Auburn study says corn yields to be impacted by nitrogen and sulfur levels
In Alabama, Huntsville Business Journal reported that researchers with Auburn University’s College of Agriculture, Alabama Agricultural Experiment Station and the Alabama Cooperative Extension System see a lack in sulfur also may be affecting corn yields.
“Sulfur is a nutrient that directly participates in essential amino acids, which, when lacking, will affect some protein formation in the plant,” said Eros Francisco, assistant professor and extension grain crops specialist with the Department of Crop, Soil & Environmental Sciences and researcher with the AAES.
While Alabama is not officially part of the “Corn Belt,” corn remains a major cash crop for state and area farmers, used mostly for fuel and feed. This past year, producers grew about 350,000 acres, with total production estimated at 51 million bushels, according to the report.
This year, the state’s farmers are expected to plant about 400,000 acres of corn, and yields will be highly impacted by nutrients, primarily nitrogen, it added.
“With the advent of cleaner fuel regulations over the last decades due to the Clean Air Act, the deposition of sulfur has significantly decreased, causing crops to start lacking sulfur and showing deficiency symptoms, such as light-green and pale-green younger leaves,” Francisco said.
Category: Food & Agriculture
