The Fellowship of Christlike Growers gathers for a timely discussion ahead of fall harvest. In this episode, we discuss late-season crop health before diving into a wide-ranging discussion about phosphorus, calcium, pH, and the role soil biology plays in making nutrients available to plants. And we wrap up with an important question: Should growers always chase maximum yield, or focus more closely on profitability and long-term soil health?

Highlights
0:00 — Podcast intro
00:57 — Opening prayer and preparing for harvest
2:00 — Late-season disease pressure and crop health
4:58 — Boron, cobalt, and nutrient availability
7:09 — An accidental high-rate CarbonWorks Replenish trial
12:02 — Rethinking phosphorus recommendations: P1, P2, and calcium
17:20 — Soil biology and unlocking tied-up phosphorus
28:04 — How microbes release calcium-bound phosphorus
29:45 — Could better phosphorus targeting reduce fertilizer applications?
32:35 — pH, calcium, aluminum, and iron interactions
37:23 — How much should growers rely on soil pH?
46:15 — Plants, microbes, and how much we still don’t know about soil
49:16 — What modern agriculture left behind
55:46 — Crop rotations, manure, and rebuilding the soil microbiome
58:29 — Nitrogen form, rhizosphere pH, and nutrient availability
1:00:19 — Biblical soil rest and the seventh-year principle
1:04:40 — Connecting soil microbiome testing to actual yield
1:09:26 — Turning biological data into useful farm decisions
1:15:14 — Making agronomic data relevant and actionable
1:23:17 — How much phosphorus do growers really need?
1:26:52 — Profit versus yield: what should growers actually optimize?
1:33:40 — What does “resting” farmland really look like?
1:35:40 — Current research, harvest, and closing reflections

Join Andy Dardini, owner of Physagro, and the assembled farmers of the Fellowship of Christ Like Growers as they discuss crop fertility decisions. Follow along as the FCLG covers nitrogen application timing strategies, nitrogen for soybeans, and products such as CarbonWorks CetaiN, which is formulated to maximize your nitrogen investment.

Highlights
00:36: Andy Dardini Introduction.
01:40: Physagro Introduction.
02:57: Wendell Koehn from Top Ag Services begins our nitrogen discussion.
05:42: Nitrogen application strategy discussion.
07:40: Jeremy Swanson discusses stepping away from anhydrous.
09:32: Incorporating manure into an agronomy program.
12:18: How manure rates affect pH & the importance of soil sampling.
15:23: Potassium chloride vs. potassium sulfate.
18:15: Link between higher soil oxygen levels and better potassium solubilization.
18:52: Biome Makers and BeCrop soil testing—making informed biology-first fertility decisions.
22:32: Blake's California crop update.
25:43: Potassium chloride recap: side effects of high salt levels.
28:34: New York crop update.
30:25: pH level management strategies.
38:43: Importance of sharing our knowledge with each other.
39:20: Upcoming research with nitrogen and CarbonWorks CetaiN at Becks PFR.
41:41: Timing of nitrogen application on soybeans.
43:41: Purpose of CetaiN as a buffer.
46:30: Continuing discussion about nitrogen application on soybeans.
51:14: AgRevival Research and the FCLG.
52:32: Recap: Nitrogen for soybeans
56:34: Nitrogen needs for a soybean on soybean rotation
58:58: Testing for bradyrhizobium
1:00:15: Haney test for organic nitrogen, conventional tillage vs. no-till.
1:02:20: Standards for soil biology testing
1:08:35: George introduces Wendell Kohn and Top Ag Services.
1:09:41: FCLG wrap-up: Importance of sharing our knowledge with each other.

When helping growers establish successful agronomy programs on their farms, it's important to be authentic. To be a good listener. And to provide added value beyond a range of commodities. Max Systems owner Chris Schlegel shares his approach to helping farmers increase their farms' productivity to begin this episode. The wide-ranging discussion also covers agronomy trends across the United States, a background on processing humic products, and the importance of cooperating (not fighting) nature as farmers.

Highlights
1:04 Opening prayer
1:33 Chris Schlegel and podcast introductions
7:25 Reflections on the FCLG's mission and our goals
10:40 Overview of Max Systems: the importance of faith, networking, and outreach
14:40 Chris's story about the importance of engaging with people
24:10 Selling to farmers: Importance of authenticity
26:10 Selling to farmers: Create a personalized approach
28:40 Learning from Beck's Hybrids culture: Create a consistent experience
29:40 Selling to farmers: Work to provide trust by adding value
32:45 Selling to farmers: Separate yourself from the competition and be grower-focused
36:20 "Infinite Game" by Simon Sinek: Finite vs. infinite games
39:00 How do you adapt this when selling agronomic products?
44:05 Differences in grain storage across the United States
45:15 Stories of land prices in the Midwest
50:25 Stories of Texas crop production
53:00 Agronomy trends across the United States
1:00:30 Eliminate the middle man to improve your margins
1:02:25 Know your products and how they work
1:04:05 Carbon product sourcing, processing, and testing
1:13:00 Planning for the future: The importance of balance
1:17:55 Reflections: People enter your life for a reason
1:19:00 Reflections: Agronomy inspirations from around the world
1:20:30 The different ways of testing humics
1:22:00 The importance of processing method for humic products
1:27:22 Four ways to extract humics from raw ore: Raw humics are useless
1:34:50 Application rates for humics
1:38:40 Structured water discussion
1:44:00 20 years ago: George Sims begins a better way of farming
1:48:40 Benefits of humics during high-stress periods
1:55:10 Discussion: Different forms of potassium
1:59:50 Harness the power of education and the desire to improve; learn from each other
2:04:45 We cannot fight nature as farmers
2:08:10 "Where Food Begins" by National Geographic: What's in the best soil in the world?
2:12:05 Barriers to creating the "perfect" soil
2:17:25 The continuous need to support and feed soil biology
2:19:35 Biblical advice: Leave ground fallow one in seven years
2:22:40 Future focus: The importance of clean water
2:28:25 Episode wrap-up and concluding prayer