Manage Fertilizers on the Farm Economically and Safely with OSU Extension Workshop
WAUSEON, Ohio – Economics and environmental stewardship are driving farmers to pay more attention to how they manage fertilizers in their crop fields. Getting the most out of those applications while keeping the environment healthy is the focus of an Ohio State University Extension workshop is being offered in March.
“Agriculture’s Role in Increased Phosphorus Levels in Lake Erie” will be held March 11 from 9 a.m. until 12:15 p.m. at the Robert Fulton Ag Center, 8770 State Route 108, Wauseon, Ohio. Registration is $15 per person.
“The price of fertilizers reached record levels in 2009. These changing economics have made the desire to keep fertilizer nutrients on the land for use by crops stronger than ever,” said Greg LaBarge, an OSU Extension educator. “There are also renewed environmental concerns about algae blooms in Lake Erie that have been tied to rising dissolved phosphorous levels.”
Economic and environmental questions of phosphorous utilization as it relates to agriculture will be discussed during the program. The program will cover such topics as changing agricultural trends, water quality data, the availability of soil phosphorous and soil testing, application recommendations, and best management practices.
Speakers include Kevin Elder, executive director of Ohio Department of Agriculture’s Livestock Environmental Permitting Program; David Baker, director emeritus of the National Center for Water Quality Research at Heidelberg University; Elizabeth Dayton, research scientist for OSU’s School of Environment and Natural Resources; and Robert Mullen, OSU Extension fertility specialist.
Registration deadline is March 8. For more information, call 419-337-9210 or log on to http://fulton.osu.edu/events/agricultures-role-in-increased-phosphorous-levels-in-lake-erie. Certified crop advisers can receive two water quality credits and one nutrient management credit for attending this workshop.
Editor’s Note: This article was provided as a news release by the Communications and Technology unit of Ohio State University's College of Food, Agricultural, and Environmental Sciences.