Until recently, it was the norm that cereal straw was collected from fields and then returned to them, becoming part of commonly used manure. Reducing the number of animals and the development of bedding-free technologies for their breeding contributed to reducing the demand for straw on farms. In its place, however, companies producing pellets and straw-fired heating plants appeared, eagerly purchasing any quantities from farmers. Interestingly, last year, when spring cereals failed, rapeseed straw was also very popular.
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Fertilizing properties of straw and crop residues
Straw and harvest residues are the cheapest, most easily available and easiest to use fertilizer, while supplementing soil organic matter, i.e. humus. At the same time, it is worth being aware that by leaving straw in the field, we are in line with the future assumptions of carbon farming. It is assumed that 5 t/ha of cereal straw has an effect similar to that of even 15 t/ha of manure. In the first year, successor plants use on average 30% of crop residues. nitrogen, 25 percent phosphorus and 50 percent potassium.
The ratio of main yield to side yield in the case of cereals ranges from 1:05 for spring barley to 1:1.5 in the case of winter rye. Comparing this with the average yields of individual species collected by the Central Statistical Office (data for 2022), we obtain the following amounts of straw and harvest residues:
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How much do potassium fertilizers cost? It hasn't been this cheap for over two years
- Spring wheat 4.7 t/ha,
- Winter wheat 6 t/ha,
- Spring barley 4 t/ha,
- Winter barley 5 t/ha,
- Spring triticale 4.3 t/ha,
- Winter triticale 5.5 t/ha,
- Rye 5.4 t/ha,
- Oats 4.6 t/ha.
It should also be borne in mind that straw and harvest residues of individual cereal species differ in their chemical composition, and therefore in the content of individual nutrients. For simplicity, we will focus only on the analysis of the NPK content in the average yield of straw and harvest residues per hectare:
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Stulicha psia in winter rapeseed
- Spring wheat 31 kg N, 12 kg P2O5, 61 kg K2O,
- Winter wheat 40 kg N, 15 kg P2O5, 78 kg K2O,
- Spring barley 29 kg N, 10 kg P2O5, 58 kg K2O,
- Winter barley 34 kg N, 14 kg P2O5, 66 kg K2O,
- Spring triticale 26 kg N, 11 kg P2O5, 52 kg K2O,
- Winter triticale 34 kg N, 14 kg P2O5, 66 kg K2O,
- Rye 31 kg N, 14 kg P2O5, 65 kg K2O,
- Oats 33 kg N, 15 kg P2O5, 84 kg K2O.
In the case of rapeseed, which produces a large amount of biomass, the ratio of the main crop, i.e. seeds, to the side crop, i.e. straw and crop residues, is approximately 1:2. This means that by collecting 3.39 t/ha (GUS data for 2023), we gain about 6.8 t/ha of straw and crop residues. The biomass remaining in the field after rapeseed harvest includes on average 48 kg/ha N, 20 kg/ha P2O5 and 141 kg/ha K2O. In relation to cereals, it is easy to see that these are rather significant amounts.
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How much should you pay for phosphorus fertilizers at the end of June?
The value of straw in relation to mineral fertilizers
In order to estimate the value of nutrients, we will break down popular fertilizers, such as ammonium nitrate, enriched superphosphate and potassium salt. For calculations, we will use their prices from the end of June, when they contain 34%. nitrogen nitrate Pulan or Anwil cost on average PLN 1,700 gross per tonne, enriched superphosphate containing 40 percent P2O5, on average PLN 2,850 gross per tonne, and potassium salt, containing 60%. K2O, average PLN 1,950 gross per tonne. You should be aware that in the case of each of these fertilizers, the current prices are relatively low compared to recent months.
By converting the price of the fertilizer into the content of the pure ingredient, we obtain the following costs of purchasing nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium in the above fertilizers:
- Nitrogen in ammonium nitrate average PLN 5.00/kg gross,
- Phosphorus in enriched superphosphate on average PLN 7.10/kg gross,
- Potassium in potassium salt on average PLN 3.30/kg gross.
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For simplicity, we do not take into account other nutrients, and it is worth remembering that straw and crop residues are a treasury of macro- and microelements, which are provided in the form of mineral fertilizers at a considerable cost. A separate issue is organic matter, of which we supply tons per hectare in the form of straw and crop residues, and mineral fertilizers do not provide this possibility, and therefore do not increase the content of invaluable humus in the soil.
As it is easy to calculate, by comparing the above nutrient contents with the cost of their purchase in the form of single-component mineral fertilizers, leaving the entire side crop on the field, i.e. straw and crop residues, we obtain a fertilizer worth at least:
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What are the prices of NPK fertilizers? What does availability look like?
- Spring wheat PLN 440/ha,
- Winter wheat PLN 560/ha
- Spring barley PLN 410/ha,
- Winter barley PLN 490/ha,
- Spring triticale PLN 380/ha,
- Winter triticale PLN 490/ha,
- Rye PLN 470/ha,
- Oats PLN 550/ha,
- Winter rapeseed PLN 850/ha.
The key word here is "at least", because, as we mentioned above, we only take into account nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium, omitting a whole range of macro- and microelements and invaluable organic matter. By leaving straw in the field, you can also count on additional funds for implementing the eco-scheme, of course, provided that an appropriate application is submitted in advance.
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