Fertilizers and Soils
Nutrients Plants Require for Growth
Plants require 17 essential elements for growth: carbon, hydrogen, oxygen, nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium, sulfur, calcium, magnesium, boron, chlorine, copper, iron, manganese, molybdenum, nickel,...
Discusses the relative strengths of broadcasting, banding, and pop-up fertilizer applications, especially with respect to protecting water quality and maximizing yields. Also discusses placement of...
Dairy Compost Production and Use in Idaho: The Composting Process
This publication explains what composting is, how it occurs, and how various factors affect it. First in a series on composting dairy wastes in Idaho and using dairy compost on the farm. Authors:...
Understanding Factors Controlling Ammonia Volatilization from Fertilizer Nitrogen Applications
Nitrogen is the soil nutrient needed in the largest quantity by plants. Because most plants cannot make or 'fix' nitrogen on their own, it must be applied as fertilizer, most often in the forms of...
Landscaping and Utilities: Problems, Prevention, and Plant Selection
Without careful planning and plant selection prior to planting, trees and shrubs can become a nuisance and a dangerous and costly problem for homeowners and businesses. This publication has...
Southern Idaho Dryland Winter Wheat Production Guide
Wheat is an important crop throughout Idaho, especially in the dryland cropping areas of southern Idaho. However, the region’s rolling landscape with high- wind and water-erosion potential plus...
Cover Crops for High-Desert Farming Systems in Idaho
This guide presents optimal cover crops for high-desert farming systems in the intermountain West under irrigated or low-moisture conditions. Species included were selected for cold hardiness,...
Compost: Production, Quality, and Use in Commercial Agriculture
The livestock industry produces large quantities of manure that must be disposed of in a way that prevents contamination of water resources. Composting is an efficient way to deal with manure,...
Nitrogen fertilizer applications in areas of intensive agricultural production of Idaho can result in loss of nitrogen by ammonia volatilization. However, effective use of best management practices...
Nutrient Management for Field Corn Silage and Grain
Adequate nutrition is essential if productive new corn hybrids are to realize their full yield potential. This publication provides fertilizer guidelines based on university research and a special...
Idaho Forage Handbook (third edition)
This comprehensive information source for anyone who grows forage in Idaho or neighboring states covers topics from species and variety selection to pest control to harvest management, hay storage,...
Mitigating High-Phosphorus Soils
According to Idaho law, livestock operators must make sure their operations are not dumping excess phosphorus into the soil, which could then contaminate surface water or groundwater. This...
Soil and the Environment: A Land and Homesite Evaluation Handbook and Training Guide
$4.00 Land and homesite evaluation allows individuals to make wise soil and land management decisions as well as conserve Idaho's most valuable natural resource: soil. The official guide for...
Nutrient Management Guidelines for Russet Burbank Potatoes
Efficient potato nutrient management systems are designed to ensure that all essential plant nutrients are available in appropriate amounts and at the most beneficial time to provide for optimal...
This publication covers factors affecting crop response to boron, boron deficiency symptoms, soil analysis, plant tissue sampling, detection of boron problems, boron fertilizer, application...
Sampling Dairy Manure and Compost for Nutrient Analysis
Testing the nutrient content of dairy manure or compost reveals nutrient value and determines the application rate, but it must be done correctly. This six-page guide shows you how to conduct a...
Pasture Principles for Smaller Acreages
Ranchettes and small farms are cropping up in rural landscapes across Idaho, spurring demand for information on pasture management. This updated publication addresses the most common concerns...
The Quality Water for Idaho series discusses ways farmers and homeowners can ensure the present and future safety of ground and surface waters in Idaho. Authors: Robert L. Mahler, B.A. Lolley, and...
Cull and Waste Potato Management
Potatoes that are unusable for fresh market, processing, or dehydration because they do not meet minimum size, grade, or quality standards, or potatoes disposed because of low market value due to...
Improving Nitrogen-Use Efficiency in Idaho Crop Production
This publication summarizes the most current applied scientific information on practices and methodologies available to growers for improving nitrogen-use efficiency. Topics include leaching and...
Soil Testing to Guide Fertilizer Management
Regularly testing your soil will allow you to accurately spot problem areas and thus provide sustainable soil nutrient management. This updated version of a 1997 bulletin provides the basic...
Nitrogen Management for Hard Wheat Protein Enhancement
With a focus on irrigated wheat in the Pacific Northwest, this bulletin discusses the many factors that govern wheat protein. It draws from regional research that addresses the nitrogen management...
Nutrient Management in Idaho Grape Production
This publication answers common questions posed by Idaho vine grape growers regarding soils and nutrients. Authors: Mir-M. Seyedbagheri, Tony McCammon, Esmaeil Fallahi 5 pages
Dairy Manure Field Applications: How Much is Too Much?
Dairy manure can increase crop yields and improve soil. However, manure can also cause an excess of certain nutrients, which can damage waterways and crops. This publication presents background...
This publication profiles zinc, an essential plant micronutrient. Along with identifying soil-deficient areas in Idaho, this classic Extension publication discusses deficiency symptoms in plants,...
This publication covers molybdenum availability in soil, crop responses, molybdenum deficiency symptoms, molybdenum fertilizer, application methods, residual effects, soil analysis, and plant...
Fertilizer Primer: Terminology, Calculations, and Application
Essential for anyone trying to make sense of the often confusing terminology surrounding fertilizers, this publication defines fertilizer terminology, describes the various forms of commercial...
Northern Idaho Fertilizer Guide: Spring Barley
This publication offers fertilizer guidelines based on relationships between soil tests and yield responses for spring barley. The fertilizer rates are designed to produce above-average yields. It...
Cultural Management of Clearwater Russet Potatoes
The Clearwater Russet is a russet-skinned potato variety developed by the Pacific Northwest Variety Development Program that was released in 2008. Its excellent processing quality helped to...
Nitrogen Management in Field Crops with Reference Strips and Crop Sensors
Learn how crop sensors and reference strips work and how to use them to fine-tune nitrogen (N) fertilizer applications to cut costs and increase revenues and yields. The techniques can be used in...
Controlling Iron Deficiency in Plants in Idaho
One of the most common problems for Idaho growers, landscapers, and home gardeners is plant iron deficiency, or chlorosis. Leaves turn yellow while the veins remain green. This publication...
Saving Energy and Fertilizer Costs: Best Management Practices for Southern Idaho Grain Producers
Rising energy costs mean harder choices for grain growers with each passing season. This publication describes the ways southern Idaho grain producers can streamline production practices to gain...
Estimating the Efficiency and Cost of an On-Farm Centrifuge Separator
Cows generate huge amounts of manure annually on Idaho farms, organic waste that demands effective management. Centrifuges offer a more efficient system, though many state producers rely on others,...
Exploring Organic Grain and Forage Production as a Profitable Enterprise for Palouse Farmers
Demand for organic grain has outpaced actual US grain production in recent years. Yet little is known about organic grain production in the Palouse, likely because it comprises a small portion of...
This two-page fact sheet offers recommendations for growing dry beans in southern Idaho, with pointers on soil sampling and testing, fertilization, irrigation, and insect, weed and disease control.
Nitrogen Management in Field Crops with Reference Strips and Crop Sensors
Learn how crop sensors and reference strips work and how to use them to fine-tune nitrogen (N) fertilizer applications to cut costs and increase revenues and yields. The techniques can be used in...
Irrigation and Nitrogen Fertilization Affect End-Use Quality of Spring Wheat of Three Market Classes
Water and nitrogen are key ingredients in successful cropping systems, particularly in the challenging climates of the semiarid and arid regions of the western United States. This publication...
Idaho Environmental/Nutrient Management Program (E/NMP) Basics
Nutrient management is not a game. It verifies the health of your livestock operation and thus requires a documented plan (called an Environmental/Nutrient Management Program), assembled by a...
Soil-Testing Procedures for Southern Idaho Soils
Crops require seventeen nutrients to thrive. To make sure your soil is providing them, soil sampling and testing are critical. This bulletin provides a brief overview of both by discussing how...
Potential of Silicon Amendment for Improved Wheat Production
Balanced mineral nutrition is essential to grow wheat successfully. Silicon (which helps to form silicate minerals) is the second most plentiful element on Earth, but its effect on plant growth and...
Should Producers Test Solid Dairy Manure and Dairy Manure Compost Before Land Application?
Idaho’s dairy industry generates substantial amounts of manure each year. Consequently, the state is a prolific producer of natural and nutrient-rich fertilizer. University of Idaho researchers...
The Quality Water for Idaho series discusses ways farmers and homeowners can ensure the present and future safety of ground and surface waters in Idaho. Authors: Robert L. Mahler, B.A. Lolley, and...
Manure and Wastewater Sampling
A review of samples from 42 dairies in Idaho showed that nitrogen (N) and phosphorous (P) in wastewater lagoons vary greatly between farms and from year to year. So manure should be tested as close...
Dairy Compost Production and Use in Idaho: On-Farm Composting Management
This publication describes composting management practices starting from compost material preparation and ending with the evaluation of the finished product. Authors: Lide Chen and Mario deHaro...
With the continuing pH decline of agricultural soils in northern Idaho, growers need to consider applying soil amendments to increase soil pH. This publication provides information about materials...
Date, Rate, and Place: The Field Book for Dairy Manure Applicators
This publication provides recording keeping sheets and examples for manure applications on dairy farms. Examples are provided for a number of different manure handling systems. Authors: Andy Bary,...
Focuses on how biosolids can be used to supply nutrients to crops. Describes the nutrient content and fertilizer replacement value of biosolids and the relationship between biosolids nutrient...
Worksheet for Calculating Biosolids Application Rates in Agriculture
Biosolids are a byproduct of municipal wastewater treatment. Raw sewage solids must be processed to meet U.S. Environmental Protection Agency standards before they can be called biosolids. This...
Nitrogen Uptake and Utilization by Pacific Northwest Field Crops
This publication is geared to promoting an understanding of the timing and pattern of biomass accumulation and nitrogen (N) uptake for crops in the Pacific Northwest. Proper use of N-based...
Fertilizing with Manure and Other Organic Amendments
Description: Are you thinking about using manure to fertilize your farm but want more information? Properly managed manure applications recycle nutrients to crops, improve soil quality, and protect...
Monitoring Soil Nutrients Using a Management Unit Approach
This publication focuses on how to design a soil nutrient monitoring strategy using management units or zones for soil testing and nutrient application. The management unit approach is designed to...
Acidifying Soil for Crop Production: Inland Pacific Northwest
Explains the relationship between high soil pH and nutrient deficiencies in crop plants. Color photos illustrate symptoms of pH-induced nutrient deficiency. Authors: Donald Horneck, Donald Wysocki,...
Estimating Plant-Available Nitrogen Release from Cover Crops
A key benefit of cover crops is their ability to supply plant-available nitrogen (PAN) for the following crop. This publication is based on cover crop research done in the Willamette Valley of...
Advances in Dryland Farming in the Inland Pacific Northwest (REACCH Handbook)
$0.00 (Just pay shipping & handling) Farmers make tough decisions all the time—it comes with the territory. When that territory includes the dryland region of the inland Pacific Northwest,...
Biosolids in Dryland Cropping Systems
This publication reviews the long term benefits of municipal biosolids applications on soil health in dryland cereal and pasture cropping systems east of the Cascades. Biosolids were an especially...
Dairy Manure Applications in Irrigated Wheat Production Systems
Discover best management practices for irrigated wheat production systems receiving dairy manure applications. Recommendations are based on field research conducted in southern Idaho. Grain protein...
Between 2015 and 2017, a grower survey was conducted to gather data on the demographic trends underlying the use and nonuse of high-tech devices and procedures on farms. Targeted were a small but...
Northern Idaho Fertilizer Guide: Legume and Legume-Grass Pastures
This publication offers fertilizer guidelines based on relationships between soil tests and yield responses. Information is offered for established non-irrigated legumes and legume-grass mixtures,...
2016 Dryland Field Day Abstracts
This publication is a compilation of the 2016 abstracts from dryland field days for Washington State University Extension, University of Idaho Extension, and Oregon State University Extension.
Estimating Water Requirements of Hard Red Spring Wheat for Final Irrigations
This publication teaches how to use the soil 'feel and appearance method' and information on crop stage and soil type to determine whether and how much to irrigate. Authors: Roger Ashley, Larry...
This publication summarizes research on the chemistry and movement of agricultural phosphorus in southern Idaho, where calcareous soils and a large supply of dairy manure create a unique situation...
Agronomics of Leasing Fields for Potato Production
Leasing or renting fields for potato production may make it easier for growers to either start an agricultural career or expand one, but be forewarned: gather as much background information as you...