Soil Fertility Guide
Nutrient Management Plans
A Nutrient Management Plan (NMP) helps growers to make better and more profitable decisions in crop management. Many consider that NMP's deal exclusively with manure use, but manure is applied to less than 10% of Manitoba acres each year. Nutrient Management Planning for most Manitoba growers will focus on the use of fertilizer inputs, with occasional credits for previous legume crops and manure.
The plan has 10 components, many of which are described in detail in this guide.
- Locate facilities and fields on maps. Aerial photos are most useful.
- Identify environmentally sensitive areas on maps. Note appropriate buffer distances.
- Specify crop rotation used by grower
- Determine expected yields
- Obtain results of soil, plant, and manure analysis
- Account for nutrients from additional sources available on the farm (i.e. N from previous legumes, green manures, etc)
- Determine nutrient requirements for each field from above information (using Appendix tables)
- Make recommendations of nutrient rate, timing, form and method of application
- Review and modify plan as needed (based on economics, growing season conditions, in-season nutrient assessment, etc)
- Maintain records and complete a nutrient budget (including nutrient inputs, outputs and soil test changes)
For further information, contact your MAFRD GO Representative.
