Crop nutrition - getting the right balance for resilience.

How POLY4 can help farmers preserve soil health and improve crop performance.

Opinion piece by Sarah Blackwell – Global Marketing Manager

This week marks one of the highlights of my agricultural year: Groundswell, the UK’s premier regen ag event is taking place in Hertfordshire. Always full of inspiring speakers, practitioners, demos and teachings, Groundswell is where progressive British farmers gather to share ideas, best practices, and discuss the challenges of trying to feed the nation while conserving the land and protecting our soils.?I’m already preparing myself for the dynamic conversations that will inevitably occur at our stand: input prices, mob grazing, black grass, the weather (of course!) to name but a few. Perhaps, for those still to be convinced by regen ag, it could be the challenge of maintaining profitability while transitioning? At a time of inflation and unprecedented pressure on UK farming, can the once seemingly inevitable rise of regen ag continue??

Helping the transition

Savills have just published their ‘Spotlight: Regenerative agriculture’ report claiming that six years is the turning point in conventional versus regenerative profitability, with one study showing a 78% increase in profitability, despite a 29% decrease in yield.

So, if short-term yield losses are experienced, but profitability remains greater in the long run, how can the risk of transition be managed? And how can we, as industry, support farmers to make sure that they succeed in their journey towards a more sustainable and resilient agricultural system?

Crop resilience starts with the soil

We all know that if the soil is deficient in just one nutrient, or trace element, it can limit crop performance, not only in terms of yield, but resilience and plant health – two increasingly important considerations at a time when climate change is altering the risk profile of many agricultural systems.

The adverse weather conditions experienced in Europe in recent years have led to a new focus on water efficiency and crop resilience. Improving root development and maintaining soil structure are practical measures a farmer can take to help manage their risk. Crop nutrition plays a vital role in helping to mitigate these challenges.?

Strong roots need a balanced diet

Growing healthy plants begins with a nutrient-rich soil. Getting the right nutrient balance in the soil for establishment encourages strong root development. Many Scientific studies tells us that a deeper and more vigorous rooting system leads to greater water use efficiency, nutrient uptake and a more resilient crop against flooding and drought.

Nutrients from organic material (such as manure) are not always immediately available for uptake and become available gradually over time. Manure is also low in sulphur, which is also highly mobile in the soil and essential for improving nitrogen efficiency. Achieving balanced crop nutrition with products like POLY4, that offer potassium, sulphur, magnesium, and calcium, can provide plants with the long-term sustenance they need, complementing and enhancing a traditional manure-based nutrition plan.

How POLY4 can help preserve your biggest asset

One of the fundamental principles of regenerative agriculture is nurturing the soil as a living ecosystem, and POLY4 literally comes from the ground beneath our feet. It’s created from a naturally occurring mineral called polyhalite, containing four essential nutrients necessary for optimum plant growth, all in soluble form, readily available for season-long plant uptake.?As well as providing balanced nutrition for improved productivity, POLY4 also promotes many soil health benefits.

Soil biodiversity is very delicate, and when damaged, soil fertility and productivity levels are impacted. Choosing inputs which are kind to the soil environment is key for long-term sustainable profitability.

Earthworm friendly

Chloride and pH levels are extremely important if nutrient lock-up is to be avoided and availability maximised. POLY4 has a neutral pH and is naturally low in chloride, for minimal impact on the soil environment. POLY4 is also “earthworm friendly” and, like these highly important residents, can help to improve the structure of the soil.

Building a strong foundation

Soil structure is crucial for healthy plant growth and provides a strong foundation for productivity of above and below ground life. Minimal soil disturbance helps to rebuild soil structure for improved nutrient availability, infiltration, aeration, water-holding capacity, and a reduction in surface crusting. The calcium ions provided by POLY4 help to support soil structure, in addition to helping plants grow a more vigorous rooting system.?

“Calcium is king”

In addition to strengthening the soil, calcium also promotes better nutrient absorption, lowers the risk of lodging, keeps forage and pastures greener for longer, effectively lengthening the growing season for quality forage production. For fruit and potatoes, calcium improves quality, shelf life and reduces shrinkage in storage.

Improvement in nutrient uptake

POLY4 also contains 48% sulphur (in sulphate form), which supports plant growth, enzyme activity, nodulation development on legumes, cover crop performance and, importantly, nitrogen utilization. “Increasing nutrient use efficiency is the single most effective strategy to reduce emissions” according to the 2023 Nature Food Report by Gao and Serrenho. POLY4 trials have shown to improve both nitrogen and phosphate uptake across a variety of crops. POLY4 also supplies nutrients in a much more efficient way, due to its unique and sustained nutrient release pattern, with less losses to the environment compared to conventional fertilisers.

Organic matter and keeping living roots covered

POLY4 cannot or should not replace traditional soil preservation techniques.?Adding organic matter and using cover or companion crops and herbal lays play an important role in crop resilience and improving soil health, as well as returning essential nutrients to the soil. ?Herbal lays and the increase in biodiversity of swards, for example, can help with drought due to deeper rooting and result in substantially improved soil health that is observable even with the naked eye.?But, as outlined earlier, the downside of these techniques is often a short-term yield decline – this is where products like POLY4 can help without undermining the end goal of the regenerative transition.

Completing the puzzle

Whether or not the industry decides to continue to embrace ‘regen ag’ or not, the importance of sustainable inputs and nature-based solutions to help maintain productivity cannot be overstated. POLY4 is just one part of the puzzle, but a highly flexible piece, and one which fits a variety of rotational cropping and grazing systems. For farmers looking for efficiency and optimising crop performance, while preserving the soil environment for future generations, then POLY4 is an excellent multi-nutrient, natural option.

Anglo American Crop Nutrients team will be at the POLY4 stand (DF C25) at Groundswell and look forward to meeting and chatting with you all.

POLY4 trials have demonstrated consistent yield and quality improvements, across 1500+ commercial farm demonstrations and on 83 crops in 39 countries.

For more information, please visit our website: POLY4.com

#soilhealth #regenerativeagriculture #regenag #groundswell #cropnutrition

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