After three years of development and comprehensive in-field testing, a new crop management tool for maize grain and silage production is available.
AmaizeN is a yield and nitrogen-fertiliser forecaster designed to help growers maximise return from fertiliser inputs as well as meet regulatory requirements.
Growers enter crop and soil details and AmaizeN calculates the most economic N fertiliser applications for their crops based on average weather conditions. Actual weather data for the past five seasons has also been included so growers can compare AmaizeN with their actual yields.
Research coordinator with the Foundation for Arable Research (FAR), Andrea Pearson, says the forecaster is easy to use and is designed to be loaded on to a home computer from CD.
“This is a really important tool for the maize industry. Not only will AmaizeN help growers to improve profitability, it also demonstrates to regulatory authorities that the maize industry is serious about the responsible use of N fertiliser.”
Ms Pearson says, “Nitrogen is extremely mobile in the soil, and maize has a rooting depth of at least one metre so a 15cm soil sample can easily underestimate the existing soil N status. By soil sampling deeper to get a better picture of how much N is available to the crop, substantial fertiliser savings can be made.”
AmaizeN has been developed by Crop & Food Research and funded by FAR, FertResearch, MAF’s Sustainable Farming Fund and Environment Waikato.
Crop & Food Research scientist Paul Johnstone says farmers and growers were interested in a tool that would help them tailor fertiliser programmes to individual paddocks, not just whole farm systems.
“Right from the start, our aim was to develop a user-friendly tool that met the needs of both the silage and grain growers. We had great feedback from growers and industry representatives who trialled this tool for us and assisted us in refining the user interface.”
Nitrogen fertiliser requirements are calculated by a soil N model, which takes into account the potential yield of the crop as well as the existing soil N pool and that which will be released during the season. This allows growers to use the supply of ‘free’ soil nitrogen before paying for fertiliser N.
Importantly, the forecaster not only predicts when growers can save money by not applying fertiliser, it has also highlighted where specific crops may require more N than the grower initially thought, translating into a yield benefit. AmaizeN will also produce a nutrient report to satisfy local regulatory requirements.
Ms Pearson says the AmaizeN CD comes with a small and simple booklet of instructions, including a guide to collecting soil samples. Growers seeking a free copy of AmaizeN can contact the FAR office by phone on 03 325 6353 or email far@far.org.nz