| A machinery and nutrient management model was developed to evaluate manure machinery ownership and operating costs, and nutrient use for one- or two-year crop sequences. With the model, hauling requirements and costs for a range of tractor-and truck-drawn spreaders and pipeline systems were compared on representative 150- and 600-cow dairy farms. Corn silage/corn grain, wheat grain/corn grain, sugar beet/corn grain and alfalfa hay/alfalfa hay sequences were compared to analyze the net cost of manure machinery and providing crop nutrients. A corn silage/corn grain sequence with P-based manure application over two years provided the highest net nutrient value and an alfalfa hay/alfalfa hay sequence had the highest net cost. Nutrient requirements for wheat grain/corn grain and sugar beet/corn sequences better reflected manure nutrient availability resulting in efficient use of applied nutrients. The truck-drawn or box spreader system was the lowest cost at 4.8 km for the 150-cow farm. Irrigation was the lowest cost system on the 600-cow farm when the distance was less than 2 km. The nurse truck system was the lowest cost when the distance was greater than 4.8 km. |
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