Measuring the Nutrient Accumulation Rates of High-Yielding Potatoes and Sugar Beets

There is a lack of information on the rate of nutrient accumulation during the growing season of important Idaho crops. This project will undertake intensive plant sampling from an existing long-term soil fertility experiment. Using an on-going research site will greatly reduce the cost of the research. The plant samples will be taken from the fully fertilized experimental plots.

The first year study will involve bi-weekly sampling of sugarbeets (tops and roots), measuring biomass, and performing chemical analysis for all the plant nutrients. The second year sampling will examine malting barley, and the third year crop will be potatoes. When the seasonal rate of nutrient accumulation is determined for each of these crops, the data will serve to refine the 4R nutrient objective of supplying nutrients at the Right Time.

The experimental design and layout are described in the attachments.

ID-13 1312 Proposal Moore.pdfID-13 1312 Proposal.pdf