Crop Yield Research

Studies show how ammonium sulfate fertilizer provides the nutrients crops need to thrive, providing higher crop yields to nourish our world.

Sulf-N® ammonium sulfate fertilizer satisfies the nutritional needs of high-yield crop varieties by replenishing sulfur in the soil and providing a more efficient form of nitrogen. But don’t just take our word for it. Browse the university and industry research below for information on how Sulf-N® can benefit your crops.

Healthy alfalfa consumes large amounts of sulfur. Atmospheric deposits, manure and other sulfur sources have lessened, so areas that formerly did not respond to sulfur have become deficient. The sulfate sulfur and ammonium nitrogen in ammonium sulfate have proven to counteract the steady depletion of soil sulfur and increase yields in alfalfa.

Key Benefits of Sulf-N® for Alfalfa

  • Can increase crude protein, contributing to the nutritive value of the forage
  • Replaces lost sources of sulfur in the soil from manure or atmospheric deposition
  • Provides needed sulfur for nodulation
  • Can improve availability and uptake of phosphorus and micronutrients in the soil, including boron, which is often needed in alfalfa fields

To learn more about how Sulf-N® can benefit your alfalfa crop, browse the documents below or contact us for more information.

Supporting Research

Canola has among the highest demands for sulfur of any commercial crop in North America. Applying nitrogen without sulfur to canola can even reduce yields. Most of the plant’s demand takes place between bolting and flowering – a period when cool soils inhibit the mineralization of organic matter in the soil. Ammonium sulfate delivers vital sulfur in the sulfate form, which is immediately available to roots when the plant needs it most.

Key Benefits of Sulf-N® for Canola

  • Has been shown to double yields compared to a check plot, due to the combination of sulfur with nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium (NPK)
  • Delivers sulfur in the sulfate form, which is available to plant roots immediately, despite the cool conditions when canola begins to bolt
  • Has been shown to help increase crop yields by 40% – 500 pounds per acre – versus elemental sulfur plots
  • Ammonium nitrogen resists volatilization, leaching and denitrification losses

To learn more about how Sulf-N® can benefit your canola crop, contact us for more information.

Supporting Research

Sulfur is vital to corn grain production. Sulfur deficiency symptoms in corn show up 21 days after emergence and reduce yields by one to two bushels a day after that. Early planting and reduced tillage encourage cooler soil and increase the risk of sulfur deficiency during critical early growth stages. Ammonium sulfate in a pre-plant or starter application provides essential sulfur for early season corn growth. It encourages better emergence, faster maturity and higher yields.

Key Benefits of Sulf-N® for Corn

  • Delivers 24 units of 100% sulfate sulfur, which supports the sulfur requirements of higher corn yields and is readily available for root uptake
  • Provides plant-efficient ammonium nitrogen
  • Resistant to nitrogen volatilization in surface applications for high residue systems, such as no till, minimum till, topdress and sidedress applications
  • Improves kernel fill with ammonium nitrogen, contributing to amino acid and protein formation
  • Unlocks availability of phosphorus and micronutrients in the soil
  • Shown to have equal or better performance than traditional dry or liquid phosphate starter blends on high-phosphorus soils

To learn more about how Sulf-N® can benefit your corn crop, browse the documents below or contact us for more information.

Supporting Research

Most of America’s cotton is grown on sulfur-deficient soils, including the sandy fields of the coastal plains and silty southern soils that are low in organic matter. Cotton requires sulfur before its first blooms to avoid yield losses – as much as 12 pounds of sulfur per bale of yield. Sulfur and nitrogen are key components of chlorophyll, as well as amino acids that are critical to producing lint.

Key Benefits of Sulf-N® for Cotton

  • Delivers 21 units of 100% sulfate sulfur nutrition
  • Readily available for root uptake upon application
  • Helps maintain a balance between sulfur and nitrogen in crops
  • Unlocks phosphorus and micronutrients in the soil

To learn more about how Sulf-N® can benefit your cotton crop, browse the documents below or contact us for more information.

Supporting Research

Ammonium sulfate is an excellent alternative to ammonium nitrate and has performed as well or better in university testing. Sulfur is vital for high yielding grasses, and contributes significantly to improved forage quality. Proper sulfur balance in animal diets can also significantly improve production of milk and meat.

Key Benefits of Sulf-N® for Forage Grasses

  • Immediately available, helping to speed crop development
  • Helps improve protein content and digestibility of grasses
  • Increases yields for many common grasses, including bahiagrass, ryegrass and bromegrass
  • Shown to improve nutritional value of tall fescue fed to calves, resulting in greater calf gains
  • Shown to improve milk production when applied to silage corn
  • Helps animals use dietary nitrogen more efficiently
  • Safe to transport and apply, with no special placarding or record-keeping requirements
  • Resists nitrogen volatilization, making it ideal for topdress applications in established stands

To learn more about how Sulf-N® can benefit your forage grasses, browse the documents below or contact us for more information.

Supporting Research

The shallow root systems in potatoes are ineffective at taking up nitrogen deep in the soil. Since the ammonium nitrogen in ammonium sulfate is resistant to leaching, it is ideal for potatoes.

Key Benefits of Sulf-N® for Potatoes

  • Resists leaching below the potato root zone

  • Helps replace lost sources of sulfur, including industrial emissions

To learn more about how Sulf-N® can benefit your potato crop, contact us for more information.

Supporting Research

    Ammonium sulfate has been shown to increase rice yields by up to 30 bushels per acre in university trials when compared with crops fertilized with urea. Unlike urea, ammonium sulfate resists volatilization loss, a particularly big concern on muddy soils. Sulfur is also critical, and has been associated with earlier canopy closure.

    Key Benefits of Sulf-N® for Rice

    • Resists volatilization
    • Shown to be five to ten times less volatile than urea when applied on muddy soils without immediate incorporation, which is common when flooding is delayed
    • Shown to help boost yields by 18 to 30 bushels per acre
    • Shown to promote rice tillering and canopy closure three to four days earlier than urea
    • May be spread as a topdress application, delivering immediately-available sulfur to crops

    To learn more about how Sulf-N® can benefit your rice crop, browse the documents below or contact us for more information.

    Supporting Research

    Sulfur is essential for biological nitrogen fixation and is critical early in the season. An application of sulfur with up to 20-25 pounds per acre of nitrogen can boost the soybean crop while nodulation establishes. Crops with high-yield potential may also benefit from a second application of sulfur and nitrogen in the early reproductive stages, given that half of their accumulation in the plant is taken up after the soybeans flower.

    Key Benefits of Sulf-N® for Soybeans

    • Provides readily available sulfur, which is critical for nodulation
    • Promotes early crop canopy for better weed control and light interception
    • Can improve the availability and uptake of phosphorus and micronutrients
    • Helps boost the number of branches, nodes and pods per plant for higher yields

    To learn more about how Sulf-N® can maximize yields in your soybean fields, and to contact us about your specific soybeans needs, visit our dedicated soybeans page.

    Ammonium sulfate provides ammonium nitrogen and sulfate sulfur, which promote tillering and healthy root development in fall applications and a vigorous start in early spring applications. Between the two, they can represent a major boost to wheat production. From a quality point of view, bread baked from low sulfur flour fails to rise, has a hard crust and lacks crumb structure.

    Key Benefits of Sulf-N® for Wheat

    • Shown to help boost winter wheat yields by 30 bushels per acre
    • Boosts tillering
    • Improves uptake of phosphorus, manganese and zinc
    • Ammonium nitrogen resists volatilization, and has been shown to be five to ten times less volatile than urea
    • Delivers immediately-available sulfate sulfur to crops, even in cool spring soil conditions

    To learn more about how Sulf-N® can benefit your wheat crop, browse the documents below or contact us for more information.

    Supporting Research