Nutrient budgets are comparisons of nutrients applied to the

soil Soil, also commonly referred to as earth or dirt Dirt is an unclean matter, especially when in contact with a person's clothes, skin, or possessions. In such cases, they are said to become dirty. Common types of dirt include: * Debri ...

to those taken up by crops. A nutrient budget takes into account all the nutrient inputs on a farm and all those removed from the land. The most obvious source of nutrients in this situation is

fertilizer A fertilizer (American English) or fertiliser (British English; see spelling differences) is any material of natural or synthetic origin that is applied to soil or to plant tissues to supply plant nutrients. Fertilizers may be distinct from ...

, but this is only part of the picture. Other inputs come with rainfall, in supplements brought on to the farm and in effluent – either farm or dairy factory – spread on the land. In addition, nutrients can be moved around the farm – from an area used for growing

silage Silage () is a type of fodder made from green foliage crops which have been preserved by fermentation to the point of acidification. It can be fed to cattle, sheep and other such ruminants (cud-chewing animals). The fermentation and storage ...

to the area used to feed it out, from

paddock A paddock is a small enclosure for horses. In the United Kingdom, this term also applies to a field for a general automobile racing competition, particularly Formula 1. Description In Canada and the United States of America, a paddock is a small ...

to raceway, and within paddocks in dung and urine patches. Nutrients are removed from the farm in stock sold on, products (meat, milk, wool), crops sold or fed out off farm, and through processes such as nitrate leaching, volatilization and phosphate run-off etc.

Importance

An accurate nutrient budget is an important tool to provide an early indication of potential problems arising from (i) a nutrient surplus (inputs>outputs), leading to an accumulation of nutrients and increased risk of loss or (ii) a deficit (outputs>inputs), depleting nutrient reserves and increasing the risk of deficiencies and reduced crop yields. They also provide regulatory authorities with a readily-determined, comparative indicator of environmental impact. Overall, nutrient budgets help ensure that farming practices are conducted in an efficient, economic, and environmentally sustainable manner.

Assumptions

A nutrient budget isn't as exact as a financial statement. An assortment of variables affects each tract of land. For example, some areas may have had too much manure applied over time or it may have been unevenly distributed, and previous

flooding A flood is an overflow of water ( or rarely other fluids) that submerges land that is usually dry. In the sense of "flowing water", the word may also be applied to the inflow of the tide. Floods are an area of study of the discipline hydrolog ...

could affect results. Limits and assumptions should be incorporated when compiling a budget including the average nutrient removal coefficient values if they are not specific to a certain field. ;

Soil test Soil test may refer to one or more of a wide variety of soil analysis conducted for one of several possible reasons. Possibly the most widely conducted soil tests are those done to estimate the plant-available concentrations of plant nutrients, i ...

: This component is complementary to the budget and lets you know what nutrients are already available to crops and helps you plan input purchases. It is a critical best management practice (BMP) in the 4R strategy.The Global '4R' Nutrient Stewardship Framework
/ref> ;Yield history: By examining the historical yields of crops take from specific fields, you can calculate nutrient removal over time. Yield history may also help better predict the amount of uptake that will occur with similar crops planted in the future. ;Previous applications: Knowing what's been applied to the field in years past will offer insight into what may already be in the ground or what nutrients may no longer be present. ;Water: Consider what kind of water has been applied to the field. Does

irrigation Irrigation (also referred to as watering) is the practice of applying controlled amounts of water to land to help grow crops, landscape plants, and lawns. Irrigation has been a key aspect of agriculture for over 5,000 years and has been devel ...

water contain dissolved nutrients such as nitrogen (N), sulfur (S), or chloride (Cl)? If so, it should be counted as input. ;What's around you?: Consider water sources that could run into your field. Is there a manufacturing facility nearby? What makes up these water sources can impact how you plant.

References

{{Plant nutrition Agriculture Agricultural soil science Sustainable agriculture

Importance

Assumptions

See also

References