Fall-applied cattle manure did not provide nitrogen fertilizer value to spring cereal crops

Abstract

Fall-applied manure may have nitrogen (N) fertilizer value for spring-seeded crops. We applied liquid or solid cattle manure to plots on a sandy-loam soil in southern Quebec in fall. The following spring, half of each plot received urea fertilizer before planting the spring cereal crop. Total N content of the spring cereal at tillering, flowering, and maturity was lower in subplots without urea, and yields were up to 183% less in the no-urea subplots, regardless of whether liquid or solid manure was applied in fall. Fall-applied manure did not provide plant-available N to spring cereals under our growing conditions.