There are high levels of residual nitrates in fields this year, because of the drought. Agvise Soil Laboratories Soil Scientist John Breker says this is likely the first time the region’s seen such high amounts of residual nitrates since the 1980s. “The regional averages for soil test nitrates after wheat are coming back 60 to 80 pounds. If you get into Manitoba, there are areas where the averages are more than 100 pounds. Canola follows a similar suit. Even in some of the early corn fields, those are somewhere in the 70 to 80 pounds of residual nitrates,” says Breker. “The drought left a lot of nitrogen around. I think folks will want to take advantage of that for their crop plans for next year, considering fertilizer prices. There’s still plenty of time to soil test this fall.”
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