Premium
Corn Silage Growth and Yield after Application of Dairy Manure with High Copper Concentrations
Author(s) -
Flis Sally A.,
Ballard Catherine S.,
Thomas Everett D.,
Bosworth Sidney C.,
Darrah Jeffrey W.
Publication year - 2010
Publication title -
agronomy journal
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.752
H-Index - 131
eISSN - 1435-0645
pISSN - 0002-1962
DOI - 10.2134/agronj2009.0369
Subject(s) - manure , silage , forage , agronomy , chemistry , zoology , yield (engineering) , zea mays , biology , materials science , metallurgy
Dairy producers use footbaths containing CuSO 4 for the prevention of papillomatous digital dermatitis. After cows ( Bos taurus ) have passed through the footbath, waste is usually disposed of into manure storages and applied to fields. The objectives of this research were to evaluate the effects of the application of high‐Cu dairy manure on growth and yield of corn ( Zea mays L.) for silage and to evaluate the accumulation of Cu in the soil. Manure was collected, CuSO 4 was added, and all plots received approximately 105.9 L of manure (53,572 L ha −1 ). A control (0.38 kg Cu ha −1 ), medium Cu (9.5 kg Cu ha −1 ), and high Cu (18.6 kg Cu ha −1 ) treatments were applied to the same plots in 2006 and 2007. An early maturity and late maturity corn hybrid was used each year. Soil samples from 0 to 15 cm were analyzed for solution, extractable, and total Cu. Soil samples from 15 to 46 cm were analyzed for solution and total Cu. The growth, yield, forage quality, and Cu concentration of corn were not affected by treatments. Soil extractable and total soil Cu increased linearly as Cu application increased ( P < 0.001). Soil solution Cu increased as Cu treatment rate increased, but was not linear ( P = 0.04). Solution and total soil Cu were not different as sampling depth increased. Two annual applications of high‐Cu dairy manure at rates relative to agronomic practices did not affect corn grown for silage and resulted in no vertical movement of Cu in the soil.