See national chem pricing trends in the FBN Research report
This guide includes the following sections:
What Is Nitrogen?
What Does Nitrogen Do in a Plant?
Synthetic Nitrogen Fertilizers for Crop Production
Organic Nitrogen Fertilizers for Crop Production
When to Apply Nitrogen
Determining Nitrogen Rates
Nitrogen Management Best Practices
Buy Nitrogen at FBN®
Nitrogen is a chemical element that makes up 78% of the Earth’s atmosphere and forms a part of all living tissue. In terms of crop production, nitrogen is one of the three primary macronutrients required by all plants for healthy growth and development.
Nitrogen is generally included in all balanced crop nutrition programs. It exists in several forms for agricultural production, influencing application timing, cost, and management requirements. Understanding its role, forms, and management practices can help you optimize yield and profit potential while limiting negative environmental impacts.
Want to know more about what it takes to feed your crop? Check out Crop Nutrition 101.
Nitrogen is often considered the foundational nutrient of crop production. Here are some essential functions that it performs:
Component of amino acids: Amino acids are the building block of plant proteins and enzymes that carry out critical plant functions, including photosynthesis, hormone regulation, and nutrient transport.
Component of chlorophyll: Chlorophyll molecules capture sunlight to drive plant photosynthesis and, ultimately, crop yield.
Nutrient balance: Adequate plant nitrogen helps crops take up other essential nutrients more effectively.
Improved agronomics: Sufficient plant nitrogen improves crop agronomics, including root development, stalk integrity, and biomass production.
With the exception of legume crops, most plants can’t fix atmospheric nitrogen and instead rely on synthetic or organic fertilizers to meet crop nutrient needs. There are several synthetic nitrogen fertilizer sources, each requiring slightly different management approaches. Basic information about the most common nitrogen fertilizers is included below.
Ammonium nitrate is a dry fertilizer that contains two forms of plant-available nitrogen, NH₄ and NO₃. It typically contains 34% nitrogen by weight and is broadcast as a soil application.
Pros:
Low volatilization losses compared to other N sources
Very plant-available form for fast plant uptake
Cons:
Long-time use can reduce soil pH
Higher risk of leaching and denitrification than other NH₄ fertilizers
Very hygroscopic, requiring special care for handling and storage
Anhydrous ammonia is an efficient and widely used compressed liquid nitrogen fertilizer. It contains 82% nitrogen by weight and is applied using special pressurized application equipment.
Pros:
Contains high nitrogen content; highly efficient nitrogen source
Cost-effective nitrogen source
Readily available
Excellent option for fall applications
Cons:
Can only be applied via soil injection to prevent nitrogen loss to the air as a gas
Requires special equipment for application
Significantly increased safety risks for handling and application
May injure emerging crops when applied near planting time
Not ideal for heavy-textured soils
Can have negative impacts on soil microbes
Urea is a dry-solid nitrogen fertilizer that contains approximately 46% nitrogen by weight.
Pros:
Relatively high nitrogen content
Excellent adaptability for fall, spring, and sidedress applications
Can be applied as a solid, solution, or foliar spray for some crops
Cost-effective and efficient form of nitrogen
Reduces handling, storage, and transportation costs over other dry N forms
Cons:
May be prone to surface volatilization; generally requires soil incorporation to limit loss
Can contribute to soil acidification if used over time
UAN is a liquid urea and ammonium nitrate solution that typically contains 28–32% nitrogen.
Pros:
Liquid source of nitrogen that can be mixed with other crop protection products and fertilizers to add application efficiencies
Safe and easy to handle
Cons:
May be prone to surface volatilization; generally requires soil incorporation to limit loss
Not recommended for fall applications due to rapid nitrification
Phosphorus fertilizers like diammonium phosphate (DAP) and monoammonium phosphate (MAP) also contain significant nitrogen levels, varying between 11% and 18%. These products are a popular choice for farmers looking for a phosphorus and nitrogen source in one.
As well, sulfur fertilizers like ammonium thiosulfate contain significant nitrogen levels.
Plants may also receive nitrogen from organic sources, including:
Manure
Soil organic matter
Crop residue or cover crops
Fixed atmospheric nitrogen
Compost
Organic nitrogen sources typically take longer to mineralize into plant-available forms crops can take up. They may also have more inconsistent nutrient content that requires synthetic fertilizer supplements to meet crop nutritional demands. One advantage is that they may help improve soil health, including physical and biological characteristics.
Nitrogen application timing will depend on several factors, including:
Crop type
Nitrogen source used
Environmental conditions
Applications can be made in the fall, spring, at-planting, or in-season as a sidedress application. Not all sources of nitrogen are suitable for all of these application timings. See the summary table below for more details about nitrogen sources and application timing in corn.
Applying nitrogen in the fall can reduce spring workloads, but there may be a greater risk of nitrogen loss without proper management. Some growers choose split applications, applying the season’s nitrogen over multiple applications, such as a pre-plant application in the spring followed by a sidedress application during the vegetative growth stages.
Source: Purdue University Fertilization Agronomy Guide
Learn how an in-season sidedress nitrogen application can benefit your crop.
Determining nitrogen application rates may not be as simple as it was even a decade ago due to several factors, including:
More access to variable-rate fertilizer technology
Better seed genetics that improve nitrogen use efficiency
Higher-yielding crops that may demand more fertility
Dynamic fertilizer prices
Changes in production practices, such as cover cropping and conservation tillage
Finding the most economical nitrogen rate will vary depending on yield goals, production practices, crop removal rates, and fertilizer prices. A nitrogen rate calculator can help determine the most profitable nitrogen rates depending on your application.
Once you’ve determined the ideal nitrogen rate, it’s time to figure out how much fertilizer product to apply to reach those target rates. The calculations are relatively simple for dry nitrogen fertilizers measured by weight; however, the math gets a bit more tricky for liquid fertilizers, where volume and weight come into play.
Target nitrogen rate: 125 lbs/acre
Fertilizer analysis: 46-0-0 urea
Amount of fertilizer to apply: Target nitrogen rate/percentage weight of N in the fertilizer
Calculation: 125/0.46 = 271.7 or ~272 pounds of urea required to meet 125 lb N/acre goal
To determine the amount of liquid fertilizer, such as UAN, to apply, use the conversions in the table below to identify how many pounds per gallon your fertilizer source has. Anhydrous ammonia is a liquid when applied but quickly changes to gas. Therefore, to determine appropriate anhydrous rates, you can use the dry calculation formula mentioned above.
Fertilizer Source | Pounds N Per Gallon |
UAN 28 | 2.9 |
UAN 32 | 3.5 |
Target nitrogen rate: 125 lbs/acre
Fertilizer analysis: 28-0-0
Amount of fertilizer to apply: Target nitrogen rate/pounds N per gallon of fertilizer source
Calculation: 125 lbs/2.9 lbs N per gallon = 43 gallons UAN 28 applied to meet 125 lbs/acre goal
If you prefer to do a split application of 70 lbs UAN 32/acre in the spring + 55 lbs UAN 28/acre with a sidedress application, the calculation would be:
Lbs UAN 32: 70 lbs/3.5 lbs N per gallon = 20 gallons per acre UAN 32 applied in spring
Lbs UAN 28: 55 lbs/2.9 lbs N per gallon = ~19 gallons per acre UAN 28 applied as a sidedress
Get more in-depth recommendations for determining nitrogen rates for corn here.
Managing nitrogen effectively not only reduces your production costs, it also ensures your crops have the nitrogen they need during critical uptake periods to maximize yield potential. Nitrogen management is also essential to reduce the environmental impacts of fertilizer applications, which may be prone to leaching, volatilization, and off-target movement due to erosion. Your nitrogen application strategy should include considerations of rate, timing, source, and placement.
Use soil testing: Soil tests can help you determine a baseline nitrogen level in your soil, so you can adjust fertility rates depending on your crop’s expected yield potential. Learn how to read a soil analysis test here.
Spoon-feed crops: If possible, consider splitting nitrogen applications. Applying nitrogen as close to a crop’s critical uptake period as possible helps reduce the risk of environmental losses and ensures nutrients are available when crops need them.
Leverage technology: Variable rate fertilizer applications allow you to adjust fertilizer rates throughout the field to apply only what’s necessary, reducing input costs and the risk of overfertilization.
Protect nitrogen applications: Nitrogen stabilizers are an excellent way to reduce the risk of nitrogen losses due to leaching and volatilization. These products help keep more nitrogen in the root zone by reducing losses due to volatilization and leaching. There are nitrogen stabilizers available for use with nearly every nitrogen source and application timing. FBN nitrogen stabilizer is a great option for minimizing volatilization with urea and UAN applications.
Reduce erosion risks: Reduced tillage and cover crops can keep soils covered to reduce erosion risks and also help to build soil health to improve nutrient cycling. (Learn how you can get rewarded for regenerative ag practices here.)
Manage irrigation: When using irrigation, develop a watering schedule that increases efficiency and uniformity to avoid excess drainage and nitrogen leaching risks.
Wondering which nitrogen stabilizer is a good fit for your application? Find out here.
FBN offers a complete crop nutrition portfolio, including high-uptake nutrients like Farmers First™ Inhabit N™, a highly available nitrogen source that can be applied in-furrow at planting, sidedress, or via soil/foliar broadcast to support a growing crop’s nitrogen demands; bulk liquid fertilizer products; carbon sources; and soil prebiotics and probiotics to supplement your crop nutrition program. Spoon-feeding your crop through foliar applications during the season with products like AtarrusTM or Nourish VitalsTM can also deliver N and other micronutrients your crop may need.
With a user-friendly online platform, transparent pricing, and direct-to-farm delivery available on your schedule, FBN puts Farmers First®.
How Can the Maximum Return to Nitrogen Calculator Increase Your Profit Potential?
Crop Nutrition 101: Everything Growers Need to Know About Crop Nutrition
Herbicides 101: Everything Growers Need to Know About Herbicides
Fungicides 101: Everything Farmers Need to Know About Fungicides
Insecticides 101: Everything Farmers Need to Know About Insecticides
Inoculants 101: Everything Farmers Need to Know About Inoculants
Biostimulants 101: Everything Growers Need to Know About Biostimulants
Copyright © 2014 - 2024 Farmer's Business Network, Inc. All rights Reserved. The sprout logo, “Farmers Business Network”, "Farmers First", “FBN”, “FBN Direct,” and “FieldGrip” are servicemarks, trademarks or registered trademarks of Farmer's Business Network, Inc.
All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners.
FBN Direct products and services and other products distributed by FBN Direct are offered by FBN Inputs, LLC and are available only in states where FBN Inputs, LLC is licensed and where those products are registered for sale or use, if applicable. If applicable, please check with your local extension service to ensure registration status. Nothing contained on this page, including the prices listed should be construed as an offer for sale, or a sale of products. All products and prices are subject to change at any time and without notice. Terms and conditions apply.
ALWAYS READ AND FOLLOW LABEL DIRECTIONS. It is a violation of federal and state law to use any pesticide product other than in accordance with its label. The distribution, sale and use of an unregistered pesticide is a violation of federal and/or state law and is strictly prohibited. We do not guarantee the accuracy of any information provided on this page or which is provided by us in any form. It is your responsibility to confirm prior to purchase and use that a product is labeled for your specific purposes, including, but not limited to, your target crop or pest and its compatibility with other products in a tank mix and that the usage of a product is otherwise consistent with federal, state and local laws. We reserve the right to restrict sales on a geographic basis in our sole discretion. You must have a valid applicator license to use restricted use pesticides. Please consult your state department of agriculture for complete rules and regulations on the use of restricted use pesticides, as some products require specific record-keeping requirements.
The material provided is for educational purposes only. It is not intended to be a substitute for specific agronomic, business, legal, investment or professional advice. Where specific advice is necessary or appropriate, consult with a qualified agronomist, financial planner, or investment manager. Neither Farmer's Business Network, Inc. nor any of its affiliates makes any representations or warranties, express or implied, as to the accuracy or completeness of the statements or any information contained in the material and any liability therefore is expressly disclaimed.