Web design by Lewis McKerrow 2011

Nitrogen fertiliser is the biggest single costing input that is spent to grow crops or grass, and is the fertiliser unit that gives the highest yield response. To produce nitrogen in factories takes a massive amount of energy so it is therefore has a environmental footprint that is high. It is therefore a desire of farmers to use as little Nitrogen as possible to produce the highest yields.

The last 5 years has seen the development of Nitrogen Sensors. These are attached to the tractor or sprayer when spreading fertiliser and take a live scan of the crop to determine how green it is. Early season areas that are less green need more nitrogen than the better areas. On the 2nd application the crop is re-assessed and if these areas haven’t sufficiently improved then they either get a reduced rate or non at all as they are deemed non responsive. The good areas will receive an optimum dose to maximise yield, however if they receive too much there is a risk that the grain could get too heavy and the crop could go flat.

In 2010 Knockothie Farms invested in an Agleader OptRx Nitrogen sensor system to increase the efficiency and environmental impact from using nitrogen fertilisers. After the initial year we have assessed the results and shall continue to develop our use of this technology.