Pay close attention to maize crop nutrition to reap rewards at harvest

However, you need to ensure crops receive adequate nutrition throughout the growing season for them to reach their full potential.

High winter rainfall has led to increased nutrient leaching from soils, which needs to be taken into consideration when planning nutrient inputs throughout the maize growing season to compensate for these loses.

For many, the results from soil analysis, in conjunction with records of FYM and slurry applications, will have been used to decide the amount of additional seed-bed nitrogen and potash required. In addition to this, starter fertiliser such as DAP or micro-granular fertilisers such as Primary-P will be placed at drilling.

For maize crops, 30 per cent of the total nitrogen requirements of the plant occur after tasseling, which is why additional nitrogen applications in July can pay dividends.

This season in particular, you need to plan ahead for these later applications to ensure the right amount of nitrogen is available to the plant at the right stage of growth. By the time the plant begins to tassel in July, there is little remaining of the nitrogen applied at drilling in April or early May.

An application of protected urea from a product such as N-Durance 28, sprayed onto the crop just before tasselling using a high clearance self-propelled machine, will supply the nitrogen required to fuel the crop through the critical cob-fill period.

Dr Simon Pope, Wynnstay crop protection manager