Improve autumn nitrogen management with Instinct
Something went wrong. Please try again later...
As you all know and have experienced, it has been another very challenging season. The wettest winter in 80 years, followed by an incredibly wet spring. Along with this, overall temperatures have been warmer than average. When it comes to autumn fertiliser and crop nutrition, it is important to consider this when making decisions.
With limited amounts of nitrogen allowed in the autumn to reduce negative environmental effects, it becomes very important to minimise losses not only for environmental reasons but agronomic ones as well. Making sure that the nitrogen applied is available to the crop will support establishment and successful overwintering.
Nitrogen in the autumn is quite vulnerable to environmental escape – warm soils mean rapid conversion to nitrate, crops with limited root networks struggle to pick up the nitrate, and more rainfall in the autumn can leach away nitrate or prompt denitrification in waterlogged soils.
This is where Instinct® comes in.
Based on Corteva’s unique Optinyte technology, Instinct keeps more nitrogen in the soil for longer, improving nitrogen use efficiency.
Corteva’s internal development trials looking at Instinct used with slurry in oilseed rape showed it can reduce leaching and denitrification by 50%, give improved yield responses of approximately 7%, as well as improved crop vigour.
How does Instinct work?
Instinct works by inhibiting the nitrification process – that is the conversion of ammonium to nitrite to nitrate.
Crops use nitrogen in two forms: ammonium (NH4+) and nitrate (NO3-). It prefers ammonium because that form is easier for the plant to absorb and less susceptible to loss. Instinct slows down the Nitrosomonas bacteria that convert ammonium to nitrite, keeping nitrogen in the ammonium form for longer.
What happens to un-stabilised nitrogen?
Inhibition of the nitrification process has shown to last longer than 10 weeks following an application.
Why use Instinct® nitrogen stabiliser this Autumn?
Colin Bowers introduced Instinct and its benefits in cereal crops during autumn.