This article published in Acres USA by Dr. John E. Ikerd, Professor Emeritus of Agricultural & Applied Economics University of Missouri, Columbia. College of Agriculture, Food and Natural Resources, pays tribute to Dr. Albrecht’s astute foresight regarding the depletion of our soil fertility and its link to declining human health. Look him up on the website http://web.missouri.edu/ikerdj/

16 JANUARY 2015 Graeme Sait, Nutri-Tech Solutions, Queensland

Soil Health Addresses our Massive Problems

The UN has named 2015 International Year of Soils and we should surely embrace this initiative with open hearts and willing hands. It is an incredibly timely focus, in light of a series of serious challenges impacting our future and perhaps our very existence. Soil health directly affects plant, animal and human health. It also impacts topsoil erosion, water management and ocean pollution. Most importantly, it is now recognised that global warming is directly related to soil mismanagement. A global soil health initiative can literally save a planet threatened with a man-made fever.

The Top Five Threats to our Sustainability and Long-Term Survival

While in the UK recently, I met with a professor who shared some deeply concerning findings. He informed me that a recent survey of leading British scientists revealed that as many as one in five of the best thinkers in the country believe that we will be extinct as a species by the end of this century, or perhaps much earlier. This confronting information should serve to sponsor meaningful action from every one of us. There are five core threats that need to be urgently addressed and they all relate back to the soil. These include:

1. Loss of topsoil – at the current rate of topsoil loss, we have just 60 years before the thin veil that sustains us is no more. This is a huge issue because we will hit the wall way before this six-decade deadline. What is driving this dramatic loss? Basically, it comes down to the massive decline in organic matter following the industrial, extractive experiment in agriculture. We have now lost more than two thirds of our humus. Humus is the soil glue that determines whether rivers run brown following rainstorms or if the winds tear dust from the fragile upper layers of our food-producing soils. Nature teaches us that you must give to receive. This universal law is at work in photosynthesis, the single most important process in nature. The plant pumps one third of the sugars it produces from photosynthesis back into the soil to feed the microbes, which in turn fix nitrogen, deliver minerals and protect against plant and soil pests. It is all about giving to receive.

However, this is not a lesson we have applied to our farmland. It is a fairly basic concept that when you remove crops from a field, you are extracting carbon and minerals and you cannot just keep taking indefinitely. Unfortunately, this has been the dominant model in many soils for the past century. We have overtilled our soils, oxidised the humus and often ignored the replacement of key minerals that determine the health of humus-building microbes. We have burnt out humus with excess nitrogen at the rate of 100 kg of carbon per every 1 kg of nitrogen oversupplied. We have removed massive amounts of minerals and carbon with ever-increasing yields from our NPK-driven hybridised crops. In many areas we continue to burn crop residues. This senseless practice floods the atmosphere with CO2, which should have been returned to the soil as humus. Burning also damages soil-life while scorching precious organic matter in the process. The loss of topsoil has been increasing for a century and now, with the challenge of climate extremes, it is accelerating at quite a pace. Soil health legislation is essential in all of the thirty countries I have visited in the past year and in the International Year of Soils, we all need to be pushing for a Soil Restoration Bill to formalise this urgent necessity.

2. Ocean acidification is another threat. The oceans have absorbed around half of the CO2 that has billowed from our soils, smokestacks and cement makers over the past century. This is a planetary self-balancing mechanism, which has helped avoid a much higher global temperature increase. However, there has been a price to pay for this compensatory, carbon redistribution. The CO2 becomes carbonic acid in the ocean and, as a result, our seas have become increasingly acidic. It is basic chemistry that creatures that make their outer shells from calcium struggle to do so in increasingly acidic conditions. This directly impacts coral, shellfish, phytoplankton, algae and krill, and their struggle for survival has already begun. The key understanding here is that their survival is actually our survival. 500 million of us are directly dependent on coral reefs. Algae and krill are the basic building block for all life in the ocean. Phytoplankton produce 60% of the oxygen we breathe and we have already lost 40% of these creatures. It is a serious situation that is worsening by the month and our only response to date is to talk about reducing carbon emissions. Talk is all we have done. There has been very little action, because the latest figures show a 10% increase in global carbon emissions over this past year. This is the biggest single increase ever recorded, at a time when we are supposedly focusing on critically important reductions. There is a solution to this crisis and it rests in the soil.

3. Ocean warming is possibly the most urgent issue at present. Methane is a greenhouse gas that is 23 times more thickening (compared to CO2) of the heat-trapping blanket that warms our world. Permafrost is the phenomenon where ancient organic matter releases methane gas as the ice cover melts. There are currently huge, unanticipated outpourings of methane associated with the rapid thawing of Siberia. However, there is an even more threatening methane-driven phenomenon linked to the loss of ice in the arctic. The arctic oceans house mountains of methane and carbon sludge called methane hydrates. This material remains stable at the low temperatures and high pressure found at depths below 500 metres. However, it is now suggested that there will be no summer ice cover in this region within less than two years. This means that the arctic oceans, lacking the reflective effect of the ice cover, will warm much more rapidly. In a recent edition, the prestigious scientific journal Nature warned of a strong potential for a massive "methane burp" from this region within the next two or three years. They suggested that this "burp" could involve 50 gigatonnes of methane in one huge release. This is equivalent to 1150 gigatonnes of CO2. Here are some figures that help to put this huge release into perspective. The entire man-made contribution of CO2 to the atmosphere from industry, energy generation and transport since 1860 is 250 gigatonnes. The loss of two thirds of our humus through soil mismanagement represents another 476 gigatonnes. We may be set to see the equivalent of over 150% more CO2 than that combined total, released in one short time frame. It is a truly frightening scenario that highlights the screaming urgency of a call to action.

4. Food security and feeding the billions become increasingly serious concerns as climate change progresses. There is no country I have visited in the past 12 months that has not had serious issues linked to climate change. Brazil, with its biggest drought in 80 years; California, with a three-year killer drought; India, with a belated, substandard monsoon; and large areas of Asia, NZ and Australia impacted with unparalleled weather extremes. It is becoming increasingly likely that these climate-related issues could serve to trigger economic recession or depression and that is when the importance of food security becomes paramount. In uncertain economic times, you are absurdly vulnerable if you are a country like Qatar, with 6% of the food security of Japan, who produce just 40% of their own food requirements. Turmoil and international aggression come hand-in-hand with financial collapse – it is easy to shut down the imported food supply of another country when seeking to fast-track capitulation. Improving your food security becomes an urgent necessity in this brave new world.

Soil health determines productive capacity. In fact, good soil and water are increasingly seen as "the new gold", in recognition of their expanding importance. Warren Buffet is buying up farms with good soil and water, the Bush family has acquired a slice of the largest aquifer in South America (around 500,000 acres of the massive Gurani aquifer which comprises 300 million acres) and the Chinese are buying up good farmland across the globe (in countries where it is allowable). The GMO companies have sold us the story that their GM varieties are the solution to feeding a growing world population. However, it is becoming increasingly obvious that these finely tuned hybrids require very specific and precise conditions to deliver their promise. They can be very productive when given the correct fertiliser, moisture requirements and climate conditions but they can really struggle in challenging conditions. In short, they do not have resilience and resilience is the single most important requirement in a world that is becoming considerably less predictable. The more mineralised and biologically active your soil, the greater the crop resilience. There are tens of thousands of examples of this phenomenon. In fact, the obvious validity of a soil health strategy could be clearly contrasted with the failings of the conventional approach in the face of changing conditions. The suicide of 300,000 Indian farmers is partially related to crop failures linked to this lack of resilience in GM crops. The reality is this: the billions are better fed with humus-rich, living soils that store precious moisture more efficiently and sustain crops that can adapt to and perform in changing conditions.

5. Declining nutrition in our food and chemical contamination of our fresh produce are two other closely-related issues impacting our sustainability. The industrial, extractive agriculture model has seen the constant removal of soil minerals and a loss of two thirds of the humus that helps to store and deliver those minerals. It is common sense to recognise that, every time we take a crop from a field, we are removing a little of all 74 minerals that were originally present in those soils. We replace a handful of them, often in an unbalanced fashion, and we assault our soil life with a smorgasbord of farm chemicals, many of which are proven biocides. When we have bombed the microbe bridge between soil and plant there is a price to pay. The plant suffers, in that it has less access to the trace minerals that fuel immunity, and the animals and humans eating those plants are also compromised. It has been suggested that the food we now consume contains just 20% of the nutrition found in the food consumed by our grandparents when they were children. The immune-compromised plant will always require more chemical intervention, and repeated studies have demonstrated the cumulative effect of chemical residues in our bodies. This serious scenario is all about minerals and microbes, and they, in turn, are housed by humus.

Humus Saves the World

It may seem like something of an oversell to claim that the sweet-smelling, chocolate brown substance that determines soil fertility could really pull us from the mire. The key understanding here involves a recognition that you can't make more carbon. The number of carbon molecules present on our planet has remained constant since the dawn of time. This carbon is either stored in the soil as humus, the carbon-based life forms, or the atmosphere as CO2, and it cycles between these three. The problem is that a great deal of the carbon that used to be in the soil as humus (over two thirds) is now in the atmosphere, thickening the blanket and trapping more heat.

The very simple and obvious solution is to return some of that excessive atmospheric carbon back to the soil as stable humus. When we build organic matter (humus) in the soil we have effectively sequestered carbon from the atmosphere. This is a difficult concept to grasp for some people, but if you realise that you can't make more carbon, it becomes clear that if it is returned to the soil, it is also removed from the atmosphere. How effective is this strategy, you may be thinking, and could it be the solution? Professor Rattan Lal is, perhaps, the leading scientist driving this humus awareness. He has suggested that an increase in organic matter in the top six inches of the soil can effectively counter 30% of man-made carbon emissions. This is an extremely conservative estimate because carbon sequestration via humus-building happens at depths much greater than 6 inches. The roots of plants release glucose, created from photosynthesis, to feed the surrounding soil biology. Some of this glucose is converted to humus in the soil. In this context, root depth determines the depth and scale of carbon sequestration in the soil. The fact is that many plants have roots that extend much deeper than six inches. Recent studies, for example, have identified Australian native grasses with roots that extend well over a hundred feet down into the soil.

A review of recent climate change science reveals a common and depressing overuse of the term "irreversibility" in appraisals of our future. If we constrain ourselves to the concept of reducing carbon emissions as our sole action strategy, this negative appraisal may be justified. However, when humus-building is incorporated into that game plan, the story changes. A global increase of 1.6% organic matter is sufficient to reduce CO2 levels in the atmosphere from 400 ppm to below 300 ppm, which effectively reverses global warming. The burning question remains – how do we do this within the short time frame involved?

How It Can Be Done: Ten Solutions That Must Become Government or Personal Policy

1. Composting becomes standard practice wherever it is possible. On every farm, every council and in every home garden, we compost or add compost. Composting involves the conversion of organic matter into stable humus, but it is much more than that. When we add compost to a soil it stimulates and regenerates the soil life responsible for building humus. We did not just add some stable humus to our soil with the compost inclusion, we triggered our existing soil life to build humus much more efficiently and rapidly. The single most important breakthrough in the science of composting is the finding that the inclusion of 6-10% of a high-clay soil to the compost facilitates the creation of a clay/humus crumb where the humus created lasts for much longer in the soil. In fact, it remains stable in the soil for up to 35 years (compared to a bacterial-dominated compost, based on something like lawn clippings where this "active humus" is only stored in the soil for around 12 months).

2. Mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) become the most important creatures on the planet at this point in time. These endangered organisms, of which we have lost 90% in farmed soils, produce a sticky, carbon-based substance called glomalin. It is now understood that glomalin, in turn, triggers the formation of 30% of the stable carbon in our soils. This is massive – one soil organism could single-handedly turn things around! It is an inexpensive strategy to reintroduce these missing creatures to farmed soils. NTS, for example, has developed a mycorrhizal inoculum calledPlatform®, where AMF can be effectively reintroduced for as little as $10 AUD per acre. Recent research has also demonstrated that compost has a remarkable capacity to stimulate both existing mycorrhizal fungi and introduced AMF, so our first two solutions are inextricably intertwined (as are several of these proposed solutions).

3. Protection of soil life, and their humus home base, becomes an essential strategy. There is little point in reintroducing beneficial microbes with one hand and then promptly destroying the new population with the other. How did we lose 90% of our AMF and seriously compromise cellulose-digesting, humus-building fungi in general? The use of unbuffered salt fertilisers dehydrates and kills many beneficials, overtillage slices and dices AMF and oxidises humus and we have often neglected to feed and nurture this important workforce. However, the single most destructive component of modern agriculture, in terms of soil life, has been farm chemicals. Some of the herbicides are more destructive than fungicides in removing beneficial fungi. Fungicides can sometimes take the good with the bad and nematicides are the most destructive of all chemicals. There needs to be legislation to regulate chemicals that are killing the microbes that may determine our long-term survival. In an extractive model, where the soil is viewed as an inert medium in which the plant stands, this has not been a concern. However, as the science floods in, we are thankfully recognising the critical importance of the soil as a living medium and change is underway.

4. A carbon source must be included with all nitrogen applications. If we investigate how we lost two thirds of our soil carbon, it becomes apparent that mismanagement of nitrogen is a major player. This is not just an issue relevant to loss of carbon – agriculture currently contributes 80% of the greenhouse gas, nitrous oxide, which is 310 times more potent than CO2 in terms of its global warming side-effect. Here's how it works: nitrogen stimulates bacteria, because these creatures have more need for nitrogen than any other organism (17% of their body is nitrogen). The bacteria seek carbon after this nitrogen feeding frenzy to balance out their unique 5:1 carbon to nitrogen ratio. In the absence of applied carbon, they have no choice but to target humus. They would never choose to literally eat themselves out of house and home, but we give them no choice. The destruction of humus via the mismanagement of applied nitrogen is a major factor that can be easily addressed. This is no small thing. Research demonstrates that we lose 100 kg of carbon for every 1 kg of nitrogen applied over and above what is required by the plant at the time. Think of large applications of starter N, where a young seedling cannot possibly utilise that much nitrogen. We need to regulate N applications, to adopt foliar application of N (which can be dramatically more efficient) and to include a carbon source with every nitrogen application. The carbon source offers an alternative to eating humus. This might include molasses, manure or compost but the best choice is NTS Soluble Humate Granules™, a carbon-dense source of concentrated humic acid, that also stabilises and magnifies the nitrogen input.

5. Tillage must be modified. There is compelling research demonstrating the humus-building effect of no-till or minimum-till agriculture. Much of this comes from the Rodale Institute and their 25 years of in-depth research, quantifying humus-building dynamics. Every time we work the soil we disturb cellulose-digesting fungi and oxidise existing humus. I favour minimum-till over no-till, as there is evidence of mineral stratification that occurs over time in completely untouched soils. It makes sense that a combination of leaching and utilisation will see key minerals slowly move beyond the root zone. If we stir things up from time to time, this negative stratification effect can be countered.

6. Green manure and cover crops must become indispensable carbon-building tools for all of us. This is an integral component of a Nutrition Farming® approach, where we are always striving to feed the soil while converting plant material into humus. There is a rural myth among some growers that, in dryland situations, these crops will steal moisture from the subsequent cash crop. This is not research-based. All of the evidence suggests that the increased moisture retention associated with this regular injection of organic matter more than compensates for the moisture removed in the production of the cover crops. There is compelling new US research that cocktail cover crops may be particularly beneficial. It has been found that certain combinations of plants, typically involving cereals, grasses, brassicas, legumes and chenopods, can trigger the release of phenolic compounds from these plant roots, which have been shown to stimulate rapid humus building. The brilliant American consultant, Jerry Brunetti, who sadly passed away in 2014, has included a particularly successful cocktail cover crop recipe in his parting gift, a wonderful new book entitled "The Farm as an Ecosystem". Cocktail cover crops sponsor microbial biodiversity because each species tends to favour and feed specific groups of root organisms. The more diverse the plant species, the more varied the soil life – and nature thrives on biodiversity. The brassicas in the mix can also discourage pathogens like nematodes and some diseases with their biochemical root exudates. Cocktail cover crops are also profoundly drought protective, in that the great mass of roots involved exudes a gel-like mucilage that can absorb ten thousand times its own dry weight in water. The trillions of bacteria around the roots also release a gel-like substance that provides them protection from predators but also serves to retain water. Brunetti cites a cocktail mix that has proven tremendously successful for North Dakota farmer, Gabe Brown, who has, in turn, been inspired by the innovative work of Brazilian agronomist, Dr Ademir Caligari. This mix includes at least a dozen of the following species: pearl millet, sorghum sundan grass, proso millet, buckwheat, sunn hemp, oilseed radish, turnips, pasha, ryegrass, canola, phacelea, cowpeas, soy beans, sugar beets, red clover, sweet clover, kale, rape, lentils, mung beans and subterranean clover. This mix includes the desired mix of legumes, grasses, cereals, brassicas and chenopods. It also involves cool season grasses and broad-leaved plants combined with warm season grasses and broad-leaved plants.

7. Intelligent grazing must be encouraged or incentivised to the point of legislative management. The dictionary definition of the word "science" is "adherence to natural laws and principles". Real science involves learning from the perfect blueprint of nature, rather than the futile attempt at improving upon nature that has characterised much of profit-based, scientific endeavour. In this context, we might examine nature to determine which soils on the planet have been most productive. The Great Plains in the US captured more carbon and produced more biomass than any other region on Earth. This amazing productive capacity was driven by huge herds of bison that moved into one area for a day, depositing massive amounts of urine and dung and creating a seedbed with their hooves for improved germination of the diverse range of seeds present in their dung. In effect, they facilitated a cocktail cover crop, or pasture crop in this case. The herds tended to graze down to about 4 inches before moving on, almost as though they were aware of the fact that the leaf is the solar panel that fuels photosynthesis. The plant pumps down 50% of its photosynthates (glucose) to the roots, and 60% of this carbon is exuded into the soil (30% of total glucose production). The whole carbon-building mechanics of the pasture are impacted by the length of the leaf, because the roots, which are being fed by the leaves, prune themselves back in accord with leaf size. If you have grazed down to a bowling green, the root mass has reduced accordingly and you no longer have a carbon-building pasture. Researchers like Dr Christine Jones in Australia have conclusively demonstrated that correctly managed pasture has the most carbon-sequestering capacity of any crop. Ruminants may yet be our savior, but only if we learn from nature and broadly adopt grazing practices where a post-grazing leaf length of 4 inches becomes the gold standard.

8. CAM plants involve something called Crassulacean Acid Metabolism, where their stomates remain open during the night, but close during daylight. This allows much more efficient photosynthesis and much better water utilisation (around 500% better). These plants thrive in hot, arid conditions, in low humus soils. Their role in these conditions is to maximise the benefits of minimal moisture, while pumping more sugars into the soil to build carbon in these barren soils. The good thing about these succulents is that they are absurdly easy to propagate. You simply break off a piece of plant and poke it into the soil. In suitable countries, the unemployed could plant trillions of these plants across areas that have been desertified by mankind's footprint. We could improve those soils while sequestering massive amounts of carbon from the atmosphere. One of the CAM plants, surprisingly, is Moringa, which is one of the most nutrient-dense food plants on the planet.

9. Humates become the most important of all farm inputs, from a humus-building perspective. Humic acid is the most powerful known stimulant of the cellulose-digesting fungi that build stable humus. It also holds seven times its own weight in water, which, of course, benefits crops and soil organisms. Humates improve root growth and soil structure and buffer the dehydrating (biocidal) impact of salt fertilisers. These inputs are effectively cost neutral, so they remain a viable option even in subsistence farming. This "free" status is based upon the well-researched capacity of humates to magnify nutrient uptake by one third, via a phenomenon called "increased cell sensitisation". Soluble humic acid granules are combined with fertilisers at the rate of 5%. The cost of this inclusion is deducted from the fertiliser bill (i.e., a little less fertiliser is used to accommodate the cost of the humate additive). The proven 33% increase in fertiliser performance ensures that there is no risk factor associated with the small reduction in applied fertiliser. Soil, plants, animals, humans and the planet can all be beneficiaries of what is essentially a cost-free input.

10. Biochar is based upon the discovery of terra preta soils in the Amazon that seem to be self-generating and expanding. They feature humus-rich topsoil metres deep and they expand out beyond the villages from which they originated. It has been found that this remarkable fertility appears to originate from charcoal that was added to the soil from cooking fires. On the basis of this finding, the concept of manufacturing biochar as a humus-building soil additive has attracted considerable interest and associated research funds. I have been concerned that we had only really embraced half of the story. The amazing terra preta soils must surely involve specific microbes in a synergy with charcoal. We trialled a variety of task-specific organisms and broad-spectrum inoculums, like compost tea, in conjunction with biochar. However, we could not identify the specific synergy that turns biochar from inert carbon into a profound soil-building mechanism. Recently, I have had meetings with microbiologists who claim that the key synergist may be mycorrhizal fungi. This was a species we never researched but it seems highly likely that this is the key. Mycorrhizal fungi produce glomalin, which is responsible for 30% of soil humus. If these creatures were to move into hyperdrive, in the presence of biochar, it would explain the rapid soil-building phenomenon that is terra preta (black earth).

In Conclusion

2015 is the International Year of Soils. This UN initiative encourages a timely focus upon the importance of the thin veil of topsoil that sustains us all in so many ways. The soil glue that stabilises topsoil is humus. We have lost two thirds of our humus as a result of industrial, extractive agriculture and it is now time to address that issue. The words "human" and "humus" mean the same thing. They mean "of and for the earth". If our core purpose is to nurture and sustain the precious soil that supports us, then we have strayed a little on our path. It is not too late to recognise that mistake and move forward to make this critically important year the turning point.

 

There are no cures, but there is a better way

Brett Petersen | 0800 549 442 | brettp@kiwifertiliser.co.nz

If you want to avoid pests and diseases, produce superior pasture, animals and crops with minimal chemical sprays, then read on.

To get disease, there must be three factors present. They are a susceptible host, a viable inoculum and suitable conditions. It does not matter what crop or type of pasture we are talking about; the rules are the same. Break the rules and diseases and pests will follow. Collective wisdom will tell us all plants of one species are susceptible to their specific diseases and pests; some more so than others, but susceptible all the same. I do not accept that diseases or pests are compulsory. When man makes poor fertiliser choices, regularly pugs paddocks, uses toxic chemical weed sprays and other poor management practices, the chances of getting diseases and pests increase as plants are stressed. Rust, PSA, facial eczema and other fungal ills, grass grubs, clover root weevils or any other diseases are the result of poor and imbalanced nutrition. In nature, no one plant, animal, insect, bacterium, fungus or disease can dominate, as everything is in balance. If one undesirable customer rears its ugly head, the forces of nature deal to it. The damage is minimal and temporary.

That scene is not played out on most farms where the natural order of things is seriously disrupted. Dr. Linus Pauling (1901-1994, Biochemist), winner of two Nobel Prizes, stated: “In my opinion, one can trace every sickness, every disease and every ailment to mineral deficiency.” You will be well on your way to disease proofing your farm when you accept that opinion. Not only will you have a healthy farm, your pasture yields will be superior; your stock will be healthier, and your job of being a farmer or grower will be a pleasure. Delivering superior nutrition to those that consume your produce will be the ultimate payback.

Most researchers will tell us the causal organism of a disease is the fungus or bacterium (the viable inoculum). But being the causal organism does not make it the cause. It is merely a symptom. The cause is a mineral deficiency, or deficiencies. It is far better to prevent diseases than to catch them.

I don’t believe we are on the right track by treating symptoms. If we were, the number of diseases would diminish. However, the list of diseases is added to year after year, while the list of chemicals available to treat the diseases also expands at an alarming rate. There are almost 30,000 registered chemicals. Are they really working? Something is definitely wrong with this system.

Attacking bacteria or viruses with a chemical spray may win you time, but not the war. To do that, we must look at the soil. The soil is the plants stomach. The ultimate aim must be to balance the nutrients in the soil. Once that is achieved, the plant or crops immune system will be able to cope with almost anything that attacks it.

Most fertiliser programmes are based on NPK. In nature, most soil nitrogen is in the ammonium form. In agriculture, most soil nitrogen is in the nitrate form. Furthermore, in nature it does not come at a price from a factory or a fertiliser company. It comes free from the air which is 78% nitrogen. There are 74,000 tonnes of nitrogen above every hectare. To get free nitrogen, you must have a correct calcium-magnesium quantum, available phosphorus, available iron, molybdenum and cobalt. You need to earn the right to free nitrogen. It doesn’t happen overnight, but it does happen.

On average, the majority of applied superphosphate complexes with aluminium, iron, calcium and other cations, within 6 weeks of application. In some cases, it is only a matter of hours. When tying up, the phosphorus becomes less available than the phosphorus in the reactive phosphate rock used to manufacture the superphosphate in the first place. Soluble phosphorus products kill vesicular-arbuscular mycorrhiza fungi (VAM). VAM can increase the roots effectiveness to extract phosphorus and other nutrients, by up to1000 times. Plants grown with VAM have superior health. Depending on the soil, phosphate levels need to be 365-550 kg/ha, sometimes higher. Use a mixture of alkaline phosphorus products.

Potassium chloride (KCI) can kill microbes good and bad alike; just 2ppm (4kg/ha) of chloride is enough to cause harm and the net effect of this is a rock-hard soil. KCI also encourages certain weed growth. Potassium chloride has a salt index of 116 – potassium sulphate has a salt index of 46. Insist on applying only potassium sulphate when correcting soil potassium deficiencies and to provide potassium for the crop. Large amounts of potassium are required to satisfy plants’ needs. The soil for pastures must have 3.5-5.0% base saturation potassium. (For trees and woody plants including berries, potassium needs to be 7.0-7.5%) Sulphur from sulphate is far more useful than chloride from muriate. The sulphate form of potassium enhances palatability while the chloride form does the opposite by making produce taste bitter. The soil requires greater amounts of calcium than any other nutrient.

Calcium is king. Get it to 60-70% of base saturation. Fungi are responsible for retaining calcium in the soil. Calcium and magnesium govern oxygen and water in the soil, by setting the amount of pore space. Calcium can increase the uptake of many nutrients, so when the calcium supply is inadequate, other nutrients may also be inadequate.

Magnesium needs to be 10.1-12% of base saturation. Any more or less and a deficiency will exist in the plant. Yes, too much in the soil will cause a deficiency in the plant. Not only a deficiency, but the amount of nitrogen required to support the crop will increase by up to 50%. That same situation also ties up potassium. Magnesium forms the centre of the chloroplast and is vital for photosynthesis. It drives the solar panels. Magnesium in deficit means phosphorus cannot get into the plant efficiently.

Sodium needs to be 0.5-2.0% of base saturation. In some cases, sodium is higher than potassium, causing dehydration problems in summer.

Minimum sulphur levels in the soil are 20 ppm. 50 ppm is even better, but 100-150ppm is excellent. Similar amounts of sulphur and phosphorus is required but seldom applied. Sulphur leaches easily on free draining soils; the ideal soil for most crops. Spraying glyphosate and other chemicals decreases organic matter increasing sulphur losses.

Iron has to be a minimum of 200 ppm. It can be a lot higher and often is. Some parts of NZ lack iron, but it may be in the subsoil. Check your iron status. In some circumstances it can take huge amounts to correct, if deficient. A major limitation to plant growth in most agricultural soils is an inadequate supply of plant nutrients, regardless of the supply in the soil. Iron crystals have a large surface area and are highly charged. As a result, nutrients such as phosphate, sulphate and trace elements are tightly bound to the crystals and unavailable to plants. If anaerobic micro-sites are able to develop, the crystals break down, releasing the nutrients for plant uptake. Ferrous iron is released into the soil. Other nutrients including calcium, magnesium, potassium and ammonium, are held on the surface of clay and organic matter. The release of ferrous iron displaces these nutrients into the soil solution where they are available for uptake by plants.

Manganese must not be higher than iron. Make sure it is at least 5 ppm less. The minimum is 40 ppm, but 125-250ppm provided iron is higher, is excellent. An inverse iron-manganese ratio limits root growth, followed by the consequences of that. Silicon is abundant in the soil, but not necessarily available. Available silicon in plants can thwart penetration by fungal hyphae and can cause dehydration and death of insects.

Boron is a calcium synergist. Minimum soil level is 0.8 ppm; 1.5-2.0 ppm is better. Boron allows the chloroplast to dump 60% of the sugar into the roots. From there, 50% of that sugar is exuded to the soil to feed the microbes. In return, the microbes make minerals available to the plants.

Copper needs to be a minimum of 2 ppm in the soil, but 5 are better and 10-15 are excellent.

Copper and sulphur influence flavour. Collectively, calcium, silicon, manganese, potassium, copper and boron are involved in plant strength. To stop pastures and crops getting pests and diseases they need to be in the correct proportions.

Zinc should be in the 7-20 ppm range, but zinc is linked to phosphorus and must be correct for the level of phosphorus in the soil. I.e. at phosphorus levels of 240 kg/ha, zinc needs to be 12 ppm; at 365 ppm phosphorus, zinc needs to be 20 ppm. 

Molybdenum needs to be 1-2 ppm and cobalt 1-2 ppm. Selenium hardly ever gets a mention. Add selenium (10%) at 1 kg/ha  of product as selenium confers insect resistance. It is the cheapest trace element you can buy.

pH is the result of your soil’s chemical composition. It will be the result of your fertiliser programme; it should never be the cause of your fertiliser programme. If you follow the rules above, your pH will fall into the region of a healthy 6.4. However, having a pH of 6.4 without having a balanced soil is meaningless.

The above guidelines not only confer pest and disease resistance, through an enhanced defence system for plants and an ehanced immune system for animals, but also results in superior yields of any crops, year after year. If you want to follow up on this, please contact the author.

Superior yields of pasture are in the range of 20,000 kg/ha and higher. The rewards are substantial. Specific numbers have been mentioned; ppm, %, or kg/ha. These figures are relevant only to Perry Agricultural Laboratory and Kinsey Agricultural Services and cannot and must not be applied to or from any other source or soil test. They are not interchangeable with another test. I.e. I have noted an NZ lab’s molybdenum figure of 5 ppm, but 1.6 ppm from Kinsey Agricultural Services in USA. The calcium figure from NZ was 38%, but over 78% from KAS. It doesn’t matter what the figures are. What matters is how to interpret them, how to overcome deficiencies and how to avoid or reduce excesses through applying the correct amount and type of fertiliser. Every credable lab will have its own rules. It's not a guessing game.

 

 

 

How to avoid biennial cropping and grow a superior crop year after year

The following article applies particularly to avocados, but parts have relevance to kiwifruit, citrus, pip fruit, summer fruit, vineyards, olives, nuts, berries, feijoas, row crops and pasture.

Soil biology has been neglected for the last 60 years. It is the microbes that make minerals available to plants, and prevent the minerals from being tied-up or leached. When healthy, the underground workforce far exceeds the mass of the above ground biomass. Look after it. In natural circumstances, the microbes are in balance. No one fungus, bacteria, nematode or any other parasite can gain dominance to cause a problem. Under most current growing practices, the balance is disturbed and diseases, pests and weeds are common, necessitating chemical intervention.

The Australia National Bank carried out a three-year survey of 800 farms. They wanted to know what factors drove profitability. The answer had nothing to do with finances. The answer was organic matter. That is, the higher the organic matter, the higher the profitability and sustainability. New Zealand properties are collectively losing organic matter. If you want to be profitable, that has to be turned around by each grower or farmer regardless of any external factors.

Available calcium levels in NZ soils are too low. If your calcium is below 60% of base saturation, it is too low. There are many products to raise it, but don’t rely on gypsum to increase calcium until that 60% mark is attained. Below 60%, because of the sulphate component of gypsum, gypsum will actually decrease soil calcium if 60% of BS is not reached. Aim to get calcium to 68% on a soil test from Perry Agricultural Laboratories, (PAL) USA. With magnesium aim for 10.1-12% on the base saturation, but do not exceed a total of 80% between calcium and magnesium with a PAL test.

Potassium needs to be 7-7.5% for trees, vines, and berry fruit including strawberries, but 3.5-5% for pasture. Avoid potassium chloride but use potassium sulphate, which is far friendlier for the soil microbes. Do not make your choice based on price. You will be financially better off with the sulphate which gives a more complete energy release, and better tasting food or forage.

Even when using a high analysis crop-mix, go for one with the sulphate form, such as Yara Mila Complex. Plants high in Cl ions will be lower in sulphate, nitrate and other negative ions. That applies to any nutrient. If too much K is supplied, the plant will not have enough Ca, Mg, Cu etc.

Finally, and still with the base saturation, get sodium in the range of 0.5-2%. Do not allow potassium and sodium combined, to exceed 10% of the BS between them, or manganese uptake will be affected.

Once the soil is balanced to the above guidelines, pH will automatically adjust to about 6.4, which is where it should be. If you deliberately try to alter pH, the chances are you will not have balanced the soil properly. pH must be the result of your fertiliser programme, not the cause of it.

When applying fertiliser including nitrogen and lime, always add a carbon source. Some fertiliser firms already do this. Carbon sources are manure, compost, humates, humic and fulvic acids, sugar and molasses. Just 5% of humates or 5kg/ha of sugar are sufficient. Carbon is food for the microbes. Microbes have a carbon:nitrogen ratio of 5:1. If they are fed nitrogen without carbon they will mine the soil carbon, hence the reduction of organic matter. 1kg of excess nitrogen will account for the loss of 100kg of soil carbon as CO2.

There has not been a crop on earth that can be called “bumper” that has not had luxury amounts of the Big Four. The Big Four are calcium, magnesium, phosphorus and boron. Sulphur may actually make up “the Big Five”. Get those Big Four elements up when measured by a PAL soil test.

Boron is a calcium synergist. It is responsible for opening the trap-door in chloroplasts that transfer 60% of the plants’ sugars into the roots. From there, 50% of that is transferred to the soil, to feed the microbes which in turn, make minerals available to the plant. It is this process that girdling prevents by stopping the transfer of sugar from the leaves into the roots. The microbes are starved for sugar, and in return the plant is starved for minerals. Dig a hole under a girdled vine and observe the root mass from the hole. Dig under a non-girdled vine and observe the difference in the roots.

Avocados arguably use more boron than any other crop and there can be good gains in using a natural form of boron (Organibor) to counteract the leachability of this trace mineral. It is unbelievable how much boron they can utilise and how much must be applied to achieve the luxury leaf levels needed for maximum production. Boron is extremely important for avocados that have such a poor fruit to flower ratio. There is only a very small percentage of the mass of flowers that are converted to fruit and this is a central role of boron. This mineral increases the length of the pollen tube to boost the efficiency of pollination. A problem with applying boron, eg. ulexite, to the soil is that it is very easily leached, particularly if organic matter is low. It is a negatively charged anion that can only be stored in the humus component of the soil. Many of us have lost a percentage of our humus over the past few decades and this has reduced the capacity to store boron. It has been found that we can compensate for this decline in organic matter if we apply boron that is complexed with humic acid.

Phosphorus is an enigmatic element. Manufactured from RPR and sulphuric acid, superphosphate ties up in the soil within about six weeks into a form that is even more insoluble that the RPR it was manufactured from. It has a triple negative charge that readily attaches to calcium, iron, manganese and aluminium. It is toxic to mycorrhiza fungi, as are DAP, MAP and herbicides. Be careful with these products. Those fungi are crucial for trees and vines, indeed most plants, to obtain phosphorus from the soil. They must be protected at all costs. Always buffer the phosphate fertiliser with humates or similar. The acid phosphate MAP and the alkaline DAP are buffered and stabilised by both boron and potassium humates.

Sechura RPR offers highly citrate soluble and slow release phosphate so there is a complete release pattern throughout the crop cycle. Boron ensures that the 35% calcium in RPR can really perform in the root zone. Look after the fungi.

To encourage the onset of flowering and fruiting, an acidic mixture may be applied by foliar spray. Phosphoric acid pH = 0.8; apple cider vinegar pH = 3.9 Citric acid: 100g/100L to halve the pH, (1g/L citric acid reduces pH 7.27 to 3.14.) Acid shock and reproductive minerals stimulates flowering. Calcium, potassium, chlorine and nitrate nitrogen are vegetative minerals. All the other nutrients are reproductive minerals.

Grow red clover or lucerne or other legumes between the rows of trees. Legumes help to make phosphorus available. Sprays of fulvic acid are excellent to stimulate legume growth. Be aware that too much phosphorus will lock up zinc and iron.

If nitrogen is high, potassium needs to match it. Maintain a 1:1 N:K ratio in the leaf. The leaf readings of manganese and zinc can be a tell-tale sign for a potassium shortage. When manganese is high and zinc is low, this indicates a potassium deficiency, regardless of the reported potassium level.

Sooner or later, you will reduce applied nitrogen. Too much N attracts insect pests, and generally results in extra pruning. If you are doing things right, you should be tapping into the 74,000 tonnes of nitrogen above every hectare. To do that, five soil conditions must be met. Appropriate calcium:magnesium ratio. Available phosphorus. Available iron. Molybdenum. Cobalt.

Phytophthora is a major avocado problem and there are viable biological management strategies that are less intrusive than injecting with phosphorus acid. The avocado tree evolved in America in fertile, well drained soils with plentiful rainfall and minimal disease pressure. The tree is very sensitive to dry conditions and it also hates wet feet. In this context, drainage and poor irrigation practices become the major yield limiters as the trees are far more likely to be ravaged by root diseases like Phytophthora.

There are other factors that can increase root rot pressure including the form of nitrogen present in the root zone. Nitrate nitrogen stimulates Phytophthora while ammonium nitrogen is antagonistic towards this pathogen. Unstabilised urea, the most common choice of nitrogen in most crops, can be counterproductive because it converts to nitrates so rapidly. Conversely, there can be considerable gain in stabilising urea with humic acid to slow the conversion to nitrate nitrogen. The conventional treatment for Phytophthora involves injecting the trunk with phosphorus acid which is translocated down to the roots to kill the pathogen. This acid can compromise tree health and is not sustainable.

Research released at the International Silica Conference in South Africa suggests that drenching the roots with liquid silica can be at least as effective as phosphorous acid in the management of Phytophthora.

Some cellulose digesting fungi also double as predators that eat Phytophthora. If they are supplied the right form of nitrogen they can more vigorously hunt down pathogens like Phytophthora.

To summarise, look after the microbes. Do this by feeding them and by buffering fertiliser applications. Add carbon. Build organic matter. Get the Big Four elements up to luxury levels in the your crops will be larger and earlier. They will not go off in cool storage. Insect attack will reduce to a minimum. Phytophthora cinnamomi will be kept in balance. Above all, the fruit will taste better.

Lastly, for those that spray herbicides. This action will delay your success. Try to replace spraying with other methods, including not being so fussy. Spraying reduces organic matter. That in turn increases the effects of drought and pest attack. Halve your spray rates and add fulvic acid to the spray at 40ml/100l. Maintain correct N:K levels. Tap into free nitrogen. Maintain an appropriate Ca:Mg ratio that will allow correct oxygen:water percentages.

Acknowledgements: NTS Certificate of Sustainable Agriculture, NTS Nutrition Matters

Kiwifruit

“The significant problems we face today cannot be solved at the same level of thinking we were at when we created them.” – Albert Einstein

Dr. Francis Chaboussou wrote Healthy Crops, published in 1985. The book explains why crops get diseases and draws from hundreds of research papers from around the world.

Chaboussou was a French agronomist employed by the National Agricultural Research Institute (INR). Examples in the book draw heavily on vineyard experiences, but include other major crops such as rice, maize, cereals, pip fruit, summer fruit and vegetables. He does not mention kiwifruit, but that is not important. The principles required to grow any healthy crop rely on healthy soils. They are not crop-dependant.

Chaboussou noticed a recurring theme: pests and diseases have followed the increased use of herbicides, pesticides, fungicides and nitrogen and chemical fertilisers. Chaboussou looked at viruses, bacteria, fungi, insects, mites and nematodes. He used hundreds of examples, and found tremendous similarities in the factors that lead to any diseases which he called parasites.

The introduction to Healthy Crops sums it up.

"Pesticides and nitrogen fertilisers are responsible for the resurgence of pests and diseases, including psyllids, mites, new cereal fungal and viral diseases, and viruses afflicting fruit trees and vineyards. The physiological state of the plant is altered by the intrusion of the pesticides to the detriment of the plants health, setting it up for infection. The susceptibility of plants to diseases or insect attack being created by free nitrogen in cells, resulting from the break down of protein. However, the relationship between plant and pest or disease is, above all, nutritional in origin. If a plant contains free nitrogen including certain amino acids, then it has something the parasite wants and is attracted to. If the plant is truly healthy, then it will not be susceptible to attack."

The relationship between the plant and the disease is not static. It changes in response to certain other factors including: genetic factors (varietal resistance), the physiological cycle of the plant (such as the state of flowering and age), day length,climate, nature of the soil, fertilisation, nature of the rootstock, and, finally, the effect of pesticides on the plant’s physiology.’ Resistance and susceptibility depend on the level of soluble substances. A state where protein break-down predominates is linked to disease, while the state of protein building correlates with resistance.’

Chaboussou came up with three major conclusions:

• Pests and diseases follow chemical sprays.
• The level of inoculum is secondary to the health of the plant.
• The health of the plant is dependant on the correct fertility of the soil.

(Chaboussou did not know the definition of a fully-fertile, well-balanced soil. For that definition, see our article Profit Not Production)

We maintain you can make your vines healthy for about $1,000-$2,000/ha by using the right fertiliser substances. We do not believe regrafting vines and paying for PVR's at a cost of around $50,000 per hectare, is the true solution to the problem of Psa.

We’ve proved this by doing it on almost 30 orchards and having no Psa on any of them. If it is there, it is not thriving. To get a properly balanced soil, you must have a decent soil test. That’s where all the problems start; in the soil.

We get tests from Perry Agricultural Laboratories, PAL in Missouri, USA, and our recommendations from Kinsey Agricultural Services, KAS. We are also trained to calculate what is required to balance a soil, and to recommend according to the results. It can get complicated.

Once the vines are healthy, the number of chemical sprays needed will reduce to almost zero, at your choice. Most chemical sprays are chlorine and nitrogen based. They physiologically damage the leaf in particular by causing protein break-down, making it increasingly susceptible to disease infection and insect attack.

The most important thing is to balance your soil so the plants' immune system is fully functional. From there, the plant can self-protect and self-heal. To do that you must have an accurate soil test and recommendation. I am not suggesting we can bring vines back from the grave. Nor do I claim a monopoly on healthy plants. Others have been saying the same thing, but like us, they are ignored.

Below is a questionnaire and guidelines. Get just a few answers wrong, and your crop could do better.

• Do the fertiliser recommendations vary much from year to year, or is it more or less the same?
• Is your calcium and magnesiun high enough in the soil, so it totals 2% in the leaf?
• Is magnesium in the right amount in the soil compared to calcium?
• If magnesium is too low or too high, both situations lead to a deficiency of magnesium in the plant. Phosphorus will be adversely affected by incorrect magnesium. Is your phosphorus too high?
• Does the zinc correctly match the amount of phosphorus in the soil?
• If they are not right, they can block each other.
• Is the potassium 7-7.5% of soil base saturation? If calcium is not 2% in the leaf, then potassium may show high in the leaf but be too low in the soil.
• Do you apply more sulphur than phosphorus?
• Do you apply high amounts of nitrogen and in what form?
• Nitrogen and other chemical sprays will alter the physiology of the leaf in favour of pathogens.
• What is your soil iron level? There are 500,000 iron deficient hectares in NZ, discovered in the 1920’s. The chances are iron on the classic rolling Te Puke-Opotiki country where kiwifruit is grown could be low, while it may be quite high on the flat country.
• Is your iron higher than your manganese, or is it the other way around? At least one NZ lab shows leaf levels at low-medium to be 2:1 in favour of iron, but at high-medium levels, 2:1 in favour of manganese. Do you believe they can both be correct?
• When manganese is higher than iron, it oxidises iron in the leaf so iron will not function correctly. Do you know how to fix it?
• What are your soil boron levels?
• What are your soil copper levels? Are they 1ppm or 15ppm?
• Do you apply cobalt and selenium?
• Do you follow the experts’ advice and still get Psa?
• Do you believe you are doing your plants a favour by restricting the fertiliser budget?
• Is gold kiwifruit more susceptible to Psa than green? Gold produce more fruit than green. That makes it prone to more stress. Does your fertiliser programme allow for that? Do you believe the level of disease inoculum is the problem, rather than the actual health of the plant? Do you believe disease is compulsory?

The powers-that-be recommend re-grafting newer varieties. If the soil is not fertilised properly, nothing will change. When the pressure or stress increases for whatever reason, Psa will reappear. Your future is in your hands. Do you want to spend $40-50,000/ha? Can you afford to?

If not, we are offering a far cheaper option based on true science that is highly repeatable, year after year, soil after soil, and crop after crop.

The system we use is proven all over the world. This system has produced the best yields of wheat in NZ; best quality and quantity of wheat in Germany; 37t+/ha maize silage in USA; best quality and quantity raspberries; best quality and quantity bananas in Guatemala and South Africa; 20t+/ha of lucerne all over the world, and growers being paid US$12.50/kg for their high yielding grapes by wineries in California, to name just a few successes.

Kiwifruit have the potential to produce 12 flowers and 12 fruit per cane. Currently, 4-5 are produced. Do you think you are doing well enough when crops are below 50% of potential? The difference is lack of carbohydrate brought about by poor nutrition and some current cultural practices.

Many kiwifruit growers will also be involved with other types of farming. So are we. It is not just about crops. It is more about the soil. It does not matter what plant, crop or animal you grow, or what disease you get, the best answer always comes back to getting the soil fertility right. The key is the soil test and recommendation.

Kiwifruit and PSA

By Sheryl Brown

Kiwifruit growers should be wary of doing the same things they’ve done in the past if they don’t want the same results. Take for example, Psa-V says Kiwi Fertiliser’s Tim Jerram. Tim says growers need to look at their soil and work to fix the balance of nutrients and minerals, in order to grow more resistant, healthy vines – so they don’t keel over to Psa or any other pest or disease.

“They’re trying to kill Psa, but the soil is still deficient in nutrients. The disease will come back again if nothing else changes.”

In contrast to many orchards in the Bay of Plenty, the 20-plus kiwifruit orchards Tim and Brett Petersen are fertilising with a Kiwi Fertiliser regime for several years, are yet to suffer from Psa, including Tim’s own orchard in Katikati.

“My neighbours have Psa-V and one has cut out one of his blocks of Gold. I’m directly in the path of the wind and there is nothing on my orchard. I’ve got a little block of Gold, and the rest is Green.”

When his neighbours were hit by Psa, Tim was getting called two or three times a week to warn him about different sprays going on.

“I couldn't work out what the strategy was.

“Growers were just grabbing at straws and spraying things on and hoping things were going to improve.

“There are a lot of growers in that basket. There is nothing that they can hang their hat on that this is going to work.”

Tim is putting the resistance of his and other orchards down to having balanced soils, with excellent mineral levels, after having testing his soil during the years and administering the right fertiliser for his soil’s needs.

“You've got to put back in what you are taking out – what’s going out the farm gate. But you need to start doing that from a balanced state, not a deficient one.”

All growers or farmers who start with Kiwi Fertiliser should start with a Perry soil test. Tim says some kiwifruit orchards are lacking almost everything when it comes to trace elements. Our goal is to lift the overall mineral level to ‘excellent levels’ says Tim, which can take between 24-36 months for some minerals and up to five years for others. Girdling is a questionable approach growers should be thinking about more closely too says Tim and Brett.

“Girdling goes against the natural order of things. In normal circumstances, about 60% of sugars manufactured in the leaf go to the roots and 50% of that goes into the soil to feed the microbes. In turn, the microbes make the minerals available to the plant. “Girdling stops that from happening,” says Brett.

But it’s pseudo-economic reasoning that is behind girdling says Tim.

“Growers do it to spend the least amount of money to get results.“Plant-wise it leaves a lot to be desired”, and through fixing the soil and growing more healthy, resistant plants, they will achieve those results and more, naturally anyway”.

Rob Martin is pretty new to growing kiwifruit. He has had his orchard at Te Teko for six years, growing half a hectare of Gold and 5ha of Green.

Psa has made Rob stand back at look at the ‘whole picture’ and that has led him to using Kiwi Fertiliser on his orchard.

“From a global perspective, the only thing making sense to me is a well balanced biological approach,” says Rob.

“The object is to build a plant that is going to have a strong immune system and resist any disease or pest.

“From a new grower’s perspective, it’s been difficult being challenged by Psa, and I can’t make any sense out of the direction coming out of the scientific side of things.

“There is no logical way forward there for me – what they’re working on – with the copper etcetera. That is how they try to kill it, rather than looking at why the disease is there in the first place. It is not logical that a disease can attack a truly healthy organism.”

Phyllis Tichinin has a degree in Environmental Planning and Management with emphasis on soils and agricultural economics. She has been a soils consultant and has recently trained in animal nutrition and alternative approaches to animal health with Dr Paul Dettloff, senior consulting veterinarian to Organic Valley Dairies, USA. Phyllis educates about nutrition, and farms in Hawkes Bay.

It’s the urea, folks

We have a slug of serious problems in dairying that we didn’t have 40 years ago: reliance on supplemental feeds and antibiotics, poor conception rates, calf scours, high milk urea (MU), nitrate leachate and a stink profit margin.

We’re spending fertiliser money creating ‘funny protein’ grass that burns out our cows at 2.5 lactations, pollutes our rivers, propels us in the direction of very expensive barns, alienates consumers and reduces the very healing qualities of milk fat that the world desperately needs and will eventually value. We’ve gone beyond shooting ourselves in the foot. Despite the temporary illusion created by this wonderful dairy payout…the muzzle is aimed higher off the ground.

We CAN grow larger volumes of high soluble solids, complete protein, diverse species pastures that beat the pants off any competition. We can do it by driving our fertiliser programs with lime, key trace elements, humic acid granules and judicious use of foliar urea. All at lower cost than our present reliance on 200 + kg/ ha/ yr of neat urea and certainly at less cost to our environment and health.

And it can be done at Olsen P’s below 20. There is no need to continue large applications of cadmium and fluoride tainted Super Phosphate to maintain Olsen P ratings that are already through the roof.

Our fertiliser cooperative executives are selling us down the river because there is no margin in lime and they need the high turnover figures to justify their salaries. Sorry, guys. It’s time to call a spade a spade. All of these band-aids we ‘need’ to apply because we grow stink, urea- addicted grass makes everyone else money except us. Farmers are the patsies in all this.

The first illusion that must fall away is the thinking that says agriculture can successfully function as a chemical system based on petroleum inputs. No, it is a complex biological system governed by microbes which need to be fed the full range of macro and micronutrients in their most biology- friendly forms.

Urea as a Crude Tool

Using urea as the basis for pasture growth creates high levels of nitrate nitrogen in the forage. We’ve all been assured that we grow ‘good’ pasture with a crude protein content around 20%. The international standard for ideal pasture crude protein content is 16%. What that figure really tells us is that we have excessive levels of nitrate in our grass, not real, complete protein. These excessive levels of nitrate start the negative urea cascade of poor animal health, depressed production, higher costs and lower profit.

Our pasture crude protein test actually cheaply measures elemental nitrogen. It’s expensive to measure amino acids or real protein content, so the test measures nitrogen and then multiples it by 6.25 to get an assumed level of ‘protein’.

It is indeed a crude measure since to actually get usable protein from nitrogen you need a range of other minerals and lots of energy to change nitrate into amino acids chains and then into real protein. To turn nitrate into usable protein, the cow’s rumen microbes need high levels of carbon/sugar/ energy and trace elements in their diet.

The easiest way to get that is to grow grass that’s high in soluble solids/brix/ minerals/energy. This doesn’t happen with reliance on neat urea as the main fertiliser. Our standard Urea and Superphosphate fertiliser program is not supplying an adequate balance of the dozens of minerals needed for complete proteins and high soluble solids in forage. One of the most visible effects is projectile cow poos.

The majority of the nitrogen in neat urea applied (56% according to Fonterra) either off-gases into the air or becomes nitrate leachate through the soil. The nitrate takes calcium, magnesium and other minerals with it when it heads into the water ways. It’s not possible to have high nitrate grass with high levels of soluble solids. It’s also difficult to get fully mineralised forage or crops from soils treated with glyphosate.

Glyphosate does NOT decompose in the soil for decades and in the meantime it locks up soil minerals while promoting the fungi that create mycotoxins in preserved feed. Thus we put high nitrate, low energy and low mineral grass into our cows and the rumen microbes can’t cope with the excessive nitrogen. And this is where the urea ill-health cascade really kicks in:

Excessive nitrate in the forage promotes the growth of methanogen bacteria in the rumen. This class of bacteria can digest high N feed better than the ideal rumen microbes. Problem is they create methane and cows then belch it out and get tarred with the ‘nasty greenhouse gas producing’ shame label. Ruminants don’t inherently pollute, it really depends on what they eat.

Excess nitrate in the rumen becomes ammonia and seeps into the blood through the rumen wall. Ammonia is toxic to the animal. It reduces oxygen in the blood. The result is basically sick, underperforming cows that are overtaxing their livers and pulling lactose/ sugar out of their systems in an attempt to convert the excess nitrate/nitrite/ ammonia back to urea and get it the hell out of their bodies by every conceivable means. We’re feeding our animals unnaturally high levels of nitrate.

We observe their frantic efforts to get rid of the nitrogen and assume it’s normal. It’s NOT; it’s just average and a poor, expensive average at that. Cows can be a powerful positive source of soil regeneration but not with the way we’re fertilising.

If we took the hundreds of millions we’re spending on Greenhouse Gas research and used it for lime and trace element applications we’d markedly reduce emissions, have healthier animals AND prompt humus formation, CO2 sequestration for better infiltration and water-holding in the soil.

Since we assume that high crude protein/ nitrate levels in pasture are good, we don’t generally take the timely measures to compensate: things like long stem hay for more carbohydrate/ DM and a good rumen mat; bentonite clay and humate powder for detox; and molasses for extra energy. Eventually the cow’s liver can’t cope with the demand to convert ammonia to pee-able urea and ammonia ends up circulating in the blood where it accumulates in the extremities contributing to lameness.

Converting ammonia to less harmful urea in the liver requires lots of energy from the cow prompting the negative energy balance and rapid loss of body condition we see post-calving just when the demands of high milk production coincide with….you guessed it – high nitrate, lush, urea- fueled spring grass.

A cow losing condition in a negative energy balance is not going to figure it’s a good idea to ovulate and sustain a pregnancy as that could threaten her very existence. So we have non-cycling cows, use of CIDRs to force ovulation, increased phantom pregnancies and an embarrassingly low first mating conception rate of 48% with an overall fertilisation rate of 67%. And we congratulate ourselves on having stalled the decline when we are a long way from the 2016 goal of 78% fertilisation rate.

Even if the cow conceives, the circulating ammonia is toxic to foetus which could help to explain our disappointing breed back rates. Remember that the number of lactations you get out of a cow is the most powerful factor in long term dairy profit. Cows don’t hit peak production until years 5 – 7 and they used to last until year 14 – 16. Now the majority are going to the works before 5 years old. I think we need to acknowledge that we’ve become accustomed to nutritionally crippled cows and take on board that we can do much better with the quality of the pasture we provide. Better for the animals, for production and for profit.

So now we have a pregnant cow producing, but losing condition, on a minerally deprived diet which leads to an impaired immune system. We purchase supplemental minerals to put in the water or in the ration to compensate for what is not coming through in the pasture. Where are these soil minerals that the cow’s system needs? Well, they weren’t there enough in the first place, or they’re locked up or made less available by the low soil pH created by urea and Superphosphate applications. Or they’ve ended up in the rivers having been pulled out of the soil profile by the nitrate leaching from straight urea applications.

Antibiotics – the Dark Side

Any animal that is minerally impoverished will have a weak immune system. For dairy cows that means it’s hard for them to deactivate pathogens or mount a satisfactory defence against infections. So we get, according to Dairy NZ, half of the national herd under treatment for mastitis at some stage during the year. And then we rely on increasing levels of antibiotics and dry cow therapy to get us through to the next season. What we seem to be ignoring is that antibiotics negatively alter rumen microbes – the key workforce in milk production. And antibiotics impair immune function. A surprisingly large percentage of administered antibiotics spill, still active, from the faeces and urine into the soil and into the waterways. There they do the same thing they do in the gut, especially at continuous low levels. They rapidly create resistance to antibiotics in a wide range of microbes and often to additional classes of antibiotics. E.coli, for example, once a benign and useful microbe on ‘our’ side, has gone over to the enemy and uses ‘plug and play’ antibiotic resistance training modules called transposons to teach multiple resistances to completely unrelated microbe species.

In a surprising move in November, the US FDA asked pharmaceutical companies to voluntarily reduce use of antibiotics for growth promotion in animal feed, signalling that within 5 years it would be putting prohibitions in place. The Center for Disease Control is clear that use of antibiotics in animal production creates antibiotic resistance that limits human treatment options….we’re running out of antibiotics that work consistently for us and there are no further options in the antibiotic pipeline. And if you think we aren’t affected by this in NZ dairying, think again. Any monesin based coccidiostat / growth promoter in animal feed, bolus or water is an antibiotic and has potentially serious impacts on fatty acid creation, cell metabolism and insulin levels. We need holistic animal health advice that is truly for the benefit of the farmer’s bottom line. When was the last time your vet expressed concern over use of dry cow therapy or suggested that your animal health challenges might have something to do with nutrition and your fertiliser program?

So then we have all this withheld mastitis milk going to waste so we feed it to our replacement calves. Would you do that to your children? We feed our future herd a cocktail of antibiotics creating depressed immune systems and antibiotic resistance in them and then wonder why we have heifers calving with mastitis. So we give them dry cow therapy to ‘make sure for next time’ and we make the problem worse. It’s not working….deal to the basic issue which is that our animals are not only underfed but undernourished. Watery, high crude protein grass can’t provide the complex minerals and sugars needed for healthy animals. We’re just fighting expensive losing battles until we change the way we fertilise.

Massey researchers last year completed a study on Milk Urea (Most dairying countries use Milk Urea Nitrogen (MUN) but NZ standard is for Milk Urea (MU) expressed as mg/dl. The MUN figure is 47% smaller than the MU number). Get to know this MU acronym as I predict it will become the key indicator we use for quality dairying in the not too distant future. Open Country Dairy provided over a thousand milk component data points for a several year research project in the Waikato on how MU levels affect milk characteristics. They found MU levels that are rather higher than what is considered normal internationally. They also tested pasture crude protein and soluble solids levels on ten of these farms to link pasture characteristics with milk characteristics. Turns out high crude protein (high nitrate) / low soluble solids in forage creates high MU levels in milk which reduce ALL of the milk component indicators of protein, fat and lactose. Excessive urea makes poor quality milk. Since there is a direct numerical link between MUN and urea in the urine, we could be using the simple, daily MUN readings as an early warning system for nitrate leachate. It would be a darn sight easier than an Overseer program.

To put it crudely – we are pouring fertiliser nitrogen that could become usable protein for the cow, down a rat hole instead. We’re wasting protein components in the rumen because we’re growing minerally poor, low energy grass and the rumen microbes can’t utilise all the nitrogen we’re throwing at them. So the nitrogen goes into the cow’s blood where it creates a variety of havoc and then spills out into the environment where it damages water quality and the ecosystem in general. The cow also excretes excess nitrogen into the milk reducing milk quality, cheese quality and payout. We’re creating the problems and expenses associated with dairying by unscientific and minerally impoverished fertiliser programs. It doesn’t have to be this way! A more balanced fertiliser blend, based on the calcium in lime and trace elements with foliar application of liquid nitrogen at much reduced rates actually yields more DM, more milk, less water use, more worms, higher soluble solids in the grass, less spent on animal health and higher profit. This practical approach reduces nitrate leachate and creates better quality milk. We can do…it is being done here right now.

The Future is Fat

We’re missing out on the real future of milk, which is not in its protein content but in its fat content and the allied fat soluble Vitamins A, D3 and K2. These vitamins can only be found, in their right form for us, in saturated animal fats. So I’m alienating the vegetarians and vegans here, too. Wake up, folks. Pretty much all our modern health problems can be traced back to poorly mineralised soils growing nutrient poor crops compounded by a serious deficiency of the fat soluble activators. They’re called activators because without vitamins A and D as catalysts the other minerals and vitamins in our diet can’t be properly utilised for protein creation. Proteins are the basis for hormones, enzymes and blood. They are involved in every body process. And here’s the kicker – Vitamin K2 has to be present for A and D to work properly and it’s only available in animal fat – particularly in butterfat. Vitamin D3 and A deficiency is now being implicated in every health problem we’ve got – heart disease, cancer, osteoporosis, diabetes, mental disorders. We’ve been chasing the wrong health train for 50 years. It’s not about avoiding natural animal fats, it’s about embracing them! Our appalling and deteriorating health stats should have made that clear to us decades ago….must have been the impaired mental capacity from lack of butter in our diets.

So how do we get high, fat-soluble vitamin butterfat? Here is where our not so secret but undervalued advantage comes in. Vitamin K2, that makes butter orange, is only created from cows grazing directly on rapidly growing green, well-mineralised, high calcium, low nitrate pastures. We have the nearly unique potential to create THE natural food components that are critically needed by all pre-conception parents, pregnant women, children, athletes, the aging…. well, everyone, really. These are the same natural, saturated fat vitamin components that give great flavour to the world’s great dishes and which solve the pressing problems of dental caries, orthodontia, dementia, atherosclerosis, kidney stones, birth defects and cancer, to name a few.

Instead we’re focusing on protein. We export dried, oxidized cholesterol milk powder around the globe, particularly to babies in China, setting them up for a life of immune and mental deficiencies through lack of the natural fats in mother’s milk. Surely you didn’t think I’d let milk companies get away scott free in this polemic? New Zealand milk companies have made butter oil for decades as a way of preserving cream components for reconstitution with dry milk powder in overseas factories. Butter oil is where the gold is, literally. We need to go back to marketing milk for its the real value – butterfat, and its high content of crucial Vitamins A, D3 and K2. Keep the milk solids at home and add value by giving them to grass-raised pigs which we then sell to China. Hint…pork lard has the highest Vitamin D3 content of any food except bear fat and we’re not about to start farming bears.

Let’s see, I’ve probably enraged everyone except the Jersey breeders and the pork producers…while I’m at it I may as well finish with a go at the banks. Where do you guys get off? You’re clearly not operating in the old mode of conservative advisor who has the farmer and the community’s best interest at heart. Get a life that actually improves the financial strength of farm families and the nation. You can still make a good living. There’s no need to be that bloody greedy.

We can easily produce the world’s best medicinal butterfat at an eye-watering premium while improving the quality of our soils, water and the health. There could be tremendous job satisfaction knowing that we’re creating food that truly nourishes and eventually heals both people and the environment at a great profit.

Our present high nitrate, low soluble solids (low mineral content) forage and the resulting water quality problems from leachate is NOT a good reason for sacrificing our low cost pasture-based advantage by moving into barns and total mixed ration for our cows. Fix the basic problem!! Use our cheap lime to drive quality grass growth that creates high vitamin A, D3 and K2 butter fat, healthy long-lived cows and a premium product that transforms human health.

I supply the references below that substantiate what I have said here.

Urea Cascade References – hundreds of other sources exist that corroborate the impacts of excessive applications of neat urea

Fert Applications & Soil Impacts

Urea amounts applied

Dexcel predictions for average all grass system applications for 2010 of 170 kg N/ha (or 370 kg urea/ ha)

Nitrogen loses

Numerous articles on nitrogen in pasture settings and greenhouse gas considerations
greenhouse.unimelb and
greenhouse.unimelb

Summit Quinphos “on average 50% of the nitrogen from the ordinary urea you apply is lost after application.” Dairy Exporter Sept 2009 p 28

Only 30 -40% N applied to soil (fert +dung & urine) gets used to grow more plants. 300% increase in Australian dairy farm use of N early 1990’s to early 2000’s with only 65% increase production Weak correlation N applied & farm profit in Ireland, Australia and NZ Nitrogen – Growth Promotant for Pastures Richard Eckard Univ. Melbourne 2006

N2O, nitrate and soil carbon losses increased, with N fert application Visual Soils Assessment Vol 1. G. Shepherd 2009

Milk Urea N an excellent predictor of urinary N excretion. Using Milk Urea Nitrogen to Predict Nitrogen Excretion and Utilisation Efficiency in Lactating Dairy Cows. J.S. Jonkers et all 1998 J Dairy Sci 81:2681-2692

Reduced N usage Possible

NZ dairy farms can use 1/3rd the solid urea and produce 21t DM while leaching less than 18 kg N/ ha. Using Humic Compounds to Improve Efficiency of Fertiliser Nitrogen. P. Schofield et al. Fertiliser and Lime Institute 2012 Multiple abstracts on biological fertiliser/management effectiveness. Comparisons between ‘conventional’ and low-input ‘biological’ www.biologicalfarmers.co.nz

Plant Uptake Issues and Results

Nitrate Content Impacts Pasture Quality

Higher Nitrate levels Assoc with weight loss, milk reduction, abortions. Most NZ dairy forages are Nitrate accumulators: rye, wheat, maize. Mineral deficiencies in cows reduce ability to convert NO3 to protein. Ammonium uptake by roots preferable to nitrate uptake. A Review of factors affecting and prevention of pasture- induced nitrate toxicity in grazing animals. Bolan and Kemp NZ Grasslands Assoc 2003

Nitrate content in pasture increases with N fertilisation Massey No 4 Dairy unit experiment 2002 cited in Bolan and Kemp 2003 above

Prolonged use (16 yr) of N fertiliser caused massive declines in blood copper levels in cows resulting in reduced milk yields, increased anaemia, depressed immune response, more virulent viruses Copper necessary for catalase formation. Bacteria become pathengenic because blood and tissues are catalase deficient. Soil, Grass and Cancer. Andre Voisin 1959. Acres USA 1999

Highly fertilised pasture, esp clover, result in high N being released in rumen without adequate energy for microbes= health problems with ammonia toxicity. Nitrogen – Growth Promotant for Pastures Richard Eckard Univ. Melbourne 2006

Excess nitrate in pasture is a health issue for ruminants. The breakdown of these harmful nitrates happens faster on a diet rich in readily available carbohydrates – high brix grass – because the anaerobic rumen microbes use the fermentation products of carbohydrates to speed up the nitrate reduction reaction. Takahashi, et al. Effects of dietary protein and energy levels on the reduction of nitrate and nitrite in the rumen and methemoglobin formation in sheep. Jpn. J. Zootech. Sci., 1980, 51, 626–631

Acidosis

Lush, high CP, nitrogenous pasture reduces rumen pH. Nutrition and Lameness in Pasture-Fed Dairy Cattle C.T. Westwood & I.J. Lean Proceed.NZ Soc.Ani.Product. Vol 61 Jan2001 p 128-134

Need for Calcium and Traces

Soil calcium percentages determine availability of trace elements and microbe health. The Albrecht Papers Vol 1. William A Albrecht. Univ Missouri AcresUSA 1999

Science in Agriculture A A Andersen 2002 AcresUSA

Many NZ cows suffering from potassium excess and Ca/Mg and traces deficiencies – link with N fert use. Balancing minerals shown to increase milk production Dr Gavin Wilson March 1998 royal society

Higher Calcium levels promote efficient plant uptake of N. Use of foliar N with humic acid more efficient. Visual Soils Assessment Vol 1 p 116 – 117 Graeme Shepherd 2009

Mycotoxins and Endotoxins

Penicillin moulds in Silage. How they affect Rumen Health 2010 Dr. Anna Catharina Berge en.engormix.com

Higher N fertilisation raises mycotoxin levels. Breaking the Mold. State of Science Review. Charles M. Benbrook read pdf

Fewer infections with less or no N fertilisation B. Birzele, A. Meier, H. Hindorf, J. Krämer and H.-W. Dehne (2002)Epidemiology of Fusarium infection and deoxynivalenol content in winter wheat in the Rhineland, Germany European Journal of Plant Pathology 108 (7), 667-673

Species composition

N fertilisers reduce clover %. The Effects of Urea and ASN on Product. Qual. Irrigated Dairy Pastures In Canterbury NZ. Moir et al 2003 Fert. & Lime Institute

Antibiotics

FDA Phasing Out Certain Antibiotic Use in Farm Animals Dec 11 2013 fda.gov

NZ Antibiotic use

Ionophores (monensin) is 34% (17.82T active ingredient) of ABs used on animals and 20% of all antibiotics used in NZ. NZ Expert Panel Review 1999 p 14-15

Dietary monensin increases survival of deadly EcO157 pathogen. Communities and Survival of Escherichia coli O157:H7 in Monensin-Treated Wastewater from a Dairy Lagoon. Ravva et al. Published online 2013 January 22. 10.1371/journal.pone.0054782

Only 3% difference in cure rate between untreated and antibiotic treated mastitis quarters. There are numerous types of Strep uberis pathogens even on a single farm. These organisms adapt to varying conditions and need to be dealt to with changes to environmental conditions on farm. Mastitis in the NZ L.V. Douglass PhD thesis Massey Univ 1999

58% of sampled calves showed bacterial resistance to commonly used antibiotics MAF Technical Paper 2011/5.3 mpi.govt

BUN & MU

NZ levels 19 to 65 mg/dl milk urea. Peter Thomson, MAF O!A 11-243 17 Jan 2012

NZ Crude Protein in pasture about 20% Jane Kay, DNZ Dairy Exporter Nov 2013 p 40. Also indicated, ”Research suggests these high MU values are not detrimental to the cow,” but no research cited. Also “Lowering MU values will not necessarily reduce environmental N loading as there are numerous other factors….supplements, stocking rate, pasture utilisation.”

Metabolic connections

BUN, MUN, urea excretion all proportionally related. Using MUN to Predict Nitrogen Excretion and Utilisation Efficiency in Lactating Dairy Cows. Jonker et al 198 JDairy Sci 81:2681-2692

Excellent layman’s overview on cow health implications excess nitrate in feed. True Protein vs. ‘Funny Protein’ Dr Jerry Brunetti ACRES USA Feb- April 2004 Vol 34

Ammonia impacts Lameness

Increased CP in pastures & high BUN increases histamine and compromises hoof germinal cells. Low effective fiber & high degradable protein increase risk of laminitis. High CP in pasture and high BUN associated with lameness. Low pH maize silage and lactic acid in fermented feeds prompt rumen acidosis. Nutrition and Lameness in Pasture-Fed Dairy Cattle C.T. Westwood & I.J. Lean Proceed.NZ Soc. Ani. Product. Vol 61 Jan2001 p 128- 134

The Link Between Nutrition, Acidosis, Laminitis and the Environment J. Noceck wcds

Infertility

DNZ: we’ve arrested the decline in fertility but in calf rate at 6 week is 67% with 48% first service conception rate vs 2003 program performance target of 78% by 2016. Dairy Exporter June 2012 p 139

A significant negative association was found between MU level and pregnancy rates in 36,000 cow sample. Relationships Between Milk Urea and Production, Nutrition, and Fertility Traits in Israeli Dairy Herds Hojman et al J Dairy Sci Volume 87, Issue 4, April 2004, Pages 1001–1011

Excess urea impairs reproduction. Using Milk Urea Nitrogen to Predict Nitrogen Excretion and Utilisation Efficiency in Lactating Dairy Cows. J.S. Jonkers et all 1998 J Dairy Sci 81:2681-2692

Lower MU levels less likely to reduce fertility than MU levels above 38 mg/dl in first parity. MU of approx. 26 mg/dl was ideal. Milk Urea Nitrogen and Fertility in Dairy Farms J Anim.Vet. Advances 2010 Vol 9 Issue 10 P 1519- 1525.

Milk Urea Nitrogen and Fertility in Dairy Farms J Anim.Vet. Advances 2010 Vol 9 Issue 10 P 1519-1525.

Negative Energy Balance and BSC

Low fat%, high CP diet, high MUN associated with low fertility, esp. first parity cows. MUN and Fertility in Diary Farms Nourizi et al J Animal & Vet Adv. 2010. Vol 9 Issue 10 www.medwelljournals.com/fulltext/?doi=javaa.2010.1519.1525

73% heifers below target weight at calving LIC data 2013 as cited Bas Schouten Rural Weekly 23 April 2014

25% of heifers left in herd at end of third lactation Bas Schouten, NZ Grazing vet. Rural News 23 April 2014 p 45

Mastitis

A healthy udder has 25,0000 somatic cells/ml. For every clinical mastitis case likely to be 15 to 40 cases of subclinical responsible for up to 70% of the production loses associated with mastitis. $1 spent on mastitis control returns $15 – 20 in production, premiums, and reduced death and culling. Linda Tikosfsky extension vet Cornell Uni March 2008 NODPA News p 34

Dairy NZ’s mastitis specialist, Jane Lacy Hulbert, creator of the DNZ SAMM mastits program, confirmed by phone message that, consistent with the figures on their website ( under Farmer / Industry information), average mastitis rate is 50% of the NZ dairy herd. Phone 9 March 2013

Risk of coliform mastitis increases in housed cows. Who Controls Mastitis? You or the Bugs? Lacy-Hulber & Woolford Dairy NZ

SCC

High SCC prompts high plasmin content negatively affecting milk qualities. Evaluation of the biological activation of plasmin plasminogen system. Rebucci et al. Ital.J. Anim.Sci.Vol 4 (Suppl.2) 330-332, 2005

Milk Component issues

Spatial-time correlation between milk urea with milk components and somatic cell scores of bulk milk samples from farms supplying milk for cheese and milk powder manufacturing. Garcia-Muniz, Lopez- Villalobos, Burke, Sandbrook, Vazquez-Pelaez. NZ Soc. Animal Production Annual Meeting July 2013, Hamilton, NZ Vol 73

Milk Urea Project with Open Country Dairy Ltd. Final Report. Lopez-Villalobos, Burke, Garcia Muniz June 2013

Mastitis SCC MU impacts milk manufacturing Mastitis impact on technological properties of milk and quality of milk products—a review LeMarchel et al Dairy Science & Technology May 2011, Volume 91, Issue 3, pp 247-282 279 references springer Accessed 18 March 2014

Clover forage and protein & fat supplements significantly decreased total milk protein and increased non- protein N, so that casein N was reduced and renneting became poorer. Effects of the levels of N fertiliser, grass and supplementary feeds on nitrogen composition and renetting properties of milk from cows at pasture. J.E. Hermansen et al. J Dairy Research Vol 61 no. 2 1994

Plasmin increases in milk with elevated SCC and mastitis. Evaluation of the biological activation of plasmin plasminogen system in sheep and goat milk. Rebucci et al. Ital.K.Anim.Sci. Vo. 4 ( suppl.2), 330-332 2005

Oxidized Cholesterol

The role of dietary oxidized cholesterol and oxidized fatty acids in the development of atherosclerosis ncbi.nlm &from_uid=16270280 Staprans I1, Pan XM, Rapp JH, Feingold KR. accessed March 2014

Cholesterol oxidation: . oxysterol content milk powder 1.0 – 2.5 ug/g. Eggs 0.05 – 1.50 ug/ g. dependent on process temp and length of storage. Health Hazard and the Role of Antioxidants Valenzuela et al. Biol Res 36: 291- 302, 2003 291. Laboratory of Lipids and Antioxidants, INTA, University of Chile, Santiago, Chile.

Interactions between sphinomyelin and Oxysterols contributes to Atherosclerosis and sudden death. Fred A Kummerow Univ. Illinois. Am J Cardiovasc Dis 2013:3(1): 17-26 How delivery mode and feeding can shape the bacterial community in the infant gut. Song et al . CMAJ, March 19, 2013, 185(5)

C. dificile pathogens associated with enteric and atopic disease more commonly detected in formula fed infants. Gut microbiota of healthy Canadian infants: profiles by mode of delivery and infant diet at 4 months. Asad et al academia.edu

Future is Fat Soluble Activators

Vitamins A, D, K2 crucial to utilisation of all other minerals and vitamins. Nutrition and Physical Degeneration Weston A Price 1945 Chpt 22

On the Trail of the Elusive X-Factor: A Sixty Year Mystery Solved Dr Chris Masterjohn Wise Traditions Journal Vol 9 No. 3

Cut/transported Grass reduces CLA 50%, Omega 3 30% Organic grass-based milk highest in fat soluble quality. Effect of production system and geographic location on milk quality parameters. Butler et al. Newcastle Uni. UK 2012 Gillian.butler@ncl.co.uk

The Pursuit of Happiness: How Nutrient-dense Animal Fats Promote Mental and Emotional Health Dr Chris Masterjohn Wise Traditions Journal Volume 9 No. 4

5 Times more CLA from cows feed on pasture with no supplements Conjugated Linoleic Acid Content of Milk from Cows Fed Different Diets Dihman et al Journal of Dairy Science Journal of Dairy Science Volume 82, Issue 10, October 1999, Pages 2146–215 sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0022030299754585

Herbage based milk higher in CLA Characterization of milk from feeding systems based on herbage or corn silage…..Hurtaud et al Dairy Science & Technology March 2014, Volume 94, Issue 2, pp 103-123 link.springer

Grazing cows are more efficient than zero-grazed and grass silage-fed cows in milk rumenic acid production. Mohammed et al Journal of Dairy ScienceVolume 92, Issue 8, August 2009, Pages 3874–3893 Science direct

Financial impacts intensification and urea fertilisation

Effects on farm profit

Weak correlation N applied & farm profit in Ireland, Australia and NZ Nitrogen – Growth Promotant for Pastures Richard Eckard Univ. Melbourne 2006

Brian Hockings Stratford Project – low input dairies can be as or more profitable than high input dairies Dairy Exporter Dec 2013

Profitable milk production possible without N fertiliser. Profit/ ha increased in only 3 out 10 years with N. Use Fertiliser wisely and well. Chris Glassey DNZ Dairy Exporter Feb 2014.

Potassium in Animal Nutrition

Potassium has been recognized as an essential nutrient in animal nutrition since its importance was pointed out by Sidney Ringer in 1883. Potassium is essential for life. Young animals will fail to grow and will die within a few days when the diet is extremely deficient in K.

Potassium is the third most abundant mineral element in the animal body, surpassed only by calcium (Ca) and phosphorus (P). Potassium concentrations in cells exceed the concentration of sodium (Na) by 20 to 30 times.

Outside the cell the reverse is true. Potassium comprises about 5 percent of the total mineral content of the body.
Muscle contains most of the total K in the bodies of animals (Table 1).

Potassium is contained almost entirely within the cells and is the most plentiful ion of the intracellular fluids. Potassium is found in every cell. It is present in tissues and cells only in ionic form (K+).

Functions of Potassium

Potassium functions in the intracellular fluids the same as Na does in the extracellular fluids. The major functions of K in the human and animal body are to:

• maintain water balance
• maintain osmotic pressure
• maintain acid-base balance
• activate enzymes
• help metabolize carbohydrates and proteins
• regulate neuromuscular activity (along with Ca)
• help regulate heartbeat.

Potassium Deficiency

There are several causes of K deficiency: inadequate amounts of K in diet, K losses in digestive secretions caused by vomiting and diarrhea, high intake of Na, increased urination, and stress conditions. Potassium deficiency may commonly be manifested by depressed growth, muscular weakness, stiffness, decreased feed intake, intracellular acidosis, nervous disorders, reduced heart rate, and abnormal electrocardiograms.

The first sign of K deficiencyis reduced feed intake. Many of the other signs stem from reduced feed intake. Potassium must be supplied in the daily ration because it is a mobile nutrient and there are not any appreciable reserves.

Potassium Uptake and Control

Potassium is absorbed in the small intestine. Its availability in digestion is nearly 100 percent. Most K is lost or excreted in urine.

Potassium (K) is essential for human and animal life. Potassium is involved in many body functions and is required for proper muscle development. Adequate K is also important for good heart function. The recommended daily allowance (RDA) of K varies depending on species, stage of growth, and level of other dietary minerals.

TABLE 1. Concentration and distribution of K in animal body.

Tissue or organ K	&nbsp meq/kg K	&nbsp %
Muscle	110.0	56.0
Skin	58.6	11.1
Digestive tract	96.6	5.6
Liver	95.0	5.3
Red blood cells	4.2	106.0
Blood plasma	4.2	2.2
Brain	98.6	1.4
Kidney	77.6	0.9
Lung	79.3	0.5
Spleen	130.0	0.4
Heart	77.8	0.4
Bones and other	—	12.6

There is a small amount lost in perspiration. Kidneys play the most important role in maintenance and control of K. Under stress conditions the kidneys tend to excrete more K and conserve more Na.

Potassium in Human Nutrition

The usual American diet normally contains adequate K. The RDA is 2,500 milligrams (mg). The usual intake is 2,000 to 4,000 mg per day. Problems with K intake can occur. Diets low in carbohydrates lower blood K and can cause an irregular heartbeat. Potassium deficiency can become serious due to K depletion in cases of cirrhosis of the liver, diarrhea, vomiting, diabetic acidosis, body burns, and severe protein-calorie malnutrition.

Potassium plays important functions in good cardiac health. Blood pressure is influenced by K. It helps overcome the adverse effect of Na on blood pressure. Sodium can be balanced with K to maintain normal blood pressure.

Potassium in Animal Nutrition

Potassium is especially important in diets of chickens and turkeys during the first 8 weeks. During heat stress, or if there is any diarrhoea, the needed levels may be higher. Adequate K in the ration of laying hens assures good egg production, egg weight, and shell thickness. In starter chicks and turkey poults, adequate K increases weight gain, improves feed efficiency, and reduces mortality.

Swine K requirement is higher for young pigs than for older ones. It ranges from about 0.33 percent (dry matter basis) in rations of small pigs weighing up to 8 lb, to 0.19 percent in rations of pigs weighing more than 180 lb

(Table 2). The K requirement for gestating and lactating sows is 0.20 percent. Potassium requirement increases in diets with higher Na and chloride (Cl) levels.

Ruminants have a higher K requirement than non-ruminants. Potassium is essential for rumen microorganisms. The single most consistent effect of suboptimal K in the ration of ruminants is decreased feed intake.

Lactating dairy cattle, particularly high producing cows, require the highest levels of dietary K. Under heat stress, their optimal level of dietary K can be as high as 1.9 percent, but the normal National Research Council (NRC) recommendation is 1.0 percent of dietary dry matter (Table 2). Less K (0.65 percent) is recommended for dry cows, calves and heifers. During the last three to four weeks before calving, excessive K in the dry cow diet can increase the incidence of milk fever and retained placentas.

This can lead to reduced milk production during the subsequent lactation. The maximum amount of K desirable in the dry cow diet depends on the use of anionic salts and other factors, but generally forage K shouldbe less than 2.5 percent. Cool-season forages tend to contain more K than warm-season grasses. Thus, problems of excess occurless frequently in southern than in northernregions.

TABLE 2. Recommended K level, % in dry ration.

&nbsp&nbsp

Animal Recommended	level1
Beef cattle	0.6-0.7
Dairy cattle	0.65-1.0
Sheep	0.5
Swine	0.19-0.33
Horses	0.25-0.45
Poultry:
Starting chicks	0.30
Laying or breeding hens	0.40
Turkeys	0.6-0.8

1National Research Council of National Academy of Science.

The RDA of beef cattle is about 0.5 to 0.7 percent of dry ration (Table 2). Several studies have been reported with weight gains of steers on rations containing optimum levels of K. In Texas and Tennessee, elevating K levels to 1.4 percent of dietary dry matter helped reduce the stress of shipping calves and lambs to feedlots. Grass tetany and wheat pasture poisoning are metabolic diseases of lactating cattle. These occur most frequently in animals grazing cool-season forages in which magnesium(Mg) concentration or availability is low (less than 0.2 percent). High levels of K, unbalanced with Mg, can increase risk of grass tetany. Milliequivalent ratios of K/(Ca+Mg) above 2.2 in forage dry matter are considered hazardous. Grass tetany risk is reduced by feeding Mg supplements. Also, fertilizing with phosphorus (P) can enhance plant uptake of Mg.

Higher K levels clearly help get crops through periods of stress. Many observations show the need to plan a strong K soil fertility program to make crop yields more certain in an uncertain environment.

Effective Water Use

Potassium helps crops use water more effectively. The positive benefits of adequate K fertility are:

• Deeper roots. Potash helps plant roots penetrate to access deeper soil water, as illustrated at right.
• Faster closing of the crop canopy. When the crop canopycloses, the ratio of transpiration to evaporation increases, which meansmore of the available water, is used by the crop.
• Greater osmotic gradient. The more K inside the plant cell, the more strongly it can attract water from the soil – and better control its water loss.
• Earlier maturity. Adequate K helps ensure plants will get through the critical pollination period earlier – before drought.

The assistance of Dr. Steve Leeson, Dr. C.F.M. de Lange, and Dr. Jock Buchanan- Smith of the University of Guelph and Dr. Larry Chase of Cornell is gratefully acknowledged.

The following is by Michael Astera. Excesses of K in the animal:

• Interfere with correct calcium and magnesium metabolism: Depresses blood magnesium by interfering with magnesium absorption across the intestinal tract.
• Contributes to micronutrient (copper and selenium) imbalances.
• Contributes to grass tetany, milk fever, “downer cow” syndrome.
• Contributes to pathogenic microbe overgrowth in the gut.
• Contributes to immune suppression.
• Reduces the desire for sodium (salt) and water intake.
• Normal Na:K (salt to potassium) ratio in cattle saliva is greater than 10.0.
• Are deadly to horses with the genetic disorder, HYPP (Hyperkalemic Periodic Paralysis).

Excesses of K in the plant:

• Reduce calcium and magnesium uptake from the soil.
• May contribute to the proliferation of pathogenic microbes.
• May encourage endophyte activity in fescue and rye.
• Will reduce uptake of sodium sufficient for animal health.
• Occur readily in grass plants.
• Causes chloride levels to spike.
• Occur especially during sudden climatic changes.
• Cool, wet conditions cause sodium, calcium and magnesium to decrease, while potassium spikes. Especially bad in prolonged droughts followed by sudden changes after abundant rainfall, along with frosts and freezes; sudden heat elevations that cause a rapid grass growth in frost damaged plants.
• Promotes growth of pathogenic organisms.
• May encourage excessive growth of endophyte and other pathogenic fungi, especially in fescue and rye.
• Anything that suppresses the uptake of Calcium and Magnesium in the plant will result in the inability of the plant to biosynthesize protein, because this biosynthesis cannot take place without balanced levels of Ca and Mg. As a further consequence, the lowering of protein biosynthesis in the plant may contribute to excessive levels of carbohydrates and non-nutritive nitrogen.

Click here to learn more about urea and animal health.

Salt Deficiency – A bag of lost opportunities for Dairy Farmers -  Dr Steve Whittaker BVSc South Waikato Veterinary Services

Salt (Sodium) deficiency in NZ pastures is costing most dairy farmers lost milk production. Recent world leading research by Dr Clive Philips and Dr Paul Chiy of the Department of Clinical Veterinary medicine at the Cambridge University in the United Kingdom have proved that salt supplementation, among other things, increased milk production.

Dr Philips & Chiy showed that the addition of salt (sodium to the diet of a cow on a typical natrophilic perennial ryegrass/clover sward had two major beneficial effects on the digestion system of the cow.

Click here to download and read article

Dead and dying calves

Many thanks for the extra data very interesting soils, so low in magnesium and the high molybdenum is a very big issue. The molybdenum if coming through in the plant tissues will antagonise copper severely, and cause a severe copper deficiency. Copper is required to switch on iron, and iron is already low on theses soils and may also be in the plants. Iron is required to carry oxygen around the body in the red blood cells, without iron the animal will become anaemic, silent heats will occur, they will show lack of vigour, and ill thrift, they will have pale eyelids, gums and inner vulvas. The low copper can result in falling disease, sudden death with seemingly no symptoms, because the blood vessels have collapsed, and heart attack has occurred, side wall cracks in hooves and overlong toes will be seen, the animals will have a roan colour to their coat, and be hairy. Low magnesium lets potassium dominate which can cause poor microbial balance in the rumen and cause a sodium, potassium imbalance so bloat is more likely as is grass tetany and milk fever and osteoporosis. Magnesium is also a calming mineral so animal behaviour may also be erratic.

Any tissue tests on the paddocks they may have would be very useful additional information.

Phosphate is obviously not the limiting factor. Magnesium is a phosphorus synergist carrying P into the plant. If there is not enough P getting into the plant in high P soils i.e. 500kg P2O5, then there is inadequate microbial activity in the soil and inadequate magnesium arriving at the plant.

The Thiamin disease you referred to is a Vitamin B1 deficiency. This is induced by high sulphur and or moly and very low copper levels in the feed the animal is eating. Symptoms are blindness, head pressing (tipping the head to one side) and circling before finally sitting down on their haunches and dying. Thiamin can be injected, but is only good at keeping the animal alive short term. The key is to supplement with copper and B group vitamins. Kelp is very good for the supply of all B vitamins and maybe even better is yeast, and copper can be injected or supplied in a rumen bolus or even as a lick of copper sulphate. These animals will not gain weight or be productive until the problem is addressed.

Peter Norwood - B App Sc Ag
Dip Nutritional Balancing & Hair Mineral Analysis 
Full Circle Nutrition 
28 Dixon St 
Stratford, Vic 3862 
Australia 

ph: 03 51457039 
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