Author: 4RMidAtlantic

4R Partnership Continues to Grow Across the Mid-Atlantic

Posted on by 4RMidAtlantic | Posted in In the NewsTagged , , , , , , ,

Ensuring every nutrient application in the Mid-Atlantic is applied with the RIGHT source, in the RIGHT place, at the RIGHT rate, and at the RIGHT time.

(Chester, Maryland, December 23, 2024) – In March 2024, the Mid-Atlantic 4R Nutrient Stewardship Association (MA4R), the nonprofit organization supporting the Pennsylvania 4R Alliance (PA4R) and the Delaware Maryland 4R Alliance (DM4R), completed a five-year Strategic Plan to make a big impact across the Chesapeake Bay Watershed. The mission of the 4R Alliance is to empower trusted advisors to ensure that every nutrient application in the region is applied with the RIGHT source, in the RIGHT place, at the RIGHT rate, and at the RIGHT time to benefit farmers, the environment, and society. 

The MA4R through the PA4R and DM4R, will advance the strategic plan with the support of a 2024 National Fish and Wildlife Foundation Innovative Nutrient and Sediment Reduction Grant Funding will support farmers to implement new advanced nutrient management practices, and grow the organization’s engagement with the trusted advisors of farmers.

The Mid-Atlantic 4R team will also continue the successful 4R voucher program with support from the Keith Campbell Foundation. In 2024, the team funded 31 vouchers with our first grant and covered 9,196 acres of planned advanced nutrient management practices. For 2025, the 4R Alliance has 30 vouchers available to farmer and agribusiness pairs to take one’s farming operation to the next step in advanced nutrient management. Enrollment for these vouchers is now open, please email Jenell McHenry to secure your voucher spot.

Furthermore, the strategic plan includes: defining a standardized methodology for measuring and comparing Nitrogen and Phosphorus Use Efficiency of 4R Best Management Practices (BMPs) vs. average Nitrogen Use Efficiency; serving trusted advisors by demonstrating 4R BMPs and their impact; growing partnerships and engagement; securing funds to continue to improve nutrient stewardship; and hiring a full-time Executive Director.

On December 16th, the Mid-Atlantic 4R Association welcomed Jenell McHenry as their first full-time Executive Director. Jenell has been employed by Thompson Ag Consulting for the past five years where she has served a number of agriculture organizations, including the 4R Alliance. Jenell currently resides in Kent County, Maryland with her husband Joey and son, Lee. As a family they raise beef cattle from cow to consumer, run a commercial trucking company, and farm corn, soybeans, wheat, barley, sorghum, and hay.  Ben Hushon, Chair of the Mid-Atlantic 4R Board, said “we are very honored to have Jenell join our Association full-time and think about the 4Rs every day. Her expertise and experience will provide the skills necessary to expand the scope and scale of our future efforts.” Jenell can be reached at midatlantic4r@gmail.com and you can learn more about the PA4R, DM4R efforts at 4RMidAtlantic.com.

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2025 Vouchers and Cost-Share Provided by Mid-Atlantic 4R and Partners

Posted on by 4RMidAtlantic | Posted in Uncategorized

November 20, 2024 (Chester, MD) – Join us on December 16th for a morning webinar on Mid-Atlantic’s opportunities for the 2025 growing season! Register for free online here.

The Mid-Atlantic 4R Nutrient Stewardship Association has recently been granted a 2024 National Fish and Wildlife Foundation (NFWF) Grant for three years to utilize trusted agricultural advisers and established partners to advance improved nutrient management on 20,000 acres of agricultural lands and empower agribusinesses and trusted advisers on the 4Rs.

Through the use of a voucher program, which was piloted in 2021 and 2024, farmers can plan a new 4R practice with the assistance of a trusted adviser. Following the planned incentive, the 4R team will offer cost-share to implement the plan. For 2025, the NFWF grant will fund 20 vouchers, and the Keith Campbell Foundation will fund 10 vouchers. Followed by a completed planned $1,000 voucher, farmers will be eligible to implement the planned practice with a $35 per acre cost-share.

Other funding has been secured from the support of a Regional Conservation Partner Program (RCPP) grant for farmers with multi-species cover crops. Farmers will be eligible to utilize a new technology that maps cover crop N credits and tailers their side dress nitrogen rate to match their 2025 corn crop goal.

Be sure to join our December 4R webinar on December 16th to learn more about all of these opportunities! Nutrient Management and certified crop adviser credits will be available.

Vouchers and cost-share enrollment and information will go live following the conclusion of the webinar on the 16th. Agribusinesses will be allowed eight vouchers until December 31st. The remaining vouchers will be first come first serve.

For more information contact Jenell McHenry at midatlantic4r@gmail.com.

Recap: Pre-Sidedress Nitrate Test

Posted on by 4RMidAtlantic | Posted in Resources

If you’ve followed the Delaware-Maryland 4R Alliance on Facebook over the last few weeks, you might have noticed that we linked to several resources on the Pre-sidedress Nitrate Test, or PSNT. Whether you’re looking for information on how to sample for a PSNT or how to interpret the results, or information on the reliability of the test, here’s a recap on the resources that we posted:

About the PSNT

Per the University of Maryland Extension website, “The Pre-sidedress Soil Nitrate Test (PSNT) is a widely used test for optimizing nitrogen fertilizer use for corn grain and corn silage. It is a soil test that measures the amount of nitrate nitrogen available in the soil at the time when the crop is most likely to start using it. This nitrogen is a by-product of the mineralization of manure and/or last year’s forage legume crop, and its availability is influenced by soil temperature and moisture.

The PSNT should be run when corn is between 6 and 12 inches tall. This is the time period when corn is getting ready for a rapid growth spurt and will require nitrogen to fuel this growth. If the PSNT shows enough nitrogen is present in the soil, it may be beneficial to forego the application, thus saving time and money. If the test shows nitrogen is low, it may be beneficial to consider sidedressing additional nitrogen to avoid any potential compromise in yield.”

If you grow corn and have applied manure as a nutrient source, a PSNT can help you refine your in-season nitrogen recommendations.

Marylanders can find guidance here: https://extension.umd.edu/…/pre-sidedress-soil-nitrate-test…

Delawareans should look here: http://extension.udel.edu/…/nitrogen-management-for-corn-i…/

 

Reliability of the PSNT

The Pre-Sidedress Nitrate Test has been a trusted tool in the Mid-Atlantic for nearly 30 years. While a lot of things have changed in agriculture over that time, the processes that drive N availability in the soil are still as relevant as they were when the PSNT was first developed.

The study below evaluated the PSNT in fields in Maryland, Pennsylvania and Delaware. Each dot represents a sample. By far, most samples fall in the green areas of the graph, where the PSNT did its job. The blue area shows non-responsive sites- those areas where additional N did not result in a higher yield. The red area shows the few sites where the corn responded to additional N that the PSNT didn’t recommend.

PSNTs are recommended in Maryland and Delaware on corn acres with a history of manure application and/or legume production.

The Mid-Atlantic Nutrient Management Handbook can be found here. Information about the PSNT is on pages 173-174. Please note that nutrient management guidance issued by your state’s department of agriculture or university extension will have the most up to date information as it applies to regulations in your area.

 

 

MD Farmer Jonathan Quinn selected as 2019 4R Advocate

Posted on by 4RMidAtlantic | Posted in 4Rs on the Farm, In the News

It’s no surprise that one who leads a fifth-generation farm might also be an early adopter. Jonathan Quinn was one of the first in the Delmarva region to invest in a yield monitor. He also incorporated the 4Rs before they were so named. It comes naturally. His father was conducting annual soil tests in the 1960s. They still do. Little Bohemia Creek Farms now covers 2,350 acres in the Chesapeake Bay Watershed and includes corn, soybeans, wheat, barley, and spinach, as well as a custom farming business.

Though Maryland law requires nutrient management plans be filed for every acre on the farm, they’re not new to Quinn. He and his crop advisor, Kenny Glenn with Southern States Cooperative in Middletown, Delaware, have used 4R strategies in the plans since the beginning. In fact, they’ve worked together for 20 years to continually improve the farm and community.

“Even when we voluntarily compiled nutrient management plans, we found we didn’t need all the nutrients we were applying,” Quinn says. “We’ve gotten better since.”

In addition to 4R practices, technology helps. GPS, autosteer, the yield monitor, a 16-row, variable-rate planter, 30’ air seeder, and variable-rate sprayer are supplemented by satellite field imagery and soil maps.

Pre-sidedress nitrate tests, tissue samples, and fall nitrate tests help guide in-season nitrogen applications. UAN is variable-rate injected, even in sidedress applications, and Avail phosphorous enhancer and NutrisphereN help ensure they’re available to the crop when needed. Cover crops help retain nutrients through winter.

It pays off. Corn and soybean yields are up five to 10 percent, while nutrient application remains optimal for soil and crop health. If these 4R practices work for the Chesapeake Bay Watershed, they’ll work anywhere.

Best Practice Management
  • Annual grid and soil sampling guide nutrient management plan to focus only on what nutrients are needed.
  • Nutrient management plan determines how much N, P, and K are needed.
  • Pre-sidedress and fall nitrate tests help determine in-season nitrogen applications.
  • Injected UAN reduces volatilization.
  • Variable-rate nutrient application ensures crops get the right amount of nutrients.
  • GPS-precision nutrient applications helps soils that need additional nutrients get the right ones.
  • Variable-rate sprayer delivers the exact amount of product needed.
  • Cover crops retain nutrients.
  • Conservation practices include cover crops, no-till, grassed waterways, riparian buffers, wildlife habitat, an agricultural chemical handling facility, and a manure storage building.

Jonathan was also featured on the Chesapeake Bay Program’s website for his advanced nutrient management practices:

You can read about all of the 2019 4R Advocates at nutrientstewardship.org