faces the challenge of increasing food production while reducing the impact of excess reactive nitrogen (N) in the environment. A field study was conducted at USU Greenville farm in northern Utah since 2012 to examine the effects of different N sources in corn silage under semi-arid conditions. The study used a randomized complete block design with four blocks and four treatments: control (no nitrogen) (denoted as Control), low ammonium sulfate (AS 112 kg N/ha) (denoted as AS100), high ammonium sulfate (AS 224 kg N/ha) (denoted as AS200), and steer manure compost (224 kg total N/ha) (denoted as Compost). We investigated the effects of the contrasting nitrogen fertilizers on yield, nitrogen use efficiency (NUE), and soil health indicators. Total corn silage yields for AS200, AS100, Compost, and Control in 2012-2021 were 17,225, 14,847, 11,114, and 7,897 kg/ha, respectively. The yield of the Compost treatment was significantly higher than that of the Control treatment. The AS200 treatment had the highest yield, N uptake, and NUE, but the values of soil health indicators did not differ from the Control treatment. The Compost treatment significantly increased the value of potential mineralizable N (No) and potential mineralizable C (Co) from 84 days incubation. Furthermore, the values of other soil health indicators, such as soil total N, soil ACE protein, N-acetyl-β-D-glucosaminidase, soil total C, and soil organic C, were significantly increased under Compost treatment. In short, continuous corn silage using only compost increased soil health values but did not produce higher yields than the ammonium sulfate treatment. In contrast, the application of ammonium sulfate increased yield but did not improve the value of soil health. Therefore, farmers should consider mixing compost with commercial fertilizers and adopting good soil health practices such as crop rotation or cover crops to maintain their soil health.
Location
Logan, UT
Start Date
4-11-2023 10:30 AM
End Date
4-11-2023 11:30 AM
Included in
Nitrogen Use Efficiency and Soil Health Indicators in Corn Silage Production in a Semi-Arid Environment
Logan, UT
The world faces the challenge of increasing food production while reducing the impact of excess reactive nitrogen (N) in the environment. A field study was conducted at USU Greenville farm in northern Utah since 2012 to examine the effects of different N sources in corn silage under semi-arid conditions. The study used a randomized complete block design with four blocks and four treatments: control (no nitrogen) (denoted as Control), low ammonium sulfate (AS 112 kg N/ha) (denoted as AS100), high ammonium sulfate (AS 224 kg N/ha) (denoted as AS200), and steer manure compost (224 kg total N/ha) (denoted as Compost). We investigated the effects of the contrasting nitrogen fertilizers on yield, nitrogen use efficiency (NUE), and soil health indicators. Total corn silage yields for AS200, AS100, Compost, and Control in 2012-2021 were 17,225, 14,847, 11,114, and 7,897 kg/ha, respectively. The yield of the Compost treatment was significantly higher than that of the Control treatment. The AS200 treatment had the highest yield, N uptake, and NUE, but the values of soil health indicators did not differ from the Control treatment. The Compost treatment significantly increased the value of potential mineralizable N (No) and potential mineralizable C (Co) from 84 days incubation. Furthermore, the values of other soil health indicators, such as soil total N, soil ACE protein, N-acetyl-β-D-glucosaminidase, soil total C, and soil organic C, were significantly increased under Compost treatment. In short, continuous corn silage using only compost increased soil health values but did not produce higher yields than the ammonium sulfate treatment. In contrast, the application of ammonium sulfate increased yield but did not improve the value of soil health. Therefore, farmers should consider mixing compost with commercial fertilizers and adopting good soil health practices such as crop rotation or cover crops to maintain their soil health.