Research Coordinator: Dr. Akim Omokanye
Collaborating producers: Lloyd & Mackay Ross (Clear Hills County)
From: Peace Country Beef & Forage Association 2014 Annual Report
Soil Rejuvenation, is a custom blended liquid formulation (from Best Environmental Technologies) that will feed the existing microorganisms in the soil. It will help to bring back strains of beneficial microbes that are dormant, helping to increase and enhance the microbial activity in the soil. This will lead to improved soil structure and aeration, which allows plant roots to reach deeper into the subsoil, enabling them to absorb the required nutrients and water more efficiently. Soil Rejuvenation helps to stimulate and activate the bacteria in the soil which are the main organisms involved in fertilizer conversion. Enhanced microbial activity in the soil will lead to healthier and more fertile soil, which, ultimately, can allow producers to reduce some of the input costs they are using and grow large, healthy crops. PCBFA was approached by the collaborating producers to examine any grain yield advantage with peas by applying Best Soil Rejuvenation®.
Methods
The demonstration was carried out in Cleardale (NE 35-84-10 W6). The site had Athabasca oats in 2013 and prior to that, the site was under fallow for 2 years. Seeding of pea (CDC Meadow) was done at 3 bushels/acre with a John Deere drill at 7.5 inches row spacing. Seed was treated with Apron Maxx® RTA® seed treatment fungicide. CDC Meadow pea is a yellow cotyledon field pea cultivar that was released in 2006 by the Crop Development Centre, University of Saskatchewan. CDC Meadow has a semi-leafless leaf type, good lodging resistance, powdery mildew resistance, medium-sized, round seeds, and good yielding ability.
Demonstration strip design was used. We tested 3 treatments, which were made up of:
1. Control check strip
2. Phosphorus fertilizer (P alone, 11-52-0) @ 40 lbs/acre - applied at seeding
3. Phosphorus fertilizer (11-52-0) @ 40 lbs/acre + Best Soil Rejuvenation
Best Soil Rejuvenation sprayed @ 100 ml/acre (with 5 gal. water) after seeding but before seed emergence. Sampling for grain yield estimation per treatment was done on August 25 by hand using several 0.5 m x 0.5 m quadrat (2.691 ft2). The demonstration field was combined on August 25 and 26 by the producers.
Results
Moisture content (Table 1) - At harvest, the grain from P + Soil Rejuvenation treatment had significantly more moisture than control. The P alone treatment had similar moisture to both Control and P + Soil Rejuvenation treatments.
Seed weight (Table 1) - Seed weight (weight of a single seed) was similar for all treatments.
Grain yield (Table 1) - The grain yield was significantly higher for P + Soil Rejuvenation treatment than either Control or P alone treatment. Grain yield from P alone and P + Soil Rejuvenation treatments was 115 and 325 lbs/acre respectively higher than Control check treatment, indicating a potential extra $ income from the use of P fertilizer or P + Soil Rejuvenation. Soil Rejuvenation further improved peas grain yield by 210 lbs/acre over the P alone treatment. Generally, peas grain yield was low at the site this year because of low moisture.