The outlook for fertilizer costs versus commodity prices for next season is a tough one for farmers across the country.
With that fact in mind, we have compiled 26 nutrient recommendations, tips, tricks and reminders from Farm Journal Field Agronomists, university Extension and industry experts.
Our hope is one or more of these ideas will help you reduce expenses, reallocate resources and build a fertility program for the 2026 season that works well for your farm and gives you some peace of mind in the process. Here we go:
1. Make controlled, calibrated decisions.
Keep your wits about you and be ready to think through various nutrient scenarios – some of which could be very different from what you’ve done in the past. Minimize knee-jerk reactions by allowing adequate time for reflection and evaluation of potential outcomes.
2. Develop your team of advisers.
Put a team of formal and informal advisers in place, those farmers and agronomic resources you can talk to about purchasing strategies and other ideas they have. Don’t go it alone in your planning process.
3. The four Rs are still important.
The right product, right rate, right time and right placement are still important and can help you maximize yield potential in the process of minimizing expenses.
4. Study your existing soil test results.
“A good approach is to examine each zone in a field and pull back fertilizer rates on high-testing zones and maintain rates in low-testing areas,” says Ken Ferrie, Farm Journal Field Agronomist.
5. Do some soil tests.
If you don’t have recent soil tests, consider fields where it would be worth the investment to do them this fall because of the payoff next season.
Budget your fertility practices. Here are two ways:
6. Consider using a specific dollar amount.
Stephanie Zelinko, national agronomist for AgroLiquid, says based on historical data, farmers usually invest 16% to 20% of their anticipated income from a corn crop on fertilizer. She offers this example:
“Say we expect to grow a 200-bu.-per-acre corn crop and make $5 a bushel. That’s $1,000 of income per acre,” Zelinko says. “Twenty percent of that is $200, and that would be my starting point for a fertility budget.”
7. Prioritize cuts where fertility is adequate.
Another way to prioritize dollars: Instead of cutting $15 of fertilizer across the board, it could be more advantageous to cut $30 for one field and nothing on another field because you don’t have the fertility there to give up.
8. Remember, applying less fertilizer than removal rates call for will lower soil fertility in the field.
That will need to be reckoned with when profitability finally stabilizes.
“The good news is that many farms are in a good place where you can lean them out without damaging yields short-term. That’s the power of knowing your fertility levels,” Ferrie says.
Also, timing and placement can make fertilizer more efficient, but they don’t change the amount of nutrients plants use. For example:
“One thousand bushels of corn requires 740 lb. of diammonium phosphate (DAP) and 380 lb. of potash (0-0-60); and 1,000 bu. of soybeans requires 1,565 lb. of DAP and 200 lb. of potash,” says Ferrie. “If those nutrients are not replaced, levels in the soil will deteriorate.”
9. Macronutrients matter most, especially nitrogen (N).
“If corn runs out of nitrogen, it’s game over for the crop, regardless of phosphorus and potassium levels,” Ferrie says.
That’s not to say you can ignore other macronutrients. It’s more of a matter of first things first.
10. Don’t ignore micronutrients.
Just make sure they pay their way, says Karen Corrigan, a partner in McGillicuddy Corrigan Agronomics.
She advises farmers to address their No. 1 yield-limiting factor first.
“People might want to sell you micronutrients, for instance, but if your problem is potassium, micronutrients aren’t going to help much,” says Corrigan, an independent field agronomist based in Illinois. “So, you really have to know for your own operation what you need to address.”
11. Evaluate starter fertilizer.
In some cases, starter fertilizers can improve corn yield even when soil test levels for phosphorus and potassium don’t strictly warrant a large application, according to Purdue University research.
12. Is banding fertilizer an option?
Banding can make fertilizer more efficient, just keep in mind it doesn’t change the law of nutrient removal rates. Applying less fertilizer than removal rates call for over time will deplete the soil.
13. Tap into online agronomic tools.
Use online resources that can help you navigate the nutrient-use process. For various N-rate scenarios, check out the regional N rate calculator.
14. Look at soil pH.
The optimum pH range for a corn/soybean rotation is about 5.8 to 6.2. Any field with a soil pH below 5.8 will likely benefit from lime.
With a good soil pH, farmers can improve crop yields, nutrient uptake, weed control and herbicide persistence, notes Kelly Robertson, Precision Crop Services, based in southern Illinois near Benton.
“Compared to all the other inputs, limestone is very cheap. I can often get the biggest ROI from adjusting soil pH,” says Robertson, who participates in the Soy Envoy program, an initiative by Field Advisor and the Illinois Soybean Association.
Two other things to keep in mind: Not all lime is created equal, so choose carefully. Along with that, pick one that will be available for soil uptake next spring.
15. Consider bean fields versus cornfields.
“If you say, ‘I’m just going to cut out all my bean spreads,’ you’re going to be cutting the lowest fertility in the field,” Ferrie says. “It usually works better to scale back your corn fertility program for most fields.”
16. Can you cut in other places?
Look at how to leave more of your fertility program intact. Maybe you can reduce the number of tillage passes, the dollar amount in your seed spend or substitute generic products for branded ones.
17. Take advantage of ‘reserve now, pay later’ and other financing opportunities.
Talk with your suppliers about any programs they’re offering on bundling products, volume discounts and the like.
18. What isn’t paying its way?
This is the year to cut products and practices that don’t clearly pay for themselves.
“The biggest place to cut is on any extra products – the add-on stuff, where you can easily spend a lot of money,” says Kyle Stull, a certified crop advisor based in Wisconsin.
On the other hand:
19. What new practice could pay next season?
Evaluate new ideas, just be slow to adopt them. Using cover crops might or might not be a consideration. This is the year to look at new practices through the lens of whether they’ll deliver ROI out of the gate.
20. Are manure and organic amendments opportunities? Consider what’s available, cost-effective and might fit your nutrient needs and farming practices.
21. Evaluate application timing.
Do you need to make a fall anhydrous ammonia application, or can you pass on it?
If you decide to go with more in-season use of nutrients, consider the pros/cons and logistics with your suppliers and applicators.
22. Consider what you can do in-season.
For example, talk with your agronomic adviser about the value of soil nitrate testing. Consider canopy sensing tools that can help you fine-tune in-season N use.
23. If you made deep cuts to your fertility program for 2025, can you cut deeper in 2026?
That’s a decision many farmers are grappling with at this point.
Here’s one recommendation from Virgil Schmitt, Iowa State University regional field agronomist: “If available funds do not allow for application of all the P and K fertilizer that is recommended for your fields, you should apply the recommended rates for areas testing Very Low, even if you rent,” because research shows a large probability of yield increases and positive ROIs.
Read more about allocating funds at: Lime, Phosphorus, and Potassium Fertilizers Decisions in Times of Limited Resources
24. Make contingency plans. Have an idea for your plan B or plan C, in case costs go up. Likewise, if costs go down – and they could – be prepared to take advantage of any opportunity to lock in products at lower costs.
25. Own your plan.
Back to the No. 2 suggestion of working with advisers: it’s good to get wise counsel, but at the end of the day make decisions that are best suited to your farm and your situation. That may or may not mirror what your neighbors and friends do.
26. Consider the future.
“Right now, we’re concerned about the short-term, but we need to balance that with long-term thinking as well,” Ferrie advises. “Think about the kind of shape you want your soils to be in, once we cycle out of these low commodity prices.”
Your next read: Fertilizer Decisions For 2026 Crop Will Be A Balancing Act