Update from the Field: Small Quantities, Giant Rewards Part 4
Posted by Dave Dyson, Agronomist on February 26, 2019
This post may reference products and/or services only available to our Retail Farm Center customers. For more information contact your Territory Manager at The Andersons.
The last article in my four-part micronutrient series will focus squarely on the micronutrient zinc (Zn). The grand-daddy of all micronutrients, zinc is the most widely talked about and recommended micronutrient in agriculture today. I have heard agronomists from around the country tell audiences to “Apply a quart of zinc per acre, no matter what kind of zinc!” While I love the enthusiasm and agree with 90% of that statement, I’m not fond of wide sweeping statements. Yes, zinc is important and we need to put zinc on every acre, but let’s dive a little deeper into the details of zinc, since this is where the devil seems to dwell.
Zinc was one of the first micronutrients recognized as essential for plants and the one most commonly limiting yields. Although zinc is required only in small amounts, high yields of corn or wheat are impossible without it. Zinc directly affects the plant’s ability to efficiently metabolize nitrogen, due to the fact that protein synthesis and growth regulation require zinc.
Reduced hormone production in a zinc-deficient plant will cause stunted tissue growth. White interveinal stripes will extend from the leaf base to the tip, while the leaf tips, edges, and midribs stay green. Deficient plants will have shortened internodes and, if you cut the nodes open, they will appear to have a purple to brown color. All the deficiency symptoms will first appear on the younger leaves, since zinc is less mobile within the plant.
A&L Great Lakes Laboratories digitally charts soil tests from around the Midwest region going back to 1996. There has been a steady decrease in the average zinc soil test values since 1996. In 2018, about 50% of all agriculture soil tests processed by A&L were deficient in zinc (figure 1). Roughly 80% of all submitted soil tests had zinc levels below 5ppm. These fields would have a positive response to a zinc application.
Figure 1: This chart from A&L Great Lakes Laboratories shows the steady decline of zinc in the soil test. It also illustrates the 50% of samples that are deficient in zinc.
To combat zinc deficiency, The Andersons offers a multitude of zinc products to fit any delivery method. In 2019, The Andersons’ Farm Centers are releasing InfuraMax™ liquid starter (figure 2), which will deliver 1qt/ac of 9% EDTA Zinc for every 5 gal/ac of InfuraMax liquid starter put on the seed during planting. If you would rather apply your starter in a 2x2 application, the Nulex® 15 percent solution works great if the starter is going to the field in a few weeks. If you’re looking at storing the starter with zinc for a few months, I would strongly suggest using our Triple Crown™ zinc product. Triple Crown has 12% zinc and is very stable when stored with a high polyphosphate fertilizer for an extended period of time.
Figure 2: InfuraMax is The Andersons Farm Centers’ go-to, in-furrow starter.
The Andersons’ newest product UltraMate® Zn, will provide the nitrogen stability properties that we have come to expect when using a humic acid, with the added bonus of providing 1qt/ac of Nulex 15% Zinc with every gallon of UltraMate Zn applied. UltraMate Zn would be an excellent addition to 28% during the upcoming wheat topdress. It is beneficial to include UltraMate Zn with 28% with both a 2x2 starter application and during a sidedress or Y-drop application to corn.
In conclusion, according to A&L Great Lakes Laboratories, over 80% of the cropping acres in the Midwest will respond to an application of zinc. The Andersons has a diverse portfolio of zinc products that will fit into any producer’s operation. Please contact me or your local Ag Advisor from The Andersons for an informed conversation on how to get more zinc on your acres.
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Dave Dyson is a regional agronomist for The Andersons’ Farm Centers which are located throughout Ohio, Michigan, and Indiana. He is an Indiana native and grew up on a dairy farm in Miami County. A graduate of Purdue University with a degree in Crop & Soil Science, Dave has a deep knowledge of various agronomic topics and is committed to helping growers improve their crops. If you have any questions, Dave can be reached at david_dyson@andersonsinc.com.
Nulex and UltraMate are trademarks of The Andersons, Inc.; Triple Crown is a trademark of The Andersons, Inc.
