Ask someone to give you an analysis of how much nitrogen, P₂O₅ and K₂O is contained in every ton of the litter. “You have to have that because that is the only way you can determine the value of the nutrients,” he said. “The other thing is you have to be able to set the application rate for the litter.”

Take a soil sample. “If you need P and K, my advice is to rely on the litter to provide the P and K,” he said. “Then target at least a portion of the nitrogen for that crop or perhaps all of the nitrogen by using this formula: Take the University of Tennessee recommended nitrogen rate and divide that by the litter nitrogen concentration X the nitrogen availability factor of 0.45.

If you don’t need P and K, apply the litter at the crop removal rate by multiplying the average crop yield times the crop P₂O₅ removal rate and dividing the result by the litter’s P₂O₅ concentration.

Use good timing and setbacks from neighbors when applying poultry litter because of the smell. Hawkins described a situation where a school had to be evacuated because a farmer applied chicken litter on the same side of the building as the intake vents for the school’s air conditioning system at 7:30 a.m. “I told them it would probably be better if they applied it on the weekend,” he said. “If you have neighbors, I would try to allow at least 500 feet between the field of application and the neighbor’s home."

For corn, he suggests growers use two to three tons per acre as a starter fertilizer.

If you’re using a corn-soybean rotation, consider applying the two-year removal rate for P and K in one year.

Realize you will get some buildup of phosphorus from applying poultry litter over time. “Poultry litter is an unbalanced fertilizer, and it has more phosphorus in it,” he said. Be aware of this as a water quality concern.”

He recommends growers use setbacks of 100 feet from the edge of an application to a water source or stream if no buffer is present. If a buffer is present, use a setback of 35 feet,

Do not apply prior to a significant rain. “It’s going to wash off just like a chemical fertilizer application,” he noted.

Do not apply litter to frozen or saturated soil.