Investing in details can guide fertilizer decisions

Investing in details can guide fertilizer decisions

Soil tests are a baseline, but there are other options on which to judge best use of expensive fertilizer

For those who want to reduce fertilizer costs, certified crop adviser and Renfrew County farmer Jennifer Doelman has some tips.  Fertilizer availability has fluctuated in recent months, she notes. Staff shortages and other factors have also contributed to disruptions within normal supply channels. With limited capacity and high demand, suppliers might have to prioritize regular […] Read more

Hyperspectral sensors affixed to small aircraft can accurately detect the nitrogen status of crops, according to a University of Illinois research study.

Powerful sensors on planes can detect crop nitrogen

Hyperspectral imagery offers cost-effective, quick assessment

Synthetic nitrogen fertilizers transformed agriculture during the Green Revolution, catapulting crop yields and food security to new heights.  But despite improvements in crop nitrogen use efficiency, fears of underperformance still spur fertilizer overapplication. Excess nitrogen then ends up in waterways, including groundwater, and in the atmosphere in the form of potent greenhouse gases. Why it […] Read more

EU flags in front of the headquarters of the European Commission in Brussels. (Jorisvo/iStock/Getty Images)

EU predicts pain for farmers, consumers from Ukraine crisis

Brussels | Reuters — Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and EU sanctions on Moscow will prove painful for farmers, consumers, fertilizer makers and exporters of farm products, the European Commission warned on Monday. Michael Scannell, deputy director-general of the Commission’s agriculture division, said grain buyers should brace for higher prices given that Russia and Ukraine made […] Read more

Comment: Multiple factors at play for fertilizer price increase

Comment: Multiple factors at play for fertilizer price increase

High prices in Canada are in line with prices globally

Glacier FarmMedia – Pressures on commodity fertilizer prices are similar to those on grains and oilseeds. Supply isn’t meeting demand and costs are up. Some farm groups and many producers question the legitimacy of rising costs and they want answers. Prices in Canada for urea have more than tripled in the past two years and […] Read more




Nutrien’s potash mine at Lanigan, Sask., about 100 km southeast of Saskatoon. (Nutrien.com)

Nutrien takes cautious potash approach as rival copes with sanctions

Winnipeg | Reuters — Canada’s Nutrien, the world’s biggest fertilizer company, is bumping up potash production as sanctions restrict its rival in Belarus, but is holding off on bigger expansion, its interim CEO said on Thursday. Potash prices have climbed to decade highs as state-owned Belaruskali, the second-largest producer after Nutrien, copes with U.S. and […] Read more

Paragon Ag Service’s site west of Melfort. (Lakecountryco-op.crs)

Two Saskatchewan co-ops to buy ag input retailer

Paragon Ag Service assets to be divvied up

A pair of Saskatchewan co-operatives are expanding their reach in the crop input retail sector in that province’s northeast, with a deal to buy an independent dealership chain. Lake Country Co-op and Prairie North Co-op announced Tuesday they have agreements in place to buy the assets of Melfort-based Paragon Ag Service from owners Sherman Boland […] Read more


High fertilizer and seed costs require growers to understand the importance of nitrogen timing and placement to limit losses.

Corn growers urged to focus on profit rather than yields

Striving for the most efficient nitrogen use and planting rates is seen as wiser than pushing for ‘that last bushel or two’

Glacier FarmMedia – Corn seed is expensive. Nitrogen is now expensive. Those facts should goad producers to take a careful look at corn planting and nitrogen rates, says a Purdue University corn specialist. “It’s managing for maximum return instead of managing for maximum yield,” said Daniel Quinn during Purdue’s January Top Farmer Conference. Why it […] Read more