1. Should We Abandon Soil Testing and Yield Goals in Estimating Nitrogen Rates for Corn

If the prices of corn and fertilizer-N and the shape of the N response function relating crop yield to the amount of fertilizer used are known, calculating an economically optimal N rate (EONR) for maximizing the net return to applied N is straightforward: the EONR is the N rate at which no firher increase in net return occurs. In most cropping systems and under common price scenarios, crop yield at the EONR is within 95 to 99% of the maximum yield obtained for the specific management package. In...