French animal and plant nutrition and health specialist Olmix has introduced two products to the UK market that can be used to maximise plant nutrient use.
The first, Premio S12, is claimed to be useful if growers are having difficulties with decomposition of organic matter or on silicic and calcareous soils where phosphorous assimilation can be a problem, with plants looking blue.
“It also helps where waterlogging is an issue at the end of winter, limiting nitrogen and phosphorus absorption,” Olmix’s sales manager for the UK and Ireland, Grant James, said.
“It’s similarly useful where regulations like the Nitrate Directive and those relating to water catchment areas limit N or P fertiliser use, or where there’s run-off risk. And it’s good for stimulating nutrient uptake in organic farming as it has full organic clearance.”
Premio S12 is mainly used on winter wheat and winter barley, but can also be used on maize and grassland. It’s generally applied in the autumn when there’s maximum opportunity for it to break down organic matter.
The root biostimulant contains MIP Rhizo technology – a range of trace elements from brown, red and green seaweed designed to improve the efficiency of mineral or organic fertilisers, from crop residues or soil reserves.
The second new product, Neosol, aims to restore soil health by activating the natural microflora of soils. It has a mineral complex rich in trace elements – MIP Soil – allowing it to humify organic matter and help correct issues affecting soil function.
“These include compaction, hydromorphy [wetness in the soil profile] and sensitivity to drought,” Mr James said. “It reduces compaction and speeds up drainage of excess water. Crops are also more even, which makes management easier.”
Neosol is manufactured in pellet form and is suitable for use on all soil types from harvest until the end of autumn.
“We advise using it every year after harvest at a rate of 120-220kg/ha, depending on soil type; farmers mostly apply 150kg/ha,” Mr James added. “Sandy soils tend to need a higher rate than clay soils as nutrient mineralisation is less effective.
“Our research shows it increases soil porosity by 21.4 per cent and improves water retention by eight per cent compared with a control.”
