We found ammonium sulfate gave consistent results and a good yield under a wide range of conditions over a number of locations. You don't have to add anything to it to prevent loss. It's a very versatile source for no-till, and its use is on the rise,'' says Below. He recommends using a urease inhibitor, such as Agrotain, to the urea ammonium nitrate fertilizer to prevent volatilization losses. There are many cases where a farmer might get by with less than the recommended amount, when there's a high percent of organic matter in the soil or if nitrogen is spring-applied or side dressed.
Ammonium sulfate comes in granular and liquid forms.
We use 170-180 gallons per acre, and that's half our nitro needs. If you use it for all your nitrogen requirements, that's a lot of gallons, but it's definitely a cheaper source of nitrogen,'' he says. J.V. Baird, North Carolina Extension soil science specialist, writes in Soil Science News that North Carolina farmers using an ammonium sulfate liquid fertilizer manufactured by Mallinckrodt Specialty Chemicals typically use 143 gallons of product to apply 100 pounds of nitrogen per acre. Each gallon weighs 10 lbs., with 200 gallons weighing one ton. A 30-percent nitrogen solution provides 600 lbs. of nitrogen per ton, and a farmer must use 4.3 times as much liquid ammonium sulfate to obtain the same amount of nitrogen.