Chester, Maryland (September 4, 2024) – The Mid-Atlantic 4R Nutrient Stewardship Association will be holding their 2024 4R Symposium at the Maryland Department of Agriculture on September 12th. With a great line-up speakers, wonderful sponsors, and delicious food, don’t miss out on this free event.
The day will begin with two research presentations followed by a Mission BBQ lunch. Then attendees will enjoy a farmer panel representing farmers from Delaware, Maryland, and Pennsylvania. And the event will end with two more research presentations.
Doors will open at 9:00 AM with the first presentations at 10:00 AM. The day will conclude by 2:45 PM. Credits for attendees will be available as follows:
Maryland Nutrient Management – 4 Credits
Pennsylvania Nutrient Management – 3.5 Credits
Delaware Nutrient Management – 3.75 Credits
Virginia Nutrient Management – 5 Credits
Certified Crop Advisers:
1.5 – Nutrient Management
0.5 – Crop Management
0.5 -Professional Development
0.5 – Precision Agriculture
Thank you to your 2024 event sponsors, we couldn’t have a free event without their support!
Elkton, Maryland (September 29, 2023) – The Mid-Atlantic 4R Nutrient Stewardship Association held it’s first-ever 4R Symposium on August 31st at Cecil Community College in partnership with the Delaware Maryland 4R Alliance and Pennsylvania 4R Alliances. The symposium featured four great presentations showcasing fertilizer efficiency and 4R research (Right Source, Rate, Time, and Placement of fertilizer applications).
Dr. Tom Bruulsema, Chief Scientists with Plant Nutrition Canada drove 10 hours to join the first-ever 4R Symposium to present on “Nitrogen Use Efficiency in Responsible Plant Nutrition.” Responsible plant nutrition includes five aims and six actions. Nitrogen use efficiency (NUE) is one of a number of sustainability indicators. NUE can be impacted by conservation practices and crop management. Farmers most typically recognize the partial factor productivity (PFP) from which is yield divided by fertilizer. The typical value of PFP in corn is 40 to 80 lbs/lb. It has been proven that when you improve NUE, you are applying less Nitrogen, so the upstream cost is reduced and impact of potential loss is reduced. Check off Dr. Bruulsema’s full presentation online here.
Eric Rosenbaum, Co-Executive Director of Pennsylvania 4R Alliance presented Split Nitrogen Results from 2021 and 2022, funded by the Mid-Atlantic 4R Nutrient Stewardship Association with Chesapeake Bay Stewardship Funds awarded by the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation Innovative Nutrient and Sediment Reduction grants. Farmers in the Chesapeake Bay Watershed added a split of nitrogen to their management practices using cost-share. In theory the same total pounds of nitrogen were applied across each field, but a control strip was implemented and one additional application was made to the majority of the field. In 2021, through 26 farms and 3,595 acres Pennsylvania averaged 17.6 bu/A yield increase which equated to a $88 per acre return on investment, while Maryland averaged a 19.2 bu/A yield increase which equated to $96 per acre return on investment. In 2022, there were 21 farms with 4,213 acres enrolled. Pennsylvania saw a 13 bu/A increase and Delaware/Maryland saw a 4.3 bu/A increase. With two years of on-farm trials, we have seen a revenue increase with a decrease in fertilizer cost, increase in nitrogen use efficiency and phosphorus removal. This cost-share was available in 2023 and results were forthcoming. There is funding available for the 2024 corn crop season if you are interested please contact our team. In depth information can be found online here.
Dr. Nicole Fiorellino, the Assistant Professor and Extension Agronomist for the University of Maryland covered “Utilizing On-Farm Trials to Evaluate 4R Practices and Beyond.” An on-farm trial is any kind of research that is executed on a private farm or in partnership with a farmer. This differs from a research education center by having farmer involvement, utilizing farmer equipment creating commercial sized plots and requiring fewer treatments. In theory this allows for more variability, timing challenges, as well as a greater likelihood of lost data; however, this can also provide more realistic data for farmers. For 2023, the Maryland Grain Producers Utilization Board funded an on-farm trials coordinator jump-start the Maryland on-farm trials program. The goal is to gather data across Maryland’s geographical region, produce data more rapidly to answer producer questions, and test claims of commercially-available products. Another value to these trials is to allow farmers first hand to see results and possibly make management decisions changes. In relation to 4R practices, farmers are able to be involved or network with farmers involved as most research generally supports the benefits of 4R practices. Learn more about University of Maryland’s on-farm trials work here. The full presentation is available here.
To wrap-up the day. Dr. Leanna Nigon, Director of Agronomy and Research with The Fertilizer Institute joined us to talk about “Integrated Enhanced Efficiency Fertilizers into 4R Practices.” The goal of 4R Nutrient Stewardship is to improve the environmental, economic, and social outcomes, which ties into Enhanced Efficiency Fertilizers (EEFs). EEFs are fertilizer sources that are targeted at making nutrients available at the right time, when the crop needs them. They are used to slow or control the release of Nitrogen from day to weeks or months or used to slow down the conversion to nitrate from days to weeks. The benefits include reducing nitrogen loss, improving nitrogen use efficiency, regulating the nitrogen supply in the soil, improving crop health, while increasing production, profitability, and being environmentally sound. You can view the full PowerPoint presentation online here.
Thank you to all those who came for the first-ever symposium and to all of our sponsors. The 4R partnership was honored to have high quality presentations in the Chesapeake Bay Watershed as we continue to ensure that every nutrient application is consistent with the 4Rs – the right source, applied at the right rate, at the right time, in the right place. All with the focus on increasing implementation to benefit the economic, environmental, and social well-being of our region and our farmers.
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Thank you to our 2023 Symposium Sponsors!
Decision Ag Solutions
Growmark FS
Harry R. Hughes Center for Agro-Ecology
Horizon Farm Credit
Keith Campbell Foundaton
King Crop Insurance
MARBIDCO
Maryland Department of Agriculture
Nagel Crop Insurance
Pivot Bio
Timac Agro
Windsor Group LLC
Major Funding Provided By:
Corteva Agriscience
Environmental Tillage Systems
Mosaic
National Fish and Wildlife Foundation – Chesapeake Bay Stewardship Fund
Queenstown, MD (August 7, 2023) – As regional affiliates of the Mid-Atlantic 4R Nutrient Stewardship Association, the Delaware Maryland 4R Alliance and Pennsylvania 4R Alliance will be co-hosting the first-ever 4R Symposium. Join our teams for free on August 31st at Cecil College in North East, MD for 4R farming presentations.
Invited Presenters and Topics:
Dr. Tom Bruulsema with Plant Nutrition Canada – Nitrogen Use Efficiency in Responsible Plant Nutrition
Eric Rosenbaum with Rosetree Consulting – Splitting your Nitrogen Fertilizer – what the yield results tell us
Peyton Harper with The Fertilizer Institute – 4R Program Offerings and Resources
Dr. Nicole Fiorellino with the University of Maryland – On-Farm Trials
Dr. Leanna Nigon with The Fertilizer Institute – Realizing Economic and Environmental Outcomes with the 4Rs
Save your seat and reserve a free lunch by RSVPing online here. Nutrient Management and Certified Crop Adviser credits will be available for Delaware, Maryland, and Pennsylvania.
The Mid-Atlantic 4R Nutrient Stewardship Association works to provide education to farmers on the economic and environmental benefits of implementing 4R nutrient stewardship practices while communicating to non-agricultural audiences by documenting on farm 4R successes and environmental outcomes.
If you are interested in sponsoring our event, please contact our team at thompsonagconsulting@gmail.com for a sponsorship packet to see all that we have to offer.
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The Delaware Maryland 4R Alliance is a collaboration between agribusinesses, farmers, government agencies, conservation groups, and scientists working to ensure that every nutrient application on Delaware and Maryland farms is consistent with the 4Rs. Learn more about DEMD 4R’s work here.
The Pennsylvania 4R Alliance collectively works with farmers to deliver science-based systems that improve crop productivity through increased nutrient use efficiency and reduce losses of nutrients to the environment. Learn more about PA 4R’s work here.
Queenstown, Maryland (January 26, 2023) – Cost-share is available to farmers interested in adding an additional split to their nitrogen application on their 2023 corn crop. The Mid-Atlantic 4R Nutrient Stewardship Association and their agribusiness partners will work directly with producers in the Chesapeake Bay Watershed for the third and final year of this grant opportunity. Farmers who apply an additional split of nitrogen, and leave a control strip with the same total poundage will be eligible for a $15 an acre incentive payment.
Farmers are eligible to enroll 40 acres or 400 acres, as long as a control strip is available in each field. The 4R Alliance requires past crop and yield data as well as 2023 corn yield checks to analyze and compare results. Data collected over the three-year grant will be compiled for a published case study.
In 2021, five Maryland farms participated and had an average yield increase of 19.2 bushels per acre where they use an additional split to their nitrogen applications versus all of it upfront. Of the 11 participating farms in Pennsylvania, farmers saw an average yield increase of 17.6 bushels per acre and a 12 percent increase in nitrogen use efficiency. Check out more results here.
To enroll today and to learn more please contact our team! Eric Rosenbaum for Pennsylvania at 484-788-7263 or by emailing ericrosenbaum@rosetreeconsulting.com. For Delaware and Maryland contact Jenell Eck McHenry at 443-262-6969 or by emailing jenell.mdag@gmail.com. Sign-up is encouraged to be submitted by April 1st.
Funding is provided by the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation Chesapeake Bay Stewardship Fund. The Mid-Atlantic 4R Nutrient Stewardship Alliance was awarded a three-year grant for education, training, and cost-share to increase the implementation of 4R Nutrient Stewardship practices. Learn more about our work online at 4rmidatlantic.com.
