This article provides an overview of the new Nutrient Management Plan (NMP) module within TELUS Crop Management and guides you through the process of creating a new plan.
NMP Module Overview
The Nutrient Management Plan module is designed to help you comply with various regulations and calculate nutrient requirements for your farm. The module is broken down into the following key components, with much of the data entry presented in an easy-to-follow, accordion-style flow:
Crop Requirements (Nutrient Management): This area calculates your crop's nutrient needs. It uses data from organisations like the AHDB (for England and Wales) to provide default, average calculations for an "express nutrient management" approach. Existing farm data, such as soil texture and previous crops, is pulled through automatically where possible.
NVZ NMAX Audit: This is a part of the Nitrate Vulnerable Zone (NVZ) rules that calculates the maximum nitrogen amount allowed per crop.
NVZ Livestock Loading: This NVZ rule assesses the total amount of nitrogen (N) excreted by livestock on your farm, relative to the land area.
NVZ Slurry Storage: This NVZ rule determines if your farm has sufficient storage capacity for slurry during the closed spreading period.
How to Create a Nutrient Management Plan
A Nutrient Management Plan is linked to a specific holding on your farm. It is generally recommended to name the plan after your entire farm or business, as fields cannot be included in more than one plan at a time in a single season. Multiple crops can be included within a single plan.
To create a Nutrient Management Plan
Select the Nutrient Management Module:
Click Create Nutrient Management Plan
Type the name of the new plan e.g. Farm Name
Select the appropriate Holding
Select the Advisor
Click the tick to save and close
The planning process flows through four main areas, though you can skip sections that do not apply to your business (e.g., if you do not have livestock):
Crop Requirements
This is the default starting point for every new plan.
You must ensure that your business setup includes your postcode, as this information is essential for the system to calculate rainfall data needed for crop nutrient requirements.
You must start by selecting the fields you wish to include within the plan, followed by answering all mandatory (highlighted with red asterisks) questions. It will not allow you to move onto the next step unless complete.
The system uses defaults (such as average target yield) to simplify the calculation in the Express version. The Expanded version released later this year will provide the ability to customise advanced inputs like target grain yield, lodging and altitude adjustments.
Existing data, such as soil texture, past cropping history, crop end use etc., will be automatically populated if already recorded for the field. Note. that any modifications made to this information will also update the field's setup records.
Note. You must apply the crop's end use tag individually to each crop before moving to the next, as different crops may have different end uses. For example, if a barley field is tagged for 'malting' end use, the following 'winter rape' field cannot also be tagged as 'malting' because the crop type is different.
It will calculate the nutrient requirements for all macro nutrients (you can remove displayed nutrients by selecting select nutrients), broken down per crop. It will show the RB209 recommendation, give you the ability to enter a manual adjustment, and take into account the supply of nutrient entered against the field to provide a balance to apply.
NMAX Audit
This is a mandatory NVZ compliance check that calculates the permitted total and autumn nitrogen amounts.
The NMAX calculation is only accessible after you have completed the Crop Requirements section, as it relies on the crop nutrient information you entered there.
NMAX is calculated over the entire crop for the holding, which is why naming the plan after the holding/business is the advised route.
Livestock Loading
This is a simple step to calculate compliance with the livestock loading NVZ rule.
The core rule is that animals cannot excrete more than 170 kilograms of Nitrogen (N) per hectare annually.
You must first specify the total area of your farm in hectares, and then enter the different types and numbers of animals you carry. You must also declare if you have purchased or sold manure during the season.
The system will then calculate if you are Compliant or Non-Compliant based on the 170 kg N/ha limit.
Slurry Storage
This section ensures you meet the NVZ rules for storing excrement.
It is a separate rule set from Livestock Loading but requires the livestock numbers you entered in the Livestock Loading section to calculate the volume of slurry produced.
The questions in this section, such as the percentage of excretion collected as slurry and the impact of rainwater on storage, will determine whether your results Pass or Fail the compliance check.
While the rules primarily apply to cattle and pigs, the system also calculates if you are Compliant or Non-Compliant for poultry manure storage (a solid waste).
💡Note: In each section, any information entered can be edited and the results recalculated.
Reporting
The main window of the NMP module provides reporting capabilities. You can generate reports for each section of the chosen Nutrient Management Plan (if you have multiple) and view important dates specific to your region (England, Wales, Scotland, or Northern Ireland).