RealAg LIVE! with Jan Morse and Candice Robinson — Atlas XC

Heading into the busy seeding season, today’s RealAg LIVE! guests want to make sure you’re ready for the growing season ahead.

Jan Morse of Loveland Products and Candice Robinson of Nutrien Ag Solutions join host Shaun Haney for a full discussion of Loveland’s Atlas XC, a biocatalyst product to aid in the availability of phosphorus fertilizer.

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SUMMARY

Soil test and fertilizing for crop needs!
Dryness heading into spring on the Prairies? It’s not a pretty picture. Definitely a concern.
Atlas XC — what even it is? What’s a biocatalyst?
Two aspects: biological product, comes from living bacteria, and a catalyst, speeds up solubility and availability of dry phosphate fertilizer
Is there a living organism in the jug? No.
Applied at the retail point, to the fertilizer directly (controlled for volume over time, prills treated)
Where does it fit?
75 per cent of fields in one area, were deficient in phosphorus
High cost input, too
Atlas XC increases availability, and better solubility of phosphorus fertilizer, keeps it available
Farmer experiences? Candice can speak to that
Best-before date? Confident in 12 months
Best fit? If you’re starting out, try it on canola and pulse acres first
Can I put on less total phos? No. Atlas increases availability by about 15 per cent, but that’s not enough to cut rates
Does soil pH or soil characteristics impact effectiveness?
Better matching in crop needs to phos throughout the growing season
Does doubling the application double the breakdown? No, they are confident in the application rates
One litre per metric tonne is where the sweet spot is
Preference is to treat the phos or potash prior to making a blend
What about a fit in dry areas? Actually, works well
ROI? About 10 to one, over 67 farm trials
Fertilizer markets are volatile right now. Efficiency matters!
What about seed safety? Doesn’t have a negative impact
The dollar spent on Atlas XC returns better than an extra dollar spent on phos. That said, if you are working at building phos, you may still want to increase your phos application
Can you use it to help build P over time?
Can it be used with 10-34-0? Short answer is no. It’s for dry fertilizer.
What about MESZ? Yes, it works.