Making the Most of Fertilizer Equipment

Get the most value from your fertilizer application equipment
By Denise Brown Fertilizer equipment is an expensive investment. Whether you rent your ag fertilizer equipment to local farmers or you’re a farmer who owns fertilizer handling equipment, you know you want to get the most value from your investment. Because this is a piece of equipment that only gets used certain times of the year, it’s one you must get the most value from when you do need it.

Making the most of fertilizer equipment involves being proactive in caring for it. Some of the things you should do to maximize the usage from your fertilizer equipment include:

1. Using the best fertilizer supplies you can afford. While the initial cost may be higher, you can expect better results from the fertilizer product.

2. Getting the right fertilizer blending equipment, to get the right mix for your fields.

3. Learning the proper handling techniques to insure your safety, and to make sure you don’t burn crops by overexposing them to chemicals.

Choose fertilizer handling equipment that allows you to practice minimum tillage

If you can combine the fertilizer application with planting or one pass of tillage, you are not only making the most of fertilizer equipment, you are also saving money on fuel and minimizing wear and tear. Farmers and commercial fertilizer companies are finding more attachments for existing equipment available to help them reduce the number of passes they must make to plant a crop.
Try:  Progressive Farm Products has fertilizer handling equipment that allows you to reduce the number of passes over the field. This cost for fertilizer application equipment can save you time and money in the long run if you practice minimum till agriculture. You can find a number of accessories for fertilizer equipment at Schaffert Manufacturing Products to help increase your productivity.

Set your fertilizer equipment to the correct spread pattern

With spread pattern, you don't want to overlap chemicals as this wastes fertilizer. In addition, overlap can apply fertilizer too heavily in one strip of the field, while not applying enough fertilizer in another. Technology is improving and now you can get an even spread pattern as you apply fertilizer.
Try:  The Samuel Roberts Noble Foundation has information about spread patterns and recommendations for new and used fertilizer equipment that help you achieve an even disbursement pattern. Making the most of fertilizer equipment is the name of the game for the dry fertilizer equipment spreaders at Fertilizer Equipment Specialists. With the right spin applicator, your commercial fertilizer equipment can get an even fertilizer distribution.

Monitor the amount of fertilizer used by your fertilizer equipment

Whether you apply wet or dry fertilizer, the ag fertilizer equipment sometimes clogs. The monitor can alert you instantly on the tractor or from the truck cab if something is not right, so you don't wind up with part of the field fertilized and part of it not. Markers are another way of making sure you distribute the fertilizer evenly in your fields.
Try:  KB Manufacturing offers a monitor that attaches to ag fertilizer equipment, to make sure your chemical fertilizer supplies flow evenly. Foam markers from Smucker Manufacturing can help you keep track of where you have been in the field with your dry or liquid fertilizer equipment.

• More and more farmers are using GPS systems to help make their fertilizer equipment more efficient and to make sure they don't miss parts of the field. As this technology becomes less expensive, look for more equipment to have GPS.