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“Sugarbeet Report” presented by NDSU Extension, features growing tips from NDSU sugar beet specialists and researchers.
This is the Sugarbeet Report, bringing you the latest information from NDSU throughout the sugar beet growing season. Depending on your location, you may or may not have to deal with pH balance in your soil. Daniel Kaiser, University of Minnesota Extension soil scientist, is researching the use of factory lime. Daniel, tell us about your projects related to soil pH.
Daniel Kaiser:For the last few years, I've been looking at the liming guidelines for Minnesota. And I know for some sugarbeet growers, that probably isn't as much of an issue if you're dealing with high pH soils. Specifically in the southern region, I know there's some fields out there that seeing some drops in pHs, particularly in hilltop areas that you can see pH drop to the point where we're kinda questioning whether or not we need lime. I've had a study in place since 2023. It was initially funded by the Minnesota Soybean Research and Promotion Council, and then I've had some funding last year. Then also, we'll have some more funding this year from the Sugarbeet Research and Education Board where we incorporated the factory lime or what I call PCC or precipitated calcium carbonate. But factory limes, spent lime, waste lime, whatever you wanna call it, it is an available source to use. I mean, it's calcium carbonate, so it's anything similar to what you would see with the quarry lime. Some of our first trials out last year where we're looking at pH correction, but with the factory lime since it does contain other nutrients like phosphorus and potassium. I'm also looking at that because some of the earlier work that Albert Sims and I think John Lam had some work where they looked at nutrient availability. They weren't seeing a whole lot of availability specifically of the phosphorus, and I think a lot of that may have been more of a factor of a lot of the sites that they were testing it on were sites that were commonly had beats in the rotation that had higher pHs. So the availability may not been as high if you've got calcium bound phosphorus. If you're putting it into a soil that's already with high pH that it just might not solubilize. You know, some interesting things last year seeing, you know, potentially some availability. These are specifically on more acidic soils where there might be a greater chance there with that. So it looked like we were seeing some uptake from that. So that's one of the things that's gonna be tracking. These sites are five year studies, so we apply just the initial of the first year then just track availability over time. Hopefully, get two more sites in here this spring, weather permitting. I've been really just targeting soils that had more acidic soils with this and not as much, with beets in the rotation because we've got a fair amount of data with that just based on some of the previous research.
Bruce Sundeen:Why are many of your studies long term?
Daniel Kaiser:Yeah. And a lot of what we've been trying to do too has been looking at economics because that's always the question in Minnesota. We've got two different areas in the western part of the state where the subsoils are more calcareous or more basic. So we tend to see where it doesn't take as much lime to change the pH, but also if you look at the data on a lot of our annual crops, it hasn't been real consistent with seeing some high returns on investment. To get into crops that are more impacted by pH, There's some things there. So that's really the idea of why we do the long term studies. A single year in and out doesn't really tell us the whole picture, and that's what I'll be curious to see with the factory lime when we get further out if we still see some increases in uptake of some of the other nutrients that, might be tracking that's giving us a little bit more of a long term sustained release of some of that material. So they said that's what time will tell with these studies.
Bruce Sundeen:Daniel, do you have any recommendations for this spring?
Daniel Kaiser:Few things to kinda look at this spring. His, I haven't really had any major changes to the fertilizer guidelines, you know, PNK specifically. We had a study out last year where we're looking at timing of phosphorus application, at a site by Renville. Saw some phosphorus responses. We were comparing some different starters with that as well. I'd like to kinda get back to that trial at some point if I can find funding for it because I've been kinda wondering some of the talk on stand reduction with urea, whether or not we see some of the same things with starter, and that would kinda point, I think, to where maybe I've been looking at some of the low salt blends to potentially why we're seeing some of those reductions, but there's not a lot to report there. One of the things though that Southern Min did put out a new nutrient management quick sheet. I think it's something to take a look at because I've been talking with them with some of the nitrogen guideline data or the data we have. They're looking at the guidelines that there may be some adjustments they're already recommending for nitrogen in that region. So that's one of the things that isn't reflected in the production guide right now, but we'll probably be talking with them, especially when we look at updating the production guide this fall that that will be going in. So if you're in the Southern region, I'd look at that. It's just something I think to be aware of. They sent out that quick sheet. Just take a look at it because there might be some things to consider for 2026, potentially some changes in the South.
Bruce Sundeen:Thanks, Daniel. Our guest has been Daniel Kaiser, University of Minnesota Extension soil scientist. This has been the Sugarbeet Report, bringing you the latest information from NDSU throughout the sugar beet growing season.