How can practicing conservation measures to improve soil health and save soil also improve nitrogen efficiency? Here are five tips that can help you accomplish better use of dollars spent on N.

This information is provided thanks to the Indiana Conservation Partnership. A team of Natural Resources Conservation Service staff led the effort. Major contributors include Don Donovan and Clint Harrison, district conservationists; Susannah Hinds, grazing specialist; Scott Haley, resource soil scientist; Kris Vance, public affairs specialist; and Shannon Zezula, state resource conservationist.

1. Set up check strips to see how cover crops help keep N in place.
How much nitrogen can a cover crop help keep on your farm? One reason many farmers say they’re interested in planting cover crops is to improve N use efficiency. If you planted cover crops last fall, here’s how you can tell how much benefit they gave in terms of keeping N from leaving your farm.

COVER CROPS CONTRIBUTE N: Crimson clover can either be planted in the fall to hold N and produce more in the spring, or planted on unplanted areas.

Simply set up strip trials in a field where you burned down cover crops. Test various sidedress application rates. Set it up so you can see if cover crops kept more N around for the crop.

2. Maximize your N investment.
One of the four R’s of nutrient management is applying at the “right time” to match plant needs. Nitrogen management throughout the growing season is critical to the success of your crop. Sidedressing is a great way to limit the period between application of N and plant uptake of the nutrient to minimize losses.

3. Think about where and how you place N in the soil.
One option is to use knives that inject fertilizer for accurate placement. There are a number of application knife choices to consider. Accurate placement contributes to efficient use of N by corn plants.

4. Make sure every corn row gets its fair share of N.
Prior to sidedressing, be sure to clean and maintain your application equipment. This includes pumps, nozzles, filters and orifices. One plugged line on an applicator can impact an entire field.

5. Plant cover crops on areas that don’t get planted to crops due to excessive rainfall and prolonged ponding.
Flooding and erosion can remove valuable topsoil, nutrients, organic matter and soil organisms. To rebuild lost productive capacity and improve soil health, growing a cover crop for the remainder of the season is crucial. Many farmers in northern Indiana discovered this was true in 2015.

In fact, having something green and growing during all times of the year is a key concept for improving soil health. Benefits include increasing soil organic matter, protecting the soil, and improving water and nutrient cycling. Flowering cover crops can benefit pollinators.