Some of those tools include:

• Late-spring soil nitrate test to quantify N fertilizer loss and N mineralization

• Guided corn stalk nitrate test to evaluate N status during the growing season and determine when N was deficient or excessive in selected areas of a field

• Leaf chlorophyll meter to determine in-season N status.

“A pound of N is not just a pound of N. If it's lost or tied up in organic matter, the plant won't get it,” Blackmer says. “We can no longer use yield goals alone. When it comes to N, we have to look at how much is applied, how much is lost and what's left for the plant to take up.”

WHAT'S YOUR PLAN?

It's important to remember that the same fertilizer plan likely won't work year after year. Instead of following the same old plan, you should use an adaptive management strategy: “plan, execute, evaluate and adjust,” says Tracy Blackmer, Iowa Soybean Association.

Plan

Take information from soil tests, stalk samples and other tests and information for your area and farm to determine what your needs are.

Execute

Follow your plan, and put the right product at the right rate in the right place at the right time.

Evaluate

How did your crops do? Were your crops stressed? Did you have your best yields? Your worst? Use diagnostic tools including late-spring soil nitrate test, guided corn stalk nitrate test, leaf chlorophyll meters and strip trials.

Adjust

Refine your plan for the next growing season. Take into consideration the growing conditions from the previous year, analyze test results and determine what the best rates are for your next season. Be sure to gather and save multiple years of data to create your best plan each year. “Adjustment is an ongoing process,” says Greg Binford, University of Delaware Extension specialist.

Following the plan, execute, evaluate and adjust mantra, you should be able to stretch your N dollar.