Importance of Nitrogen in Barley

1555 Words7 Pages
Nitrogen is one of the most important nutrients in growing a barley crop. Excess nitrogen leaching through soil is also a major contributor to groundwater pollution. Many factors and calculations are needed in balancing environmental concerns from excess nitrogen, with the need for enough nitrogen to reach the crop’s highest potential yield. There has been extensive research done to find the correct nitrogen application levels by universities and private organizations. Even with all this research there are still human decisions and differing professional and lab opinions that make this decision complex.
Nitrogen is the foundation for the growth of a crop of barley that will produce a sufficient yield. Applying fertilizer to the crop requires careful and necessary steps that will help determine the amount needed. Therefore step one, when determining nitrogen needs for the next growing year, it is important to find out how much nitrogen is left in the soil from the previous growing year. This process requires a soil sample test, which will give test results showing what type of nutrients are still left in the soil. “Step two, nitrogen is mineralized from the soil and made available for plant growth during the next growing season. The problem is there is no test for this so, in Southern Idaho, farmers use an estimation of around forty-five pounds acre” (Robertson and Stark). Step three, when following crops like sugar beets, potatoes, and onions, which have rapid residue decomposition, farmers do not have to use extra recommendations, for nitrogen, to break down those previous crop’s residue. However, if they have a crop that produces mature grain residue, which has low tissue nitrogen levels, farmers have to appl...

... middle of paper ...

...ptions in trying to figure the exact amount. Even though these problems cause confusion in the scientific studies, farmers still found other options to apply the acceptable amount of nitrogen needed for that crop to grow.

Works Cited
“Barley Nutrition.” www.agric.wa.gov.an. March 2007. Web. 4 December 2013.
Mahler, Robert and Stephen Guy. “Spring Barley.” www.cals.uidaho.edu/edcomm. July 2007.
Web. 22 November 2013.
Mahler, Robert. “Idaho Fertilizer of Spring Barley Guide.” www.cals.uidaho.edu. Web.
August 2007. 5 December 2013.
Robertson, Larry and Jeffery Stark. “Idaho Spring Barley Production Guide.” University of
Idaho. www.cals.idaho.edu/edcomm/. Web. August 2013. 3 December 2013.
Windes, Juliet, Kelly Olsen, and Don Obert. “Barley Production Guidelines.” University of
Idaho. Barley.idaho.gov. Web. December 2013. 2 December 2013.
Show More
Related

  • W.K. Kellogg: Legacy of Cereal

    1279 Words  | 6 Pages

    Web. 13 Sept. 2013. . "Will Keith Kellogg." NNDB. 2013.

    Read More

  • People Affected by the Dust Bowl

    691 Words  | 3 Pages

    PBS, 03 Dec. 2013. Web. 03 Dec. 2013 gbh/americanexperience/features/general-article/dustbowl-drought/> “Welcome to the National Drought Migration Center.” National Drought Migration Center. University of Nebraska, 21 Nov.2013. Web.

    Read More

  • The Consequences of Factory Farms and Animal Product Production

    1308 Words  | 6 Pages

    Web. 25 Oct. 2013. http://www.foodrecoverynetwork.org/about-us/our-work/. "factory farm." Merriam-Webster. Merriam-Webster, n.d.

    Read More

  • Carolina Dining Nutritional Data Summary

    559 Words  | 3 Pages

    [Internet]. United States Department of Agriculture: ChooseMyPlate.gov; [cited 2013 Jan 20]. Available From: http://www.choosemyplate.gov/food-groups/dairy-amount.html [ChooseMyPlate] United States Department of Agriculture: ChooseMyPlate.gov. [date unknown]c. How Many Grain Foods Are Needed Daily? [Internet].

    Read More

  • Effect of Fertilizer on the Wisconsin Fast Plants

    2764 Words  | 12 Pages

    For years farmers have been adding natural fertilizers to their crops. It is a big risk though. Over fertilizing is very dangerous. It puts high concentrations of salt into the soil. It can also affect the water resources nearby.

    Read More

  • The Effect of Nitrogen and Phosphorus Deficiency on Rye Seedling Growth Response

    809 Words  | 4 Pages

    So too much of certain nutrient can have a large affect on the plant (Sims, Pastor, Lee, Dewey 2011). Today, agriculture and the food industry have a huge part in our society’s development, as it has become an essential part of our economy. The soil farmers use to grow their plants contain nutrients to help the plants grow. Since nitrogen is needed in large quantities by the plant, it is most frequently used as fertilizer. The need for nitrogen depends on the plant.

    Read More

  • The Consequences of Factory Farms

    1775 Words  | 8 Pages

    25 Oct. 2013. http://www.foodrecoverynetwork.org/about-us/our-work/. "factory farm." Merriam-Webster. Merriam-Webster, n.d. Web.

    Read More

  • The Plight of Bees

    1687 Words  | 7 Pages

    "Winter Loss Survey 2012 – 2013: Preliminary Results. "Bee Informed Partnership. National Institute of Food and Agriculture, USDA, 2 May 2013. Web.

    Read More

  • The Assets and Liabilities of Farms

    920 Words  | 4 Pages

    The liabilities of a farm are the expense of seed, cost of employees, and the cost incurred for plant care. A farm can be very expensive but it can also be very profitable. A liability of owning a crop farm is the expense of seed. Seed prices can vary depending on the crop that meets the farmer’s needs. Corn has many different types of plant species, from comestible corn to the non-comestible corn.

    Read More

  • Corn Craze: A Review of the Role Corn Plays in Life Today

    1260 Words  | 6 Pages

    The method in which corn is produced may be less than perfect at times, however, corn is subject of interest and will continue to be developed as time goes on. Works Cited Avery, Helen.. "US farmers discover the price of globalization." Euromoney. 01 Sep. 2011 eLibrary. Web.

    Read More

More about Importance of Nitrogen in Barley

Open Document