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The Fertiliser Association of New Zealand promotes and encourages responsible and scientifically-based nutrient management.
Malcolm McLeod, Manaaki Whenua - Landcare Research
Completed March 2020
Lake Taupō Protection Trust (LTPT), the Sustainable Farming Fund (SFF), Pāmu, Fertiliser Association of New Zealand, and Waikato Regional Council funded a field trial on N-leaching under grazed lucerne on a Taupo Lake Care member's farm. The project objective was to use lysimeters to quantify nitrogen leaching due to livestock urine from autumn-grazed lucerne or ryegrass/clover pasture.
Grazing was simulated by the application in autumn of ewe lamb or cow urine collected from animals whose diet included lucerne. Results showed that a single autumn urine application (simulated grazing) significantly increased N leaching compared to controls, but no significant differences were found between pasture or lucerne vegetation. When expressed at the paddock scale, assuming urine patches cover 3% of the paddock during a single grazing, the three-year average nitrogen leaching loss from the autumn grazing was approximately 2 kg TN/ha/yr under cow grazed lucerne and approximately 3 kg TN/ha/yr under cow grazed pasture. Controls (no grazing) showed leaching losses of approximately 1 and 2 kg TN/ha/yr for lucerne and pasture respectively.
"Studies like these are critical to understanding the nutrient flows in different farm systems," says Greg Sneath, Executive Manager, Fertiliser Association of New Zealand.
"It helps provide the information needed for building the tools for management and mitigation of nitrogen losses in productive farm systems."
The Fertiliser Association of New Zealand and Dairy NZ funded development of the Nutrient Management Adviser Certification Programme (NMACP). This industry-wide certification aims to ensure that advisers have the learning, experience and capability to give sound nutrient advice.
27 March 2024
FANZ is dedicated to funding research and developing New Zealand’s agricultural research capability by supporting PhD research such as the work of Massey University student Nicola Wilson who is undertaking research on ‘What Hot Water Extractable Carbon and Nitrogen can tell us about changes in labile soil Carbon and Nitrogen.’
1 March 2024
The Fertiliser Association of New Zealand recently updated its Fertiliser Use on New Zealand Dairy Farms booklet to ensure farmers get the best value from fertiliser applied and to align the advice with the Code of Practice for Fertiliser Nutrient Management.
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