The Delmarva Farmer, Corn and Soybean Report (reprinted with permission)

BELTON, Mo. - With grain prices expected to be higher that most recent years, farmers will be looking into just about anything that will show signs of improving yields. AVAIL, a recently released fertilizer additive, might be one that makes the list.

AVAIL attacks the problem of phosphorus fixation in the soil.

Mark Fuchs, a senior agronomist at Southern States in Caroline County said the product is being used in about 30 to 40 wheat fields on a trial basis. He said though it may be mostly applied to grain and soybean crops, it also shows promise in use on forage crops and sod production to develop a tighter root mass in less time.

Scientists estimate 75 percent to 95 percent of phosphorus in the ground is unavailable to the plant.

Since it carries a negative charge, the phosphorus molecules attract the positively charged minor elements like Calcium, Magnesium and Aluminum and bind together.

Through patented technology, AVAIL assumes the negative charge from the phosphorus and binds with the minor elements, leaving more phosphorus available for nutrient uptake into the plant.

As more phosphorus is freed up to the plant, less overall phosphate fertilizer will need to be applied. The product has been on the market for three years and is sold exclusively through Southern States in the Eastern United States. It can be used in granular phosphate fertilizers, on-seed treatments and liquid side-dress formulations.

Research studies by several universities in the midwest and the southeast have shown a 10 percent to 15 percent yield increase on crops when the product was used.