The upper North Island region recorded almost four rain days out of every five from June to mid October, leaving ground sodden and virtually unworkable for many farmers.
With the sun emerging sporadically after Labour weekend, contractors have been scrambling to keep up with demand amid farmer concerns the season is getting too late for the likes of maize plantings.
But Ballance Agri-Nutrients customer experience and marketing general manager John Elliott said while tradition dictated crops like maize were often in the ground by mid October, it was heat not days in ground that would ultimately determine the crop’s success.
“We forget that we are trying to grow a sub-tropical crop in a temperate climate and sometimes it is better to throw out the diary dates and get a thermometer in the ground and use that to determine planting time,” he said.
The fact a maize crop was going into the ground three or four weeks later than usual would not translate to an equally late harvest time.
“It may actually mean you are only 7-10 days later at harvest and it does raise the question why we have been planting as early as we have over the past years.”
A decline in how much farmers do themselves and the resulting mad scramble for contractors and equipment might offer a partial explanation.
“It does become a bit of a rush and you see your neighbour doing it and think you had better get in too.”
Leaving crop establishment a bit later this year might also provide time to right some of the fertility damage the heavy and incessant rainfall inflicted on soils this spring.
Sulphur was not strongly held in the soil, leached out in heavy rain and could fail to mineralise in wet soil over winter, leaving crops deficient at planting and impacting on clover production into spring.
“We have already seen a number of soil test reports indicating lower sulphur and potash levels. This has also resulted from some farmers electing not to go with spring superphosphate application, meaning sulphur levels would be lower.
“You can compromise pasture and crop production by opting not to apply. It’s not due to lower phosphate levels, many farmers have good levels of that, but it’s the impact of sulphur that does not go on with it.”
He had noticed a turnaround in intentions after the last dairy payout increase.
“There is a heightened sensitivity there around the need to fertilise or not.”
The conditions had compressed the demand into a tighter time frame for rural services and Ballance had responded by extending its fertiliser store opening hours and opening on Saturdays.
High analysis, pelletised products with specific nutrient components were also proving popular with contractors wanting to minimise down-time, electing to use product standardised to deliver without having to stop for lumps or irregular sizing.
Elliott estimated maize area was likely to remain the same as last year in planted area but fodder beet was proving the rising star of forage crops, with an estimated 70,000ha to be planted nationally this spring.
Though tricky to establish, if the time and money was spent up front beet was capable of delivering good tonnages per hectare.
“The area planted will be up 5-10% on last year with more lamb finishers and beef farmers opting to use them.”
But their use also demanded attention to nutrient deficiencies, particularly potash, that could arise through feeding them.
