Sulphur in Ontario Crop Production

Dale Cowan CCA.On, 4 R NMS Senior Agronomist AGRIS/ Wanstead Farmers Cooperatives

Dr John Lauzon U of Guelph

Sulphur in Ontario Crop Production

• Role of Sulphur in plants

• Sulphur in soils

• Annual deposition

• Responsive crops

• Sources of sulphur supply and methods of application

• Results

Responsive crops in Ontario

• Canola

• Alfalfa

• Winter wheat

• Corn?

• Soybeans?

N. P, K and S not just N.P .K anymore?

Sulfur Cycle

Sulfides Sulfate

Organic Matter

fertilizer

reduction

volatilization

H2S

SO2Burning fossil fuel

H2S, SO2

Soil Minerals

leaching

harvest

Plant

uptake

oxidation

SO4

Erosion

runoff

Elemental S

reduction

oxidation

Sulphur in Soil

• There is a sulphur cycle that runs much like the Nitrogen cycle

• It transforms sulphur containing materials into various forms by

mineralization, immobilization, oxidation and reduction

• There are many different forms of sulphur compounds concurrently

in the soil at anyone time ( over 300)

• As result it is difficult to calibrate a soil test that predicts a

responsive critical level with any kind of rigor

• SOM and Soil texture do influence Sulphate levels

• The plant available form is sulphate (SO42-)

y = 2.5736x - 1.3283

R² = 0.3269

0

2

4

6

8

10

12

14

16

18

0 1 2 3 4 5 6

Sulp

hur

Test

ppm

Soil Organic Matter %

2009 Sulphate Sulphur and Organic Matter

Roughly 2 lbs of S per each 1% SOM

y = 0.5482x + 0.7839

R² = 0.3148

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

0 5 10 15 20 25 30

Su

lphu

r in

ppm

CEC

2009 Soil Sulphur and CEC

As clay content increases so does the amount of S

Need For Sulphur in Ontario

• 1880's gypsum (land plaster)was commonly applied

in Ont. (applied as early as the mid 1700’s)

• Recent work is starting to show sulphur response

• After 1950 ammonium phosphate became common

(very little S)

• About 1880 super phosphate (0-20-0) was introduced

(14 % S)

2015 indicates less than 6

kg/ha or 5.4 lbs / acre of

Sulphate deposited annually

Most agronomically

important crops require an

annual total uptake of 20

lbs of S from sulphate

sources

Sulphate (SO4) Deposition From Environment Canada Monitoring

Sites, Northern Sites Removed

y = -0.6712x + 1360.3

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

40

1980 1985 1990 1995 2000 2005 2010 2015

SO

4kg h

a-1yr-1

Adapted from Environment Canada data

Reduction of 0.67 kg/ha/year (0.6 lbs/ac/year)

https://so2.gsfc.nasa.gov/

Estimates of Anthropogenic Sulphur Dioxide

Emissions: 1850–2005

0

5000

10000

15000

20000

25000

30000

35000

40000

1840 1860 1880 1900 1920 1940 1960 1980 2000 2020

Em

issi

on

(G

gyr-1

) North America

Western Europe

China

Smith et al 20111 Gg = 1 000 000 kg

Sulphur in Soil

• Most of the annual crop needs for sulphur was at one time supplied by atmospheric deposition from rainfall

• All of the crop requirements could be met by the amount of S contained in annual rainfall

• With better pollution regulations since the 1970s the amount of sulphur from rainfall has diminished significantly

• The shift to more concentrated P fertilizers removed the sulphur,(0-20-0 to 11-52-0) removal of Sulphur from diesel fuel all contributed to a decreased application of incidental S to cropland.

• These events have contributed to the decline of atmospheric S deposition to the point where less than half of the crop requirements for S is being met

Role of sulphur in plants • Sulphur (S) is an essential nutrient

• Involved in protein formation of 3 sulphur bearing amino acids (cysteine, cystine and methionine)

• Formation of chlorophyll which in turn impacts on all aspects of photosynthesis

• Involved in oil formation, important to crops like canola and soybeans

• Specifically with reference to crop quality, S improves protein and oil percentage in seeds, cereal quality for milling and baking, nutritive value of forages

• The need for sulphur is closely associated with the nitrogen demands of a crop

• It also enhances yields when deficient

Alfalfa Response to Sulphur in 1977 based on average of 2

N rates

Sulphur application rate (kg S/ha)

Cut 0 30 60 90

Forage yield (kg/ka)

1 4680 4940 5100 4500

2 3200 3110 3040 3040

3 2430 2220 2170 2300

total 10300 10300 10300 9900

(Sheard 1977)

dry year

Alfalfa Sulphur Response in 2012North of Fergus (Harrop)

First Cut Yield

kg/ha

4566 b

4474 b

6821 a

Treatment

Control

225 kg KCl/ha

270kg K2SO4/ha

First Cut Alfalfa

% of stand

31 b

35 b

56 a

Third Cut Yield

kg/ha

968 b

1067 b

2180 a

Lauzon and Ball 2012

52 % 104 %

All of the increase was due to greater alfalfa growth

Alfalfa Sulphur Yield Response in 2013

Treatment Wallenstein

(Logel)

Hesson

(Runsteder)

Listowel

(McLagan)

First Second First Second First Second

Yield (kg/ha)

Check 6817 2556 5078 2639 a 2833 2189 a

Fall 50 kg/ha elemental S 6583 2767 4575 3401 ab 3094 2531 b

Fall 100 kg/ha elemental S 6732 2830 5247 3715 b 3128 2482 b

Potassium Sulphate 55 kg

S/ha

6897 2768 4712 3352 ab 3138 2468 b

Potassium Chloride Same

K level

6718 2507 4627 2703 a 2824 2163 a

Bonnie Ball

Wet year

Alfalfa Sulphur Uptake Response in 2013

Treatment Wallenstein

(Logel)

Hesson

(Runsteder)

Listowel

(McLagan)

First Second First Second First Second

(kg/ha)

Check 6.6 a 3.2 a 4.3 3.2 a 5.0 a 3.3 a

Fall 50 kg/ha elemental S 8.0 a 4.1 a 5.8 5.7 b 7.8 b 6.5 b

Fall 100 kg/ha elemental S 8.0 a 5.3 b 4.4 8.0 c 9.8 b 8.5 b

Potassium Sulphate 55 kg

S/ha

12.0 b 5.7 b 5.3 8.5 c 9.9 b 6.7 b

Potassium Chloride Same

K level

6.7 a 3.5 a 3.6 3.2 a 5.0 a 3.2 a

Bonnie Ball

Alfalfa Sulphur Yield Response in 2014near Lynden Sand texture

0

2000

4000

6000

8000

0 10 20 30 40

S kg/ha

Yie

ld (

kg/h

a)

1st cut

0

1000

2000

3000

4000

0 10 20 30 40

S kg/ha

Yie

ld (

kg/h

a)

2nd cut

Alfalfa Sulphur Yield Response in 2014Elora Research Station Silt loam texture

0

2000

4000

6000

8000

0 20 40 60

1st Cut

S kg/ha

Yie

ld (

kg/h

a)

0

1000

2000

3000

4000

0 20 40 60

2nd cut

S kg/ha

Yie

ld (

kg/h

a)

0

500

1000

1500

2000

2500

0 20 40 60

3rd cut

S kg/ha

Yie

ld (

kg/h

a)

Wet year

Residual Impact of 2014 Application

with and without Sulphur in 2015

S kg/ha (2014)

Yie

ld (

kg/h

a)

0

1000

2000

3000

4000

5000

6000

0 10 20 30 40 50 60

1st Cut0

1000

2000

3000

4000

5000

6000

0 10 20 30 40 50 60

S kg/ha (2014)

2nd cut

Yie

ld (

kg/h

a)

S kg/ha (2014)

3rd cut0

1000

2000

3000

4000

5000

6000

0 10 20 30 40 50 60

Alfalfa Response in Ontario 2014• Sulphur response becoming more wide spread

• Alfalfa S demand is high at 5 lbs per ton

• All sources are effective including elemental S if applied in the fall

before establishment at 25 to 30 lbs , up to 50 lbs may cover the life

of the stand

• The most responsive site had a yield increase of

• 1.55 ton/ acre

• Protein increase of 4% points

• Persistence of alfalfa in the stand improved by 33 to 56%

Sulphur on Alfalfa

• About ½ of the sites responded

• Soil texture and organic matter did not dictate

response

• Potentially dry years responded more (not

always)

• Older stands tended to respond more

Canola Response to Sulphur

2005 and 2006 Johnson Wheat Trials

No Sulphur Sulphur

Yield (bu/ac)

Carthage 05 83.2 89.3

Stratford 05 89.3 93.5

Lucan 99.2 95.5

Lucan 2 95.2 93.8

Perth 72.6 68.5

Carthage (2006) 69.9 69.2

Nairn 103.1 106.0

Brantford 57.6 57.6

Average 83.8 84.2

Sulphur Response on Winter Wheat

2011 - 2014

S Rate (lbs

S/ac)

Yield (bushels/acre)

2011 2012 2013 2014 Avg.

Number of

sites

5 11 10 14 40

0 95.2 101.4 80.2 91.6 91.0

5 - -0.5 +0 +4.6 +0.7

10 - +1.2 +1 +4.7 +1.7

20 4.5 +0.6 +1.3 +4.3 +1.6

40 +0.8 - +4.1 -

Follings, Field crop news 2017.

(Peter Johnson)Approximately ½ of site responded

2018 Wheat Sulphur Trials

Check With Sulphur

Yield (bu/ac)

Elora 118 120

Sombra 86 82

Stayner 104 105

Average 102.7 102.3

AGRIS Sulphur Response on Winter Wheat 2011 - 21 sites

AGRIS / Wanstead Cooperatives Sulphur Response on Winter Wheat 2011

Yield response to 20 lbs of sulphur from ammonium sulphate

Cooperator

Yield Gain

bus/ acre

Net Return

to Sulphur

$/ acre Soil Texture

J. Diemer 6 $29.00 clay

D & R Bracken 8.3 $42.80 clay

D. Kabbes 2.3 $6.80 clay

E. Mallioux 12.5 $68.00 clay

Fereme Chauvin -1 -$13.00 clay

M. Mallioux 11.2 $60.20 clay

Steckle -2 -$19.00 clay

Doug Ross 7 $35.00 clay loam

Noorloos 8.6 $44.60 loam

Noorloos 8.3 $42.80 loam

Vanderploeg 3.4 $13.40 loam

Vanderlpoeg 4.6 $20.60 loam

Vanhuele 6.9 $34.40 sandy loam

Anderson 8 $41.00 sandy loam

McDonalds 3.7 $15.20 sandy loam

McKinlay -1.6 -$16.60 clay

Nemecek 10.8 $57.80 clay

Kerr 1.4 $1.40 clay

Haest Vanoverloop 13.5 $74.00 sandy loam

Jackson Vanoverloop 3.2 $12.20 clay

Kerr Vanoverloop 7$35.00

sandy loam

Triest 2.25 $6.50 clay

Average 5.7 26.9St Dev 4.3

CV% 76.5%

20 lbs of S 0 lbs of S

Sulphur Response on Corn

Sulphur Profile at Depth (Bill McDonald)

Depth ppm S -SO4 Total S- SO4 in lbs/ ac

6 in 3.68 7.36

6 - 12 in 2.72 5.44

12-24 in 2.95 11.8

Total 24.6

Treatment 20 lbs of S Yield bus/ acre

Sulphur 190

Sulphur 183

No Sulphur 162

Sulphur 171

No Sulphur 144

Sulphur 175

No sulphur 148

Avg sulphur 179.75

Avg No sulphur 151.3

Yield gain over no

Sulphur28.45

Field Characteristics

Soil Type- Normandale

SOM % 2.6 avg range 1.2 to 7.2

pH 6.4 avg range 5.8 to 7.2

P ppm – 47 avg range 30 to 69

K ppm- 90 avg range 59 to 144

Mg ppm 171 avg - range 95 to 313

Ca ppm 967 avg range 418 to

2760

CEC 7.8 avg range 4.5 to 18

. The net return to additional Sulphur with $5.00 corn and an

average cost of sulphur at $18.44 / acre is (28.45 x $5.00) –

$18.44 = $123.81 per acre. ( Spring price of S source)

2006 Corn Sulphur Trial Sites by Middlesex

S.C.I.A. Site Soil S (ppm) Corn yield

With S

Corn Yield

No S

bu ac-1

SJL 39.8 174 172

SMR 18.7 162 166

SSF 23 159 157

SNS 13.9 177 176

SRB 19.8 161 163

SKP 20.6 165 168

STL 17.7 194 196

SMA 18.5 154 143

SRM 46.9 130 134

SJF2 20.6 172 174

SJF3 20.6 182 182

SBP 25.9 170 169

SFH 30 167 185

Average 24 167 168

http://www.gocorn.net/v2006/Rotation/articles/Peas%20and%20Sulphur.html

Slightly low precipitation in spring Wet fall

Peter Johnson

2012- 2018 Corn Sulphur trials

2012 2013

Number of sites 5 6

Yield (kg/ha)

No Sulphur 9927 10956

With Sulphur 9736 10818

Stewart 2012 and 2013, Lauzon and Sanders 2016 and 2018

No Significant responses at any sites

2016 (Elora)

1

12190

11420

2018 (Elora)

1

14740

14410

Setting Up Sulphur Trials on Soybeans

• Choose high yield sites free of or low in SCN numbers

• Appropriate full season Soybean variety, inoculated with SCN

resistance

• Current soil tests not so much for sulphur test which is not very

reliable to predict responses but to remove other limiting factors.

• No point in applying S when K is deficient

• No point in growing on less than optimal pH. ( aim for 6.2 or higher)

• Plant early May

Setting Up Sulphur Trials on Soybeans

• Control pests to protect yield potential• Apply 100 to 150 lbs of AMS before or after planting• Apply at least 3 treatment strips with zero checks in between • Use fungicides • Recommended 24 to 30 lbs Sulphate S which is soybean uptake needs

less the soil supply • Roughly 2 to 3 lbs of Sulphate S from each 1% of SOM • Atmospheric deposition is becoming less reliable but could add 5 to 10

lbs annually or less.

• On a per bushel basis Soybeans contain 3 x more S than corn. ( corn 0.08 lbs/ bus

Soybean Sulphur Response

2018

Check With Sulphur

Yield (bu/ac)

Bornholm 1 72.5 74

Bornholm 2 69.6 77.9

Winchester 56.9 55.9

Elora 45.5 46.3

Average 61.1 63.5

Bohner

Ammonium sulphate applied the check was not corrected for the nitrogen

content in the first 4 sites

Arkona 58.4 60

Merlin 55.8 57

Elora 64 65

Average 59.4 60.7

Sanders and Lauzon

Sulphur Sources

• Commercial fertilizer

• Manure

• Biosolids and other organic amendments

• Dry granular fertilizer: Ammonium Sulphate (AMS), potassium sulphate (SOP) , KMag, Gypsum ( granular)

• Liquid Sources: Ammonium thiosulphate( ATS) , AMS, Potassium Thiosulphate (KTS)

• Elemental S – needs to be applied ahead of time for conversion to sulphate

• The most important thing to note is the plant available form is Sulphate

Source Rate to apply

20 lbs of S

Cost per acre BE Corn

Yield at

$5.00/ bus

BE Soybeans

$12.00/ bus

Ammonium

Sulphate

83 lbs $8.90 1.78 0.74

Ammonium

Thio Sulphate

77 lbs (7 gal) $14.30 2.86 1.2

Calcium

sulphate

95 lbs $13.45 2.69 1.12

Sulphate of

Potash

111 $37.16 7.4 3.1

KMag 93 $6.26 1.25 0.52

Sulphur content of selected Manures and Bio Solids

Type Solid S ppm Lbs of S / tonne

Diary 410 0.90

Beef 920 2.03

Swine SEW 200 0.44

Swine Finisher 620 1.37

Chicken layer 5000 11.02

Chicken Broiler 3250 7.16

Biosolid's pellets 6900 15.21

Lystegro (Liquid) 1950 19/1000gal

Liquid per 1000 gallons

Dairy 400 4

Beef 350 3.5

Swine Finisher 700 7

Swine SEW 180 1.8

Chicken Layers 1500 15

Sulphur in Manure and Biosolids will be

a mixture or inorganic and organic forms

of sulphur

Labs will test for Sulphur from sulphate

Be aware that there are many sources of

sulphur

As farms transition away from livestock

manure we begin to see how well

manure spreading was managed

Random areas of sulphur deficiency

begin to show

Converting Elemental Sulphur to sulphate forms

Conversion rates depend on:

• Temperature

• Soil moisture aeration

• Soil pH

• Fertility status of the soil

• Physical particle size of source

• Method of application

• Microbiology of the soil

After all these considerations there

can be a significant lag time for

oxidation to occur

Spring applications of elemental S

may not meet the immediate needs

of plants

Mosaic Crop Nutrition

Sulphur cycle at work

immobilization

Elemental Sulphur

Summary

• Sulphur deposition has drastically decreased in Ontario

• We have seen response on about ½ of the alfalfa,

canola, and wheat sites tested. Rarer response on corn

and soybean

• Greater probability of response would be expected on

sandy and/or low organic matter soils; however, this

was not seen in the trials

• More sites needed to determine if we can predict the

response to sulphur

2019 Field Trials

We are currently looking for grower cooperator trials If you

are interested please contact:

Joanna Follings

OMAFRA

EMAIL: joanna.follings@ontario.ca

Phone: (519) 271-8180