Grainswest - Winter 2022

Winter 2022 Grains West 36 FEATURE and farmers across Canada are implementing 4R Nutrient Stewardship to increase crop production and safeguard the environment.” The 4R Nutrient Stewardship program emphasizes the importance of using the right fertilizer source at the right rate, right time and in the right place. “By understanding how growers are using the 4R program, we can identify knowledge gaps and address barriers to adoption of the practices,” said Proud. “While the survey doesn’t directly influence fertilizer cost, which is driven by supply and demand, it can help farmers to be more precise in their fertilizer practices, such as testing the soil to make decisions on the rate of fertilizer required. In this way, they can avoid overapplying fertilizer, using just enough to address their needs.” Survey results to date show that farmers who follow the 4R program tend to save money over those who don’t, and that can make all the difference when costs rise. “At times where input costs are high, programs like this aid growers in using inputs more effectively and efficiently, both from a cost and emission control standpoint,” said Proud. The organization’s target is to have 30 million acres of Canadian cropland under a 4R system by 2025. “With the amount of discussion these days around the emission and management sides of fertilizer, we found it valuable to get a clearer picture of how fertilizer is being used on wheat crops,” said Jeremy Boychyn, agronomy research extension specialist with AWC and Alberta Barley. The Western Canada version of the survey was sent to farmers in November and includes an extensive list of questions that address fertilizer use. These will gauge farmer awareness of the program and determine which 4R practices are and are not being implementing and why. Farmers are being asked to identify the types of fertilizers they apply and in which situations as well as the reasons they use in applying fertilizer to wheat crops. This information will assist AWC to identify where extension activities may prove valuable for farmers, and which types of research projects could be funded in the future to benefit fertilizer efficiency. “As well, there is a lot of discussion now by government regarding emission reduction targets from fertilizer use. This study helps us paint a clear picture of what growers are actually doing around fertilizer and to make the case that they are already highly efficient in that area,” said Boychyn. Boychyn is encouraged by the general trend in fertilizer research toward greater focus on the relationship between crop genetics, management and environment. “Which genetics will prove most effective with our current management practices in certain geographic locations? There is also greater scrutiny of fertilizer technologies, nitrogen inhibitors and slow-release phosphorus,” he said. “There are also long-term initiatives asking how we can get plants to source nitrogen from the air rather than farmers having to apply it.” PHOSPHOROUS FINDINGS An ongoing project conducted by Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada (AAFC) on long-term test plots at its Swift Current Research and Development Centre in Saskatchewan adds another dimension to fertilizer research. The project uses data gathered from fallow-wheat-wheat rotational plots created in 1967. Some of these have received phosphorous with or without nitrogen, and some have not received phosphorous since 1995. The study will assess how fertilizing with nitrogen and phosphorus changes the chemistry of soils and the availability of phosphorus for crops. It will also examine how fertilizer accumulates when it is not fully utilized by the plant. Researchers will additionally analyze the wheat plants to measure yield as well as nitrogen and phosphorus concentrations within the grain and straw.