Manure Master Decision Support System

This simple screening tool can help assess the relative potential for the nutrients contained in the animal manure on your farm to meet the crop uptake and utilization requirements for those crops that receive applications of manure.

Manure Master is an onfarm manure balance tool. It allows you to compare the nutrient content in the animal manure produced on your farm with the quantity of nutrients used and removed from the field on which you apply manure.

Manure Master calculates a balance between the nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium content in the manure and the quantity of these nutrients used by crops. This balance can be calculated based upon recommended fertilizer application rates, when known or upon estimated plant nutrient content, when recommended fertilizer application rates are not known. For nitrogen, the balance is calculated taking into account expected losses from leaching, denitrification, and volatilization.

Manure Master produces a report that includes the balance for nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium for these fields. The balance will advise you of whether the quantity of nutrients in your animal manure exceeds the quantity removed in harvested plants or the quantity of nutrients recommended.

There are many assumptions in Manure Master that make it too general to use for detailed nutrient management planning. It is intended to be used as a decision support screening tool to allow you to make a quick evaluation as to whether the quantity of nutrients applied to the land on which you spread manure exceeds the quantity of nutrients used by crops. When the nutrients exceed nutrient utilization, potential increases for nutrients to leach or runoff from fields and become pollutants of ground or surface water.

Since Manure Master is NOT a nutrient management planning tool, do not assume you have met the total nutrient requirements of your crop management system, even when the nutrient content in the manure exceeds crop utilization. Regardless of the balance you calculate with this program, continue to use university extension soil test and nutrient application recommendations or the expertise of professional nutrient management specialists to determine application rates of nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium.

To move to various program screens, choose the application you desire and click on the appropriate button. The first step is to input the number of animals and the amount of land and type of crops intended for spreading manure. The program needs to know the type and number of animals, the acres of each crop where manure is to be spread, the crop yield, and the method of manure application.