Make Smarter Fertiliser Decisions this May
Making smarter fertiliser decisions this May in Canterbury as budgets tighten
May is a month of transition in Canterbury. Soil temperatures fall, daylight shrinks, and the window for meaningful late‑autumn growth narrows. This is the time to think not just about the next few weeks, but three months ahead, to the spring growth you’ll be relying on.
It’s key to ensure you’re supplying the right nutrients, in the right quantities, for both winter resilience and early‑spring growth. High fertiliser and freight prices add additional pressure to farm budgets, and careful decision making is needed to get the best value from your farm spending.
Test, Test, Test
A soil test is the cheapest tool available to avoid wasting money on fertiliser. It prevents over‑application, highlights deficiencies, and ensures you’re not putting on nutrients that aren’t needed, or missing nutrients that are. Soil testing can often reduce your fertiliser spend by around 25%, as it ensures your application is targeted and specific to what your paddock and crop needs.
Above: Michael Osborne, Agronomist and Fertiliser Manager at Pastoral Improvements carrying out soil testing to inform fertiliser recommendations.
Replace Lost Nutrients
Sulphur and boron are both prone to leaching in Canterbury’s free‑draining soils, particularly as we’ve experienced a relatively wet summer and autumn. Soils under irrigation are also more prone to leaching. Both are essential for pasture and crop performance. Replacing them in May helps maintain balanced nutrition through the colder months, and ensure they are available in spring.
After winter crops have been grazed, it’s common to see key nutrients depleted, especially magnesium, potassium, and lime. These are often overlooked because the focus tends to be on nitrogen and phosphorus, but correcting these base nutrients now helps rebuild soil structure, supports microbial activity, and prepares the paddock for its next rotation.
Apply Nitrogen
Many farmers consider May too late for nitrogen application, but applying nitrogen now will feed microbial growth over winter and improve microbial health. It also supplies mineralised nutrients that become available as soils warm in early spring to fuel spring growth. A measured N application now can also improve plant resilience over winter, helping pastures maintain cover and root strength.
Liquid Fertiliser
Liquid fertiliser is particularly well‑suited to applications in May. Liquids are immediately uptaken by pasture and crops, which matters when growth is slowing. They deliver higher nutrient efficiency, meaning you can often apply less product. When freight and spreading costs are high, liquid fertilisers allow you to reduce these costs, while also lowering leaching opportunities, which is a higher risk in late autumn. Liquid fertilisers can also be applied with other products such as insecticides or trace elements, allowing you to spend less time and money on spreading.
How We Can Help
Knowing exactly what your soil needs - and what it doesn’t - lets you target your spend where it will deliver the best return in May.
The Pastoral Improvements team can help you ensure you get the best value for money from your fertiliser spend. We are offering free soil testing to Canterbury Farmers for a limited time. We also stock highly efficient liquid fertilisers, and supply customised nutrient plans.
Fill in our online form to get a custom quote.