Soil sample results have been pouring in with low soil nitrogen levels. That’s not a big surprise but what is a shocker is the money we’re spending on fertilizer this fall. Low soil nitrogen levels and a 50% increase in urea prices make for a large price tag. I had the boys from SSG West out grid sampling last week with hand probes into 6 inches of cement. Ouch. Did I mention it was dry? Hydraulic truck mounted probes are the only way to go this fall.

This week is AgriTrade in Red Deer and I plan on being there Wednesday through Friday to walk through with clients and visit colleagues. Give me a shout if you’ll be there. My must see list is liquid injection systems for our drill, a GreenSeeker for the sprayer and an RTK base station to replace our wireless RTK system. Don’t forget to sign up for the upcoming Advanced Agronomy Conference on Nov 23-24th. Also, FarmTech 2012 registrations have just opened up so sign up for that must see event.

In this week’s newsletter, we’ll look at how to fine tune fertility recommendations using statistical analysis. Next, we’ll look at how much seeding rates will increase in 2012 from larger seed weights. Last, we’ll look at some lessons learned from our intensive crop management field trials in 2011. We’ll finish with technical and fundamental grain market news.

Have a great week.

Steve