UF/IFAS Standardized Fertilization Recommendations for Agronomic Crops
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UF/IFAS Standardized Fertilization Recommendations for Agronomic Crops

   

UF/IFAS Standardized Fertilization Recommendations for Agronomic Crops 1

R. Mylavarapu, D. Wright, G. Kidder, C.G. Chambliss2

Introduction

This publication presents in abbreviated form the fertilization recommendations for agronomic crops based on soil tests performed by the UF/IFAS Extension Soil Testing Laboratory (ESTL). It contains the basic information from which ESTL soil-test reports and fertilization recommendations are generated.

General Background

Soil testing is a tool in crop fertilization management. Its successful use requires that: (1) you send the lab soil samples that best represent your field or management unit; (2) the laboratory uses legitimate methods for predicting fertility; and (3) the fertilizer recommendations are based on measured crop responses.

The ESTL extracts phosphorus (P), potassium (K), magnesium (Mg), and calcium (Ca) with the Mehlich-1 extractant and bases fertilization recommendations for those nutrients on the test results. Current interpretation of test results are presented in Table 1 . Nitrogen (N) fertilization is not based on soil tests but rather is based on crop needs as documented in research literature.

Table 1. Current Mehlich-1soil-test interpretations used for agronomic crops.

Element

Very low

Low

Med

High

Very high


-------- parts per million soil ----------

P

<10

10-15

16-30

31-60

>60

K

<20

20-35

36-60

61-125

>125

Mg


<15

15-30

>30


Liming recommendations are based on the Adams-Evans lime requirement test, a calibration equation developed for Florida soils, and on the target pH for the crop for which the recommendation is being made.

Soil test reports from the ESTL are computer-generated from lab data and crop codes. If a cropping situation is not in the list of crop codes, routine soil tests may not be appropriate. In such instances, the local county agent should be consulted before soil samples are sent for testing. Reports contain the results of the tests (soil pH, ppm extractable P, K, Mg, and Ca), a rating of the P, K, and Mg (very high to very low), and the fertilization recommendation for the specified crop. The recommendation is composed of two parts: (1) the rates of N, P2O5 , and K2O fertilizer to apply; and (2) footnotes which give important information about fertilization management such as application timing, special crop requirements, etc.

Table 2 of this document contains crop codes, crop descriptions, target pH, N recommendation, P2O5 and K2O recommendations for each of the five soil-test rating levels, the footnotes which will be printed for each of the crop codes, and the references upon which the recommendations are based.

The text of the footnotes referred to in Table 2 is given below.

Text of Footnotes

Tables

Table 2. Target pH, and recommended annual N, P2O5, and K2O fertilizer rates for agronomic crops. Phosphorus and K rates are based on interpretation of a Mehlich-1 soil test.

Crop

Code


Crop

Description


Target

pH

----------------------------------lb/A/year----------------------------------

Footnotes


References*


N

-------------- P2O5--------------

--------------- K2O -----------------




lb/A


VL


LO


MED


HI


VH


VL


LO


MED


HI


VH




2


Non-irrigated Corn


6.5

150

125

100

50

0

0

120

100

60

0

0

102, 120, 124


AF70
5


Irrigated Corn


6.5

210

175

140

70

0

0

175

140

70

0

0

104, 120, 124


AF70
7


Grain Sorghum or Forage Sorghum for Silage


6.5

150

125

100

50

0

0

125

100

50

0

0

106, 124


AF70
8


Triticale, Oats, or Rye for Grain or Silage


6.0

70

100

80

40

0

0

100

80

40

0

0

106, 124


SSAGR45 & SSAGR46
9


Cotton


6.5

60

120

90

60

0

0

125

100

70

0

0

107, 124


AF111
10


Peanuts


6.0

0

100

80

40

0

0

100

80

40

0

0

108


AF70
11


Soybeans


6.5

0

60

40

20

0

0

60

40

20

0

0

108, 124, 128


NSS23
12


Flue-cured Tobacco


5.8

80

100

80

60

0

0

200

160

120

0

0

110, 124


AF70
13


Sugarcane for Syrup


6.0

90

100

80

40

0

0

100

80

40

0

0

106, 124


AF70
14


Summer Annual Grasses


6.0

**

80

80

40

0

0

80

80

40

0

0

111, 124


AF70
21


Warm Season Legumes or Legume-grass Mixtures


6.0

0

30

30

30

0

0

60

60

30

0

0

121, 124


SSAGR46
22


Cool Season Legumes or Legume-grass Mixtures


6.5

0

100

100

60

0

0

160

160

120

0

0

115, 122, 124, 129


SSAGR46
23


Alfalfa


7.0

0

125

125

80

0

0

160

160

120

0

0

120, 123, 124


SSAGR46
25


Improved Perennial Grasses (excluding bahia and limpo)

5.5

160

40

40

0

0

0

80

80

40

0

0

124, 125, 126


AF70 &

SSAGR46


26


Cool Season Annual Grasses


6.0

**

80

80

40

0

0

80

80

40

0

0

112, 124


AF70 &

SSAGR46


27


Wheat for Grain

6.0

80

100

80

40

0

0

100

80

40

0

0

124, 127


SSAGR45 &

SSAGR46


28


Perennial Peanuts


6.0

0

30

30

30

0

0

60

60

60

0

0

124, 130


Cir S275 & RWR
36


Bahiagrass, grazed





High-N option


5.5

160

***

***

0

0

0

***

***

0

0

0

124, 131


AF70 & SSAGR46

Medium-N option


5.5

100

***

***

0

0

0

***

***

0

0

0

124, 131


AF70 & SSAGR46

Low-N option


5.5

50

***

***

0

0

0

0

0

0

0

0

124, 131


------------
32


Hay or Silage (perennial grass)

5.5

**

80

80

60

0

0

80

80

60

0

0

124, 132


SP253
33


Limpograss (Hemarthria)


5.0

120

20

20

0

0

0

40

40

20

0

0

124, 133
MBA
* AF refers to Agronomy Facts, SSAGR refers to the special series fact sheets of the Agronomy Department available on the web at http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu, NSS refers to Notes in Soil Science, RWR to R.W. Rice's 1993 dissertation.

** The N recommendation for this crop is discussed in Footnote 111, 112, or 132.

*** The P and K recommendations for this crop are discussed in Footnote 131.



Footnotes

1. This document is SL129, a fact sheet of the Soil and Water Science Department, Florida Cooperative Extension Service, Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences, University of Florida. First printed February 1990 as "Notes in Soil Science #35", revised as SL129, June 1997. Latest revision December 2007. Please visit the EDIS Website at http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu.

2. R. Mylavarapu, associate professor, Nutrient Management Specialist and Director of UF/IFAS Extension Soil Testing Laboratory, Soil and Water Science Department; D. Wright, professor, Agronomy Department, G. Kidder, professor emeritus, Soil and Water Science Department, C.G. Chambliss (deceased), associate professor, Agronomy Department, Florida Cooperative Extension Service, Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL 32611-0290.


All chemicals should be used in accordance with directions on the manufacturer's label.


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U.S. Department of Agriculture, Cooperative Extension Service, University of Florida, IFAS, Florida A. & M. University Cooperative Extension Program, and Boards of County Commissioners Cooperating. Larry Arrington, Dean.



Copyright Information

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