Crop response to liquid swine effluent and solid cattle manure over four years in east-central Saskatchewan

Non-Peer ReviewedDue to the advent of relatively cheap chemical N fertilizers, the use of livestock manure as a source of nutrients to crops was downplayed (James, et al., 1996). However, the expansion of the livestock industry, the need to utilize of the manure in an environmentally friendly and economically viable manner, and the desire to minimize the use of chemical N fertilizers have rekindled interest in the use of livestock manure as a fertilizer. Of particular interest is the need to utilize manure from large-scale intensive livestock operations (Chang and Janzen, 1996). This report is part of an on-going study initiated in 1996 to examine the soil and crop response to application of liquid swine manure and solid feedlot cattle manure at different rates and methods of application. Furthermore, the study seeks to evaluate nutrient forms and amounts in the manure and the effect of rate and method of manure application on soil fertility, nutrient utilization and crop yield. This paper puts together and summarizes the results of crop response to annual application of the two types of manure compared to that of urea fertilizer observed over the past four years, 1997 to 2000