Page 65 - Winter2010

levels of available calcium), have pure alfalfa Soluble nitrogen makes soils “lazy.” It en-
stands and conventional corn, the estimates for courages grass growth (rather than legumes) and
test result ranges are more accurate because the interferes with calcium uptake in the plant. We
tests and ranges are based on that conventional believe it also has a negative effect on palatabil-
farming system. But with biological farming, the ity, digestibility and animal health, and creates
feed test results are going to be less predictable too many incomplete proteins, an opening for
and those calculations and estimates may be far insect problems in the crop and health issues in
less accurate. livestock.
We have our soil tests performed at Midwest The second option is based on keeping soil
Labs and our tissue and feed tests at Dairyland microbes healthy so they can build humus and
Labs. To get the most accurate mineral results on provide nutrients to the plant. The job of the suc-
forage tests, we use a wet chemistry test, rather cessful biological and organic farmer is to get the
than NIR (Near Infrared Reflectance). We obtain soil mineralized and keep the soil habitat for the
a series of complete tests throughout the growing microbiology as close to optimum as possible so
season being sure to harvest at the proper time to those microbes can build humus and govern the
insure maximum energy palatability and diges- supply of nutrients to the plants. Soil health needs
tion. “air,” water, a healthy “home,” and the proper
Forage tissue testing (including trace miner- food. How do you do this? With proper tillage
als) is very important because it tells you what and soil mineral balance.
nutrients are actually getting into the plant. We Additionally, when soil microbes build hu-
are looking for limiting factors, ratios and health mus, which is the primary determinant of soil
promoting indicators. All this diverse data plus health, large amounts of carbon are sequestered
whole-farm observation gives a much better pic- from the atmosphere back into the soil.
ture of the soil-plant interactions in your forage
production system. THE BIG FOUR
There are four indicator minerals in plant
LIVING, MINERALIZED SOIL tissue testing that tell a large part of the story
Every nutrient has a function both in plants about what’s happening on the land: calcium,
and animals and they all need to be provided, and boron, phosphorus and magnesium. These are
in balanced proportions. The nutrients you put indicator minerals because a complete biological
in a soil affect the nutrient uptake in the plant, system is required to get these four minerals up
which in turn affect digestibility, energy, flavor, to the desired levels.
mineral balance and protein quality of the plants. Grow or buy forages where these four min-
There are two basic choices for providing nu- erals are high in the plant (for that plant species) When soil
trients to plants. One option is the use of soluble and they will be the most palatable, digestible microbes build
N-P-K chemical fertilizer. With this opinion, feeds you can deliver to livestock. Let’s look at
highly soluble chemical fertilizers essentially each individually. humus, which
use soil merely as a medium through which the Calcium is the “trucker” of all minerals, is the primary
soluble nutrients travel to the plant. They may re- meaning it largely governs plant availability of determinant
duce the availability of the soil nutrients, reduce the other minerals. For this reason we consider
clover numbers, and cause soil health to decline it the most important soil nutrient. Among other of soil health,
over time. attributes, calcium affects energy and digestible large amounts
For example, you can grow large quantities energy in plants, and is essential to microbe of carbon are
of nutrient-deficient feed with the use of soluble health. There is also a strong correlation between
chemical nitrogen and potassium. Although it plant calcium levels, legume growth, soil health, sequestered
looks like you’ve grown a lot of feed, mineral reduced weed pressure and quality forage. from the
uptake, balance and energy can certainly be A vital baseline to biological farming is atmosphere
short. You’ll need to feed more of this lower provision of enough soluble calcium to the plant.
quality forage and add livestock supplements to For calcium to be high, you will need adequate back into the
maintain production levels. soil levels of actively exchangeable plant soluble soil.

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