Organic Dairy Manure May Offer Fertilizer Option
Published: April 23, 2009
Source : USDA Agricultural Research Services
Dairy cows that produce USDA-certified organic milk also produce manure that may gradually replenish soil nutrients and potentially reduce the flow of agricultural pollutants to nearby water sources, according to findings by Agricultural Research Service (ARS) scientists and colleagues.
Cows on organic dairy farms generally consume forage feeds cultivated on soils that are fertilized with manure and compost rather than manufactured fertilizers. This organic management, in turn, may significantly affect how easily nutrients are converted in soil into forms readily taken up by crops.
Working with colleagues at the ARS New England Plant, Soil, and Water Laboratory in Orono, Maine, and elsewhere, chemist Zhongqi He showed that conventional and organic dairy manures from commercial dairy farms differed in concentrations of plant nutrients, including phosphorus, metals and minerals.
The team used two different types of nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) to pinpoint these differences. Solution NMR spectroscopy is already widely used to analyze phosphorus content in manure. For this study, the scientists also analyzed manure content using solid-state NMR spectroscopy, which is especially effective at finding unique "signatures" of the different kinds of metals and minerals.
The researchers found that the two types of manure had at least 17 different chemical forms of phosphorus that varied in concentrations. The organic dairy manure had higher levels of phosphorus, calcium, potassium, manganese, zinc and magnesium.
Organic dairy manure also contained more types of phosphorus found in association with calcium and magnesium. Such forms are comparatively slow to dissolve and would thus gradually release the nutrients. Slow-release fertilizers generally increase the likelihood that they eventually will be taken up by crops, rather than being washed out of fields into nearby surface or groundwater sources.
Because of this, slow-release fertilizers often can be applied at comparatively low rates. Manure produced by cows in organic production systems may show similar characteristics compared to manure from conventional systems.
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8 de mayo de 2009
In the current scenario when people are more concerned about their health this is extremely important to focus our attention towards a by-product from livestock production which is easily available and going waste. Manure if properly preserved and used is more soil friendly than chemical fertilizers.
Further chemical fertilizers prices are going up day by day and they are one crop specific while organic manure though slow releasing but effective for next three crops.
R&D should take it as a special assignment and find some solution to be pelleted so that its handling and transportation should be easy. Once it is done it will be very popular among the farmers as its benefits are more than inorganic fertilizers both in terms of economics and soil conditioning.
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8 de mayo de 2009
Organic milk seems to be increasing in many grocery storesin some countries, and new findings suggest that these organic dairy cows also produce top-grade manure.
According to recent findings suggest that this manure potentially will help replenish soil nutrients and reduce the amount of pollutants that makes it way into water sources close by.
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24 de abril de 2009
Theoretically the organic manure will contain lower level of nutrients because in organic dairy farming choice and often level of conc. ingredients are limited. If still the level of nutrients is higher in manure than this means that the digestibility of these nutrients is abysmally low in organic dairy farming.
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23 de abril de 2009
Engormix: este artículo bien interesante por cierto, aparece en pantalla tirado a la izquierda
sin oportunidad para centrar su lectura. Aparente es problema al escanearlo. Le agradezco su atención.
Davero
Costa Rica
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