Posted: September 28, 2022
Recently we have been asked for assistance to determine the nutrient composition of a blended manure group.
In this particular instance, Layer manure from a CAO regulated farm under Act 38 was exported to a Dairy farm regulated under DEP MMM regulations.
Please be aware that in situations like this, it is preferred that nutrient values are attained from a current representative manure analysis after manure is blended. When manure sampling is not possible or practical the Blended Manure Calculator can be used to estimate nutrient values for planning purposes.
In the newly developed Blended Manure Calculator, you can enter the nutrient values of the two manure types, as well as, the relative quantity of each manure group (gallons or tons). The Blended Manure Calculator will calculate the nutrient content of the new blended manure, which you can then copy into the Nutrient Balance Sheet (NBS) spreadsheet as a manure group to develop a planned manure application rate. Because the manure is a blend of different species, it becomes “atypical” and is required to be planned using the N fractions method for determining nitrogen availability in the season applied.
If a manure analysis report is available, it will contain both the ammonium N and organic N content of the manure listed, which is needed for the N fractions method of planning. A manure analysis with both the ammonium N and organic N listed may not be available for one of the manure groups. In that case, please consult the table included with the Blended Manure Calculator which lists the book values for ammonium N and organic N content of the particular manure component of the blend You can use this table to estimate the ammonium N and organic N content of the particular manure component of the blend.
The excel file includes embedded use instructions and can be found by clicking the Blended Manure Calculator link on the Penn State Nutrient Management website.
If you have any questions about how to use the blended manure calculator tool, or how to move forward with planning this scenario in a Nutrient Balance Sheet please contact the SCC Regional Coordinator that covers the county on which the Blended Manure Calculator will be used:
If you need assistance using this planning tool, please contact:
Don Orner | Research Technologist | Penn State Extension – Nutrient Management | Cell: 610-804-0010 | Email: dgo2@psu.edu
