Agriculture and Agribusiness

Soil Fertility and Fertiliser Management

Fertiliser is the largest cash input on most farms and is routinely applied to a blanket recommendation written for a district rather than for the field it lands on. This course replaces the blanket with a measurement. Delegates work through soil sampling, which decides everything that follows, including sampling depth, pattern and the number of cores that make a composite representative. Laboratory analysis and interpretation follow, covering pH, organic carbon, phosphorus, potassium, cation exchange capacity and the ratios that matter. Acidity and liming are addressed in detail, since low pH locks up nutrients that have already been paid for. Nitrogen management is covered including timing, splitting and the losses to leaching and volatilisation. Phosphorus and potassium follow with their very different mobility. Micronutrients are addressed. Organic sources, manure and compost are covered with realistic nutrient contents. Fertiliser products, blends and application methods follow. The course closes on nutrient budgeting and on judging response rather than assuming it.