El2-Corn Talk, Lancaster Farming, Saturday, October 19, 2002 New Starter Formulation Shows Promise UNIVERSITY PARK (Centre Co.) In Penn State studies, ammonium sulfate continues to perform as well or better than conventional starters, offering growers an alternative to high-phosphate formulations. “There are environmental concerns about applying phos phate fertilizer to soils that al ready have high levels,” said Doug Beegle, Penn State agronomist. “By switching to ammonium sulfate, growers can give corn an early-season boost without adding more phosphate to the soil.” Low-phosphate blends made with ammonium sulfate also cost less than high-phos phate formulations, noted Penn State agronomist Greg Roth. Every 100 pounds of ammonium sulfate supplies 21 pounds of nitrogen and 24 pounds of sulfur. In 2000, Roth included am monium sulfate in com starter trails in Hershey and Rockspring. The soil type was a Hagerstown silt loam, which has tra ditionally been con sidered non-respon sive to sulfur. “Ammonium sulfate improved early-sea son com growth in both locations,” said Roth. “At Rock sping, ammonium sulfate also in creased yields by 12 bushels per acre.” In a separate trial, also in 2000, Beegle worked with county agents to establish on-farm trials com paring traditional starters to ammoni um sulfate. On high P-testing soils, am monium sulfate was as good or better than complete NPK blends, Beegle re ported. Continuing the study in 2001, Bee gle and Roth com pared ammonium sulfate to a 10-301- formulation in start er applications on high-phosphate soils. Averaged over 21 sites, ammonium sulfate and 10-30-10 had a similar effect on early-season growth. Yield was taken from 19 sites and, again, ammoni um. sulfate and 10-30-10 produced similar results. “Both of the start er treatments pro duced significant yield increases on six out of 19 sites,” said Roth. “At three of the six sites, yields were significantly higher with ammo nium sulfate versus the 10-30-10 start- Com seedlings still need phosphorus, said Beegle. But with ammonium -sulfate in the starter, com seedlings can get the ?2 O 5 they need from the soil instead of from extra fer tilizer. “Sometimes when seedlings are in cold soil, the roots grow so slowly that they can’t reach residual phosphate,” Beegle said. “By putting nitrogen in corn starter, you’re stimulat ing root growth so that roots can reach residual P 2 0$ easi er and faster.” In addition, the ammonium form of nitrogen enhances root uptake of phosphorus. 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Syngenta Crop Protection and Syngenta Seeds sponsored the recruitment program along with NCGA. PCGA has 292 members in Pennsylvania. NCGA is a national organiza tion founded in 1957 and represents more than 31,000 dues-paying com growers from 48 states. e®iN fAM mm INTRODUCING THE WHITE 8000 SERIES PUNTERS VbuVe done your research, prepared your field, and picked the perfect seed variety. Now plant that perfect row, with the 8000 Series planter from White With 49 models to match your needs, they’re packed with features that save time aid plant 4 to 31 rows of com or soybeans with unmatched precision. The 8000 Series features an improved seed meter design for outstanding accuracy with a wider variety of seed sizes. And standard walking beam gauge wheels along with increased planting depth range of 'h inch to 4 inches give superior depth control over larger surface irregularities. Select models feature “on-the-go" seed rate adjustment from your tractor cab. 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