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Nitrogen Fertilizer
2 NH3).
Natural gas is the primary source of hydrogen in this process
and therefore N prices are sensitive to natural gas supplies.
The natural gas price this winter (Figure 1) was not quite as
high as it was in 2001, but changes in the fertilizer industry
and increased demand from household and electric utility providers
for this clean burning fuel have bumped N prices to similar levels.
Furthermore, a colder than average winter and limited alternative
energy supplies have added to the pressure on natural gas. After
the N fertilizer price spike in 2001, N prices declined during
the 2002 and 2003 growing seasons, although not to the low price
levels producers enjoyed prior to 2001. This year’s prices
may not be as much “sticker shock” as in 2001, but
they still hit growers during a time of economic stress with additional
drought pressure and relatively flat commodity prices. What
can growers do to deal with a large increase in an input so essential
to crop productivity? There are several interrelated practices
that growers should consider in order to more efficiently manage
N to achieve the best return for their fertilizer dollar. In this
issue we review many of these practices and provide information
on new N management strategies. Besides prices, growers using
N fertilizer also need to be aware of several issues regarding
the security and stewardship of their N fertilizer during transportation
and storage. Three articles in this newsletter offer suggestions
for keeping your N fertilizer supply from being stolen or lost
to undesirable locations in our environment. Nitrogen fertilizer
is more valuable than ever. The following articles discuss strategies
on how to best utilize N purchased at a premium.
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FROM THE GROUND
UP agronomy news is a monthly publication of Cooperative Extension,
Department of Soil & Crop Sciences, Colorado State University,
Fort Collins, Colorado. | |||
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Troy Bauder, Raj Khosla, and Reagan Waskom Technical Editors Direct questions and comments to: Deborah Fields Phone: 970- 491-6201 Fax: 970-491-2758 e-mail: dfields@lamar.colostate.edu | Extension staff members are: | ||
Troy Bauder, Water Quality Mark Brick, Bean Production Joe Brummer, Forages Betsy Buffington, Pesticide Pat Byrne, Biotechnology Jessica Davis, Soils |
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| Colorado State University, U.S. Department of Agriculture, and Colorado counties cooperating. Cooperative Extension programs are available to all without discrimination. The information given herein is supplied with the understanding that no discrimination is intended and no endorsement by Colorado State University Cooperative Extension is implied. | ||
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Bio-Pharming |
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Crop Production with Limited Water |
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Genetically Modified Crops |
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Managing Variability on Your Farm |
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Inform of the System of Alarm of Plagues |
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As World Fish Stocks Decline, Researchers Turn to an Untapped Resource Women |
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Honey Business Is Sweet--and Sour |
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The importance of the quality of the water in the tambo |
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Toxic plants for livestock |
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