Despite on-farm agricultural activities accounting for less than 3 percent of total U.S. energy consumption, crop production relies heavily on petroleum and natural gas. Fuels are used for field operations and grain drying, and are also consumed in the mining and processing of P and K fertilizers. Nitrogen fertilizers are manufactured directly from natural gas, and many pesticides are derived from petroleum. Finally, some energy goes into manufacturing and maintaining equipment.
Corn is the most energy-intensive major field crop grown in Ohio.
Energy inputs are shown in Table 3-1 . This table assumes a plow-based tillage system and does not include charges for transportation or equipment manufacture. The total shown is equivalent to 62 gallons of diesel fuel. There are simple ways to reduce the total energy going into production and to make better use of that which is necessary for all field crops grown in Ohio. Efficient fertilizer management is important.