Ministry of Agriculture Issues 2014 Autumn and Winter Guidance on Scientific Fertilization for Major Crops

In order to strengthen guidance on scientific fertilization for major crops in autumn and winter, improve fertilizer use efficiency, and promote increased crop yields, higher farmer incomes and sustainable agricultural development, the Department of Crop Production Management of the Ministry of Agriculture and the National Agricultural Technology Extension and Service Center organized experts to formulate and issue the "2014 Autumn and Winter Guidance on Scientific Fertilization for Major Crops."

The "Guidance" takes the results of soil testing and formulated fertilization projects as its main basis, combines the climate characteristics of this autumn and winter, and scientifically analyzes the main problems existing in autumn and winter fertilization for five major categories of crops, namely winter wheat, rapeseed, fruit trees, vegetables and tea trees. According to differences in soil moisture, seedling condition, fertilizer condition and target yield, it puts forward the principles of scientific fertilization, fertilization amounts, fertilization ratios and fertilization methods, with strong pertinence and timeliness. The "Guidance" proposes that around the three major goals of “promoting yield increase, improving efficiency and ensuring safety”, and in accordance with the requirement of unifying “fertilization for yield increase, economical fertilization and environmentally friendly fertilization”, an economically reasonable fertilization amount should be determined, the fertilizer nutrient ratio should be optimized, a suitable fertilization period should be selected, and fertilization methods should be improved, so as to ensure stable and high crop yields and improve fertilizer use efficiency. At the same time, scientific fertilization should be combined with building soil fertility, encouraging increased application of organic fertilizers, promoting the return of straw to the field, planting and utilizing green manure crops, improving the soil and building soil fertility, and enhancing the comprehensive productive capacity of the soil.