What Did We Learn From The 2019 Ag Production Year And Lake Erie HABS? - Greg LaBarge, OSU Extension, from the 2020 Conservation Tillage and Technology Conference, held March 3-4, 2020, Ada, OH, USA.

1. Trends in Fertilizer Use
and other Ag Practices
with detail on 2019
Greg LaBarge
Field Specialist, Agronomic Crops

2. • Lessons on the Lake in 2011/2012 & 2015/2016
large to small bloom identified P input
• What can we learn about Ag contributions from
2019?
– Nutrient application
– With 2019 data can we go back to other years and
parse out relationships
– Rainfall impacts, more directly hydrology impacts
– Better understanding of background, agriculture,
other non-point sources
• 10 - 2.7 - 4.3 = 3.0 what contributes 4.3
My questions

3. Nutrient and
HAB

4. Ohio Department of Agriculture (ODA)
Fertilizer Tonnage Report is Source of Data
• Commercial fertilizer license requirement
– Manufacturing or labeling commercial fertilizer products for
agricultural use
– Each fixed location and mobile unit in-state and out state has
separate license
– Annual renewal
• Tonnage reports to ODA of all fertilizer
distributed to end user
– Reported by November 30 each year for November 1 to October
31 period
– Inspection fee of $0.25 per ton is required
– Packaged fertilizers of 10 lbs or less is exempt.
• Point distributed from not point delivered to

5. State Summary

6. N, P2O5 and K2O Tons Delivered-Ohio
Y=360 + Year * (2.75)
Y=149 + Year * (-0.23)
Y=240 + Year * (2.1)

7. CRD
Summary

8. Fertilizer Nutrient Use in WLEB
Using CRD10
Fertilizer locations

9. Reported P2O5 Fertilizer delivered in the Lake Erie Basin (November 2018 to
May 2019)
2019 WLEB Fertilizer and Manure P
Manure applications based on survey of ten NW Ohio Commercial Applicators
March to May 2019

10. CRD10 Nutrient Delivered Trend
Y=102 + Year*(-2.2)
Y=37 + Year*(-1.0)
Y=54 + Year*(-0.86)

11. Tons of N and P2O5 Delivered in CRD10
Years 2006-2019
Year N Tons
% of
Average N
P2O5Tons
% of
Average
P2O5
2006 88,004 103% 30,064 101%
2007 86,799 102% 35,557 119%
2008 99,733 117% 37,725 127%
2009 96,536 113% 27,364 92%
2010 97,135 114% 41,809 140%
2011 90,921 106% 25,046 84%
2012 83,979 98% 29,104 98%
2013 98,393 115% 37,834 127%
2014 91,852 108% 29,341 99%
2015 79,646 93% 29,680 100%
2016 71,783 84% 21,750 73%
2017 92,865 109% 32,977 111%
2018 78,861 92% 25,531 86%
2019 39,559 46% 13,248 44%
Average 85,433 29,788

12. CRD10 Nutrient Delivered and HAB

13. P2O5 Delivered in CRD10
Key Comparison Years 2006-2019
Year P2O5Tons
% of Average
P2O5
March to July
Rainfall
OARDC NW
(in Inches)
HAB
2009 27,364 92% 15 5.2
2011 25,046 84% 23 10
2015 29,680 100% 23 10.5
2016 21,750 73% 14 3.2
2018 25,531 86%
2019 13,248 44% 26 7.3
2006-2019
Average
29,788

14. Amount/Intensity- OARDC NW
0
0.5
1
1.5
2
2.5
3
3.5
4
3/1/2015 4/1/2015 5/1/2015 6/1/2015 7/1/2015
March to July 2015
0
0.5
1
1.5
2
2.5
3
3.5
4
3/1/2019 4/1/2019 5/1/2019 6/1/2019 7/1/2019
March to July 2019
26 inches total
43 events>0.1 inches
Three largest events:
1. 2.69
2. 1.75
3. 1.4
23 inches total
38 events>0.1 inches
3 largest events
1. 3.4
2. 2.4
3. 1.3
30 days apart13 days apart

15. Trends in
Soil Test
Level
Dayton et.al (2020)
Accepted paper to
be published
Agronomy Journal

16. CRD 10 Soil Test P Mehlich 3
Percentile
County 25 50 75 90
Allen 27 40 56 77
Defiance 19 28 43 93
Fulton 30 47 76 122
Hancock 26 35 49 70
Henry 30 41 57 80
Lucas 34 43 69 91
Paulding 20 27 37 52
Putnam 24 35 52 79
VanWert 23 36 60 108
Williams 21 32 50 78
Wood 23 33 48 69
Average 25 36 54 84
What is a percentile?
Dayton et.al (2020)
Accepted paper to be published
Agronomy Journal
Red # Increasing
Green # Decreasing
Black # Not Significant

17. Balance P & K CRD10-Very Preliminary
PoundsperAcrePoundsperAcre
CEAP
NuGIS

18. CRD10 Corn, Soybean and Wheat
Total and Prevented Plant Acres (2011-2019)
Year Total Acres
Prevented Plant
Acres
2011 2,099,996 25,689
2012 2,130,856 21,139
2013 2,093,730 4,371
2014 2,091,931 2,144
2015 2,087,604 89,827
2016 2,076,774 189
2017 2,080,399 4,454
2018 2,106,644 3,878
2019 2,158,052 700,522

19. Fallow Field Comparison-Ohio EOF Studies
-Average annual loss prior to 2019 Vs 2019 only

20. Source: Mapping Conservation Practices and Outcomes in the Corn Belt - Final Report, a collaborative project between Applied
Geosolutions LLC, Dagan, Inc. The Nature Conservancy, and the Conservation Technology Information Center, 10 September 2019.

21. Trends in Tile CRD10
2012 and 2017 Ag Census
1982 & 1992 National Resource Inventory Need to be added

22. • Several data sources available now
• Nutrient management placement and rate are
important.
– Downward trend in P use
– Soil test levels in CRD10 positive.
– CEAP study, NuGIS and calculations from ODA
• More than nutrients are needed to meet goals
the missing 4.3. Hydrology, Legacy P?
• Intensity and amount of rainfall needs to be
included in BMP practice implementation
Conclusions