Organic Matter | Midwestern BioAg

Gimme Some Sugar

By: Midwestern BioAg Staff · Fertilizer, Organic Matter, L-CBF, Soil Biology, Starter Fertilizer

Sugar: It has been part of Midwestern BioAg’s fertilizer line-up for over 25 years. Sugar is quickly becoming a staple in producers’ fertilizer programs across the country. In Nebraska, a study saw a 1.6 bushel per acre increase in yield across acres with foliar applied sugar. Another crop farmer sprayed his corn ground with a sugar and liquid carbon-based fertilizer mix with similar results. When tests were run in Ohio, researchers found a 6 bushel per acre increase in those acres treated with 7 pounds …

Going for More

By: Jan Shepel · Soil, Organic Matter, Fertilizer

Phil Schwantz is a third-generation farmer who’s proud to be the steward of his grandfathers’ farmland. He lives on the farmstead where his paternal grandfather and father farmed and rents land from his aunt that was once farmed by his maternal grandfather.
He also feels fortunate to be working with Midwestern BioAg on a program that has created “an explosion” of earthworms on his 500 acres of tillable farmland. A leading indicator of soil health, earthworm activity can increase soil infiltration and improve water-holding capacity, help …

Michaels to Scientists & Policy-Makers: Look at Farm Progress

By: Kevin Sweeney · Climate, Organic Matter, Crop Yields, Nutrient Efficiency

Midwestern BioAg CEO Tony Michaels told one of the most influential audiences of scientists and policy leaders in the U.S. that many of the necessary advances in agriculture were already happening on Midwestern farms.
In a keynote address to the annual meeting of the National Council for Science and the Environment (NCSE), Michaels described progress at several farms currently being managed with the help of Midwestern BioAg products and services.
In each case, before touching on environmental issues, he made it clear that these farms have …

Better Soil, Bigger Yields

By: Jan Shepel · Soil Testing, Organic Matter, Forages, Bio-Cal®, Fertilizer

Shullsburg, Wisconsin, farmer Chad Gleason is enthusiastic about everything he does — from managing his 400-head steer finishing operation, to growing corn and hay for his livestock with help from Midwestern BioAg.
Gleason farms on a wide variety of soil types — some of them are great like his Tama soil (reputed to be the best soil in the world), and others that are not so great in the hills.
But all of the fields are going gangbusters since he decided to utilize the products and …

Building Yields, Soil Health

By: Mary Pohlman · Fertilizer, Tillage, Soil Testing, Organic Matter, Nitrogen, Sulfur

Twenty-five years ago, when Gary Manternach first began working with Midwestern BioAg, few would have predicted that topics like sulfur, calcium, micronutrients, and soil biology would be a vital part of mainstream agriculture today. “The whole industry is talking sulfur now,” notes Manternach as an example. “You can’t open up a magazine without reading about biology.”
Today, Manternach successfully farms his Iowa silt-loam acres by focusing on both soil health and profits. Working with soil health to build yields and profitability makes farming a pursuit he …

“Biology in a Bottle”: The Next Big Thing

By: Midwestern BioAg Staff · Fertilizer, Soil, Organic Matter

These days the ag world is buzzing with talk of yield enhancing biological products. “Boost plant performance”, “harness the power of nature”, “feed soil biology”, “unlock your soils’ potential to supply nutrients”: These types of slogans are heard and seen all over ag media. And you know what’s funny? A lot of these products are trying to do the same things that Midwestern BioAg has been doing for 30 years. The difference lies in the fact that MBA takes a systems approach, as opposed to the …