Why Does Sulfur Matter?

Most likely you’ve heard that sulfur is key for a crop grower to enjoy success, but why is that?

Zach Weimortz with Keg River said sulfur is the 4th major nutrient, right alongside nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium.  He added sulfur is essential for crop yield, protein quality and helping plants efficiently use those other key nutrients.

He added the best way to think of the importance of sulfur, is to think of a whiskey barrel, filled with water.

“Each slat, is going to be a different nutrient. And if one of those slats is, short or deficient, you can only fill up so much water in that whiskey barrel before it starts overflowing," Weimortz said.  "So if sulfur is your limiting factor, you're not going to be maximizing your other nutrients that your plant needs to, you know, have that yield bump.”

Sulfur Is Not A Replacement, But A Supplement

Weimortz said growers should add sulfur to their existing operation, as a supplement, to get the most our of their soil throughout the season.

"Ammonium sulfate is mobile in your soil. It can be leached. Even though it's readily available, it doesn't necessarily carry through your entire growing season. So while you might benefit early in the growing season, you know, you're going to be short, you know, later on. And so I often recommend to growers when I have conversations is don't necessarily replace your ammonium sulfate in your program, but rather look at it as a management decision and doing a blend of the two, ammonium sulfate and elemental sulfur. You've got one product that's going to be readily available, it's going to catch your crop early, and you have the other product being elemental sulfur that's going to carry you through the entire season.”

When Done Right, Sulfur Can Benefit A Farm For Several Years

Weimortz noted elemental sulfur inherently is slow to breakdown. Meaning growers have a roughly three-year breakdown following application.  He added the typical rule of thumb is 30 to 40% breakdown per season, meaning not do the crops benefit throughout the initial season, by the soil will benefit with continued management. 

Learn more about why sulfur matters by visiting Keg River's Website.

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