Canola TV
Canola TV--Dr. Brian Arnall Talks About Canola Fertility Needs
Fri, 31 Aug 2012 13:14:19 CDT
With the September 10th to October 10th canola planting window rapidly approaching, Dr. Brian Arnall talks with Radio Oklahoma Network Farm Director Ron Hays about last minute considerations for producers. Arnall is an Extension crop fertility expert and has co-authored the latest OSU Fact Sheet on Fertilization of Canola. Click here for the fact sheet.
Arnall said he learned a lot from producers last season.
“We had a lot of learning lessons in 2012. One of the biggest take-homes that I had with all the producers I worked with this season was that proper fertility up front-making sure soil pH, nitrogen, and phosphorous was in good standing by the time that seed was in the ground or very soon after.
“Soil pH has a massive impact on a canola stand and productivity across the board. Anything below a 5.5, we’re losing yield across all of our cultivars.
“When it came to phosphorous and nitrogen, we needed a decent amount of fertility down. Twenty to 30 pounds of nitrogen down early in the season whether it’s at planting or by sometime in December to get that nitrogen down. And any location that was low soil test for phosphorous, we needed that phosphorous at planting. We didn’t see any differences between broadcast and banded, but definitely need to get it down.
Arnall said the plant needs the phosphorous in place to get ready for the winter.
“We want that taproot to be shooting down, getting good depth establishment to make it through that winter and phosphorous is a key nutrient to get good root establishment.”
Arnall says the first order of business for producers as the planting window nears is to get good soil test data. The next step is to make sure the fertilizer is on hand and application is planned and executed properly. He says using nitrogen-rich strips will pay dividends as well.
He also said that using soil sample data is key to providing sufficient boron and sulfur for wheat crops that follow canola.
You can see today's conversation with Brian Arnall on CanolaTV by clicking on the play button in the video box below. CanolaTV is a service of PCOM, Producers Cooperative Oil Mill- click here to learn more about how they serve cotton and canola producers across the south.
Our YouTube channel has several dozen past episodes of CanolaTV, with a lot of great information about producing and marketing winter canola in the southern plains- click here to jump there.
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