Manure 101: Nutrient Management and the Dairy Industry.

Kevin Erb UW-Extension NPM Program

Farmer View of Site-Specific Future Manure Regulations What is Nutrient Management? Common Sense.
0* Combine on-farm nutrient sources, with commercial fertilizer, to meet crop need.

Environmental Aspects of Manure

1* Nutrients
2* Nitrogen 3* Phosphorus 4* Potassium

5*

Bacteria/Pathogens

6*

BOD

Nitrogen
7* Groundwater Concerns
8* EPA Standard: 10 ppm 9* Blue Baby Syndrome

10* Hypoxia

Hypoxia Phosphorus
11* Surface Water Concern

12* Algae Growth Environmentalists view of how farmers manage manure.

Phosphorus
13* Movement
14* Soil attached is most common route
15* 16* 1 lb P = 500 lb algae One ton soil eroded = 1 ton algae in water

17*

Stop Erosion, Solve Big Part of the Problem

18*

National Buffer Initiative (USA)

Potassium
19* Dairy Animal Health Concern

20*

Too Much in Ration: Ketosis / Milk Fever

Bacteria
21* E. Coli
22* Up to 6 month + viable in soil

23*

Does not survive as well on surface

24*

Enters streams when manure runs off

Antibiotics
25* Animals DO NOT break them down.
26* 27* Excreted intact with the urine Low level resistance concerns

Biochemical Oxygen Demand

* A measure of how much oxygen is removed from a water body by the bacteria breaking down organic materials. (BOD)

Chemical Oxygen Demand (COD)

* Oxygen required to break down chemical compounds in water body.

Manure Basics
28* What is Manure?
29* Urine, feces

30*

Waste feed

31*

Parlor water

32*

Gray water (sinks, etc)

Manure Basics
33* How Much Manure Does a cow produce in a day? A week? A Month? A Year?

The Influence Of Milk Production On Daily Manure Production

How Much Manure?

34*

Typical Dairy Cow:

148 lbs/day (18 gal) 1036 lbs/week (124 gal) 4440 lbs/month (531 gal) 54020 lbs/year (6460 gal)

35* 36* 37* 38*

39*

Does not include youngstock, other wastes

Rule of Thumb #1
40* One cow plus replacement plus wastewater = 10,000 gal/year

What is in manure?
41* Nutrients
42* 43*
44*

Nitrogen, Phosphorus, Potassium Micro nutrients (Sulfur, Boron, etc)

Whatever the cow eats that does not become milk or meat becomes manure.
45*

If its in the feed, its in the manure.

Dairy Diet and Runoff

46* Manure from 2 rations applied 47* 1.28 and 0.48% P (rec is 0.34-0.38)

48* Runoff was 4x higher for high P diet

49* Same lbs P applied

50* Runoff was 10x higher when manure rates were the same.
51* Ebeling et al, 2001

Dairy Diet Impacts

52* Ave P in dairy ration is 0.47%

53*
Gunderson, Keuning & Erb, 2001

54* NRC Recommendation is 0.32-0.38% P

55* Higher rates are due to belief that lower P reduces

reproductive efficiency.

The Manure Paradox

Crops use N:P:K in a 3:1:2 ratio

Dairy manure is a 1:1:2 ratio (available) Meet the crops N need = excess P Meet the crops P need = buy N fert

Manure Nutrient Content - Dairy _____________________________________ N P2O5 K2O

(surface/incorporated)

______________________ Solid (lb/ton) 3/43 8

Liquid (lb/1,000 gal)

8 / 10

21

_____________________________________

Crop Nutrient Removal

N P2O5 K2O
- - - - - - - - - lb/a/yr - - - - - - - -

Corn

(160 bu/a) (23 ton/a)

160* 225 115 250 250

60 90 35 65 125

40 170 40 250 325

Corn silage Soybean Alfalfa

(40 bu/a)

(5 ton/a)

Reed canarygrass
(5 ton/a)

Example of P2O5 Recommendations for Corn

Yield Goal
bu/a Low

Soil Test Level

Optimum High Ex.High

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - lb/acre - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

111-130 131-150 151-170

65 75 80

45 55 60

25 25 30

0 0 0

Corn Nutrient Need vs. Manure Nutrient Supply

Following a Nitrogen Strategy

Manure Application Rates

Nitrogen Strategy 56* Maximum rates 57* P and K in excess of crop need 58* Efficient with time and labor 59* Preferred when land is limited Corn Nutrient Need vs. Manure Nutrient Supply
Following a Phosphorus Strategy

Manure Application Rates

Phosphorus Strategy 60* Low rates 61* Need supplemental nitrogen 62* Increased time and labor 63* Need adequate acreage

Manure Nitrogen Content

Total vs. Available
Solid Manure

Soil Test P Changes Slowly

64* Soil buffering capacity

65* The amount of fertilizer needed to change the soil test level by 1 ppm 66* 18 lbs P2O5/acre = 1 ppm change in soil P

67* Time is required to either lower or raise soil test levels.

Soil Test P Changes Slowly

- Example 68* Soil test P = 75 ppm (EH) 69* Track draw-down of P over a CCOHHH rotation.

Soil Test P Changes Slowly

- Example 70* Soil test P = 75 ppm (EH) 71* Track draw-down of P over a CCOHHH rotation.
72* 73* 74*
Corn @150 bu/a removes 55 lb P2O5/a/yr Oats @ 100 bu/a removes 25 lb P2O5/a/yr Alfalfa @ 5 tons/a removes 65 lb P2O5/a/yr

75* Removal of P2O5 over rotation = 330 lbs P2O5

Soil Test P Changes Slowly

- Example 76* Soil test P = 75 ppm (EH)

77* Track drawdown of P over a CCOHHH rotation. 78* Removal of P2O5 over rotation = 330 lbs P2O5

Soil Test P Changes Slowly

- Example 79* Soil test P = 75 ppm (EH) 80* Track drawdown of P over a CCOHHH rotation. 81* Removal of P2O5 over rotation = 330 lbs P2O5 82* Change in soil test P = 330 lb P2O5/18 =
18 ppm P

Regulations
83* 1972 Clean Water Act

84* Point vs. Non-Point Sources

85* Problem Not Yet Solved.

Regulatory Future
86* Each Providence, State, County, Township may be different.

87*
88* 89* 90*

Future
Lower AU (animal unit) threshold for permit More phosphorus emphasis Future emphasis on bacterial / antibiotics / odor concerns

91*

Short term focus will be on P based nutrient management

Economics
(Nitrogen @ $0.20/lb)

Economics
(P2O5 @ $0.25/lb; K2O @ $0.13/lb)

92* 100 Cow Dairy Manure P2O5 = 93* $ 1,650

(22 tons/cow/year @ 3 lbs P2O5/ton)

Manure K2O =

$ 2,288

(22 tons/cow/year @ 8 lbs K2O/ton)

Total Manure P205 & K2O =

$ 3,938

If You Are Going To Use Manure as a Fertilizer

Soil Test Phosphorus Variability from a Wisconsin Dairy Farm

Public Relations
94* Manure Handling and Application
95* 96* 97* 98* 99* 100* Odor control Real or perceived excessive rates Road spillage Traffic hazards & delays Spreading near water Cattle in water

Challenges of the Future:

101* Dairy Trends.
102* Management: More cows, fewer farms.

103* Realization by farmers that manure management requires a cash investment. 104* Manures Internet IPO: Lots of ideas now, lots of broken ideas coming in a few years. Easiest to use / most farm-profitable techniques will remain.

Opportunities of the Future:

105* Every farm will have a nutrient management plan.

106* 107* 108*

Nitrogen Phosphorus Pendulum Affiliated and independent consultants Site-specific research

109* Between 1992 and 2001, UWGB was the lead institution for mass balance research.

kevin.erb@ces.uwex.edu