Spring Residue Management: Turn Last Year’s Field Trash into This Year’s Profits
While many growers consider fall the window for post-harvest crop residue management, with the help of a biodigester they still have plenty of time in the late winter and early spring to deal with last year’s post-harvest trash, says Alex Cochran, Chief Technology Officer for DPH Biologicals, an Illinois-based biologicals manufacturer.
Biodigesters like DPH Bio’s TerraTroveTM Residuce® Complete are specifically formulated to rapidly break down post-harvest crop residue. Residuce combines fulvic acids and eight proprietary microbes known to break down dead and decaying matter, including bulky crop residue like corn stover.
With faster residue decomposition, not only do growers facilitate ready-to-plant seed beds they tap into nutrient release to support this year’s crop during key growth stages. And, because the live microbes in Residuce become more active with warming temperatures and wet weather, early spring applications are a perfect time to maximize its benefits, Cochran says. |
“Our field tests have shown that the ‘trash to treasure’ benefits of speeding up residue decomposition with the help of a biodigester are still very much within reach to growers in late winter and early spring,” Cochran said. “In fact, for growers that experience a lot of winter wind erosion or extremely low temperatures, we recommend an early spring versus fall application.”
A 2023 Residuce trial looking at three Illinois corn fields spring pre-plant Residuce applications averaged a 12.9 bushel per acre yield bump over the control plots. In all three tests, Residuce was applied in April and no additional fertility was added. Additionally, soil tests at the V5 leaf stage showed increased potassium, phosphorous and organic matter. Two of the fields were back-to-back corn plantings, one was previously in soybeans.
Adding Nutrient Value with Residuce
With faster residue breakdown comes increased nutrient value. Using a biodigester like Residuce helps captures the carbon and nutrients tied up in harvest residue that would otherwise be volatilized in traditional plowing and tillage methods or would take too long to release to be valuable to crop growth when needed, Cochran said.
That’s especially important in high-yield situations where not only are growers already experiencing a significant increase in crop trash from high yields, but cultivars have been bred for improved stalk standability, leading to higher resistance to degradation. On the other hand, the positive side of ubiquitous amounts of stover is the potential nutrients. A 200-bushel corn yield contains a potential 100 lbs of nitrogen, 50 lbs of phosphorus and 210 lbs of potassium.
A 2023 DPH Biologicals trial of Residuce in an Illinois no-till corn field resulted in nearly 20% increased residue degradation rate with a pay-off of an increased 19.7 lbs of N, 9.85 units of P and 41.37 units of K within planting time. Those additional nutrients were worth more than $50 an acre in market input prices, returning a three-to-one ROI. |
Additionally, the nutrient release that was jump-started with the Residuce application continued all season long, supplying key nutrients when the crop needed it to optimize growth and maximize yield potential.
Improved No-Till Crop Emergence with Residuce
Residuce also directly benefits another key metric of crop yield – early, strong crop emergence, Cochran said.
One of the biggest headaches from crop residue is impeded seed placement and cool soils,
resulting in uneven, delayed crop stands, especially in no-till or reduced tillage practices. But speeding up the residue degradation process can directly improve planting conditions leading to much improved early seedling emergence.
A 2023 DPH Bio corn study found an average of 900 additional plants per acre and a 12.9-bu yield increase at harvest following a Residuce application.
Use Residuce Mid-Season for Additional Benefits
Even after the spring planting is over, there is a mid-season opportunity to add value with biodigesters for those growers looking at double cropping their fields, Cochran said.
With changing climate conditions extending the growing season, many growers are considering double-crop rotations combining earlier-maturing wheat and soybean cultivars. But high grain yields plus a short planting window between crops often derail successful soybean establishment. Using Residuce between double plantings helps break down wheat stubble setting the stage for rapid emergence and helps improve nutrient release for a successful, late season soybean succession.
About TerraTrove Residuce
The Residuce platform includes Residue WS, a dry product designed for the organic acre, and Residue Complete, a liquid formulation built with an industry-leading microbial delivery platform. Both have a long shelf-life, are compatible with most other inputs and are easily mixed for liquid application. Residuce WS is OMRI listed.
For more information on using biodigesters in residue management, watch the recent DPH Bio-sponsored CropLife webinar about residue management hosted jointly with the UIUC Crop Physiology Lab. Or download “Rethinking Crop Residue Management,” a white paper published by DPH Bio. |
To order Residuce, or additional information on DPH Bio’s science-led biofertility and biocontrol products, visit www.dphbio.com or call 1-800-648-7626.