| | Description | Access to AFFIRM | AFFIRM Checklist | Introduction | What's new in this version | What can AFFIRM do for you? | AFFIRM Features | Frequently Asked Questions | User Guide | Tutorial Guide | Acknowledgements | AFFIRM Disclaimer | Feedback and Questions
AFFIRM has been upgraded to Version 3.0 for Windows
Copyright (C) 2018 Alberta Agriculture and Forestry (AAF)
All Rights Reserved
Revised May 2018
Description
AFFIRM v3 is a decision support tool designed to assist the user in evaluating nutrient management options for fertilizers and livestock manure to develop nutrient management plans for crop production.
Access to AFFIRM
To use AFFIRM, the user must have a MyAlberta Digital ID (MADI) account. Use the following link to setup your MADI account.
To access AFFIRM you will temporarily leave this website to create or log in with a MyAlberta Digital ID. Once you log in you will be redirected to AFFIRM.
https://www.agric.gov.ab.ca/AFFIRM
AFFIRM Checklist
The following is the list of required farm and field information used within AFFIRM:
- Field legal land location or soil zone;
- Previous crop grown (yield, residue management, growing season or irrigation moisture);
- Current crop to be grown;
- Irrigation (if applicable);
- Soil sampling technique (time and depths);
- Soil test laboratory used for soil analyses;
- Soil test laboratory results;
- Manure test results or selected book values for each source of manure;
- Manure management (time, rate and placement of manure application; weather conditions);
- Spring soil moisture conditions;
- Fertilizer products, time of application and placement;
- Fertilizer nutrient costs;
- Expected crop price;
- Farm fertilizer budget.
System Requirements
- AFFIRM v3 is a web-based application.
- AFFIRM is accessed through My Alberta Digital Identification (MADI).
- AFFIRM has been tested on personal computers and tablets.
- AFFIRM has been tested with the following web browsers:
- Internet Explorer
- Fire Fox
- Google Chrome
- Safari
Introduction
Crop nutrient requirements are dependent upon various nutrient sources such as soil nutrient levels, previous crop residue management, manure, biosolids and fertilizers and agro-climatic variables such as spring soil moisture status, anticipated growing season precipitation or irrigation management plus any crop growth soil limiting factors. Determining an appropriate fertilizer application rate aimed at optimizing production and economic returns is dependent upon economic factors such as crop price, fertilizer nutrient costs and the fertilizer budget. AFFIRM will assist in understanding the factors that influence crop nutrient requirements and in formulating a fertilizer program that fits within the farm budget. AFFIRM allows the user to compare nutrient management options based on 4R Nutrient Stewardship (Right Nutrient Source @ Right Rate, Right Time and Right Place). AFFIRM is developed from Alberta-based research. It allows the user to evaluate nutrient management for over 160 crops, including cereals, oilseeds, pulse, forage and specialty crops grown on either dryland or irrigation within the province.
Optimizing nutrient requirements for crop production is influenced by many soil, crop, climatic and management factors. The interaction of these factors can be complex. AFFIRM allows the user to evaluate nutrient requirements for crop production based on Alberta research and individual production economics. The user is able to enter information specific to the user's situation into this decision support tool to test various cropping, nutrient management and climatic scenarios to optimize nutrient management decisions. Based on the results of these scenarios, a final decision on nutrient requirements that best fits the user’s situation and objectives can be made. AFFIRM is designed to be used by a wide range of users, including producers, crop specialists, farm consultants, industry agents, researchers and students to assist in optimizing nutrient management.
AFFIRM is a full spectrum nutrient recommendation tool for Nitrogen (N), Phosphorus (P), Potassium (K), Sulfur (S) plus micronutrients. It will accept soil test results from a variety of laboratories that use various soil test procedures. AFFIRM uses calibration functions for each soil test method, derived from Alberta research. AFFIRM allows the user to select a crop to be grown, identify the field's agro-climatic region, input soil and crop management practices, enter soil and manure test results from a laboratory report, select nutrient management options and input economic information (fertilizer costs, crop prices and fertilizer budget) to optimize nutrient management decisions. AFFIRM is designed to calculate N, P205, K20, S and micronutrient fertilizer requirements and crop yield response to incremental rates of fertilizer nitrogen for the major crops and agro-climatic zones in Alberta. It will identify soil and climatic limitations that will impact nutrient management. For a limited set of crops, the yield response model utilizes Nitrogen Supply (soil test nitrate, soil mineralizable nitrogen, previous crop residue nitrogen, manure nitrogen and incremental fertilizer nitrogen rates) and Water Supply (spring soil moisture, expected regional growing season precipitation based on long-term normal, and irrigation). The predicted crop yield response plus fertilizer cost and expected crop value are used to estimate the economic return from fertilizer use. AFFIRM provides an economic analysis to assess marginal crop revenue vs. marginal fertilizer nitrogen cost. It uses the economic principle that marginal revenue product must be greater than marginal factor cost for an input to remain economic. AFFIRM requires agronomic and economic information for the farm. Various cropping, nutrient management, moisture and economic scenarios can be evaluated to optimize management decisions. The effects of spring soil moisture and anticipated growing season precipitation or irrigation has a significant impact for managing crop nutrient requirements. Crop price, fertilizer cost and the farm fertilizer budget provides AFFIRM with the necessary information to conduct an economic analysis to determine the economic optimum rate of nitrogen fertilizer. With the variation in fertilizer costs, crop prices and moisture conditions, AFFIRM is a tool to help make nutrient management decisions and strategies that will enhance crop production efficiency and sustainability.
What's new for this Version?
- Expanded list of crops that represent cereals, oilseeds, pulse, forage and specialty crops grown on either dryland or irrigation within the province.
- The nutrient sources impacting recommendations have been expanded to include estimated nitrogen release from soil organic matter (soil mineralizable nitrogen), nitrogen from previous crop residue, manure nutrients and fertilizer products.
- Updated yield response functions based on:
- Water Supply that includes spring soil moisture, growing season precipitation based on long term probabilities, and irrigation level;
- Nitrogen Supply that includes soil test nitrate, estimated nitrogen release from soil organic matter, nitrogen from previous crop residue, manure nitrogen and fertilizer nitrogen.
- Nutrients from manure sources affected by timing, placement, rate and weather conditions.
- Expanded fertilizer products list to include new fertilizer products such enhanced efficiency fertilizers.
- 4R Nutrient Stewardship of fertilizers and manures.
What can AFFIRM do for you?
- Designed to evaluate nutrient management options and optimize nutrient management decisions.
- Individual field or sub-field nutrient recommendations and economic analysis.
- Designed to assist with making fertilizer decisions for farming operation with budget limitations.
- Whole farm nutrient optimization to allocate fertilizer based nutrient requirements, based on crop yield response to applied nitrogen fertilizer and water supply, fertilizer costs and crop prices.
- Calculate economic marginal returns for fertilizer application for fertilizer decisions.
- Allows the user to consider various crop choices, and economic scenarios of crop prices and fertilizer costs.
- Provides the impact of spring soil moisture, growing season precipitation or irrigation moisture levels.
- Diagnosis of soil related crop problems.
- Maintain historic records for crop management, soil and manure test information, fertilizer costs and crop prices.
- Record field specific user notes.
AFFIRM Features
- Uses low, intermediate and optimum moisture conditions for spring soil and growing season based on soil regions, precipitation probabilities, irrigation and soil texture.
- Presents fertilizer recommendations, economic analysis and farm optimization in easy to understand messages, tables and graphics.
- Evaluates the effects of different management strategies that includes crop selection, crop management, moisture conditions, manure management and nutrient stewardship
- AFFIRM is based on field and laboratory research from Alberta and/or western Canada.
- AFFIRM is designed for Alberta conditions and may not be applicable outside of the province of Alberta.
Frequently Asked Questions
The AFFIRM v3 FAQ.pdf file provides answers to many frequently asked questions.
AFFIRM User Guide
The AFFIRM v3 User Guide.pdf file provides information on AFFIRM and how it generates recommendations.
AFFIRM Tutorial
The AFFIRM v3 Tutorial.pdf file provides a tutorial guide to help users.
Acknowledgements
Development Team:
- Len Kryzanowski, P.Ag., Director, Environmental Strategy and Research
- Symon Mezbahuddin, Research Extension Agrologist
- Trevor Wallace, P.Ag., Nutrient Management Specialist
- Information Technology support from Karla Doherty (Senior Project Manager), JohnMark Mikhail (Senior Solutions Architect) and Krystyna Cynar (Director, Strategic Services);
- Application development by Fujitsu Consulting (Canada): Harold Peske (Project Manager/Business Analyst), Darren Caharel (Service Delivery Manager), Ken Schwartz, Tiger Lu, James Hogan, Kelly Rosborough, Alex Yushko, Leo Yu, Bob Bryenton, John Mommersteeg and Tracy Dean.
AFFIRM v3 was developed by the Environmental Stewardship Branch of Alberta Agriculture and Forestry, in cooperation with Crops Research and Extension Branch. We very much appreciate the funding and in-kind support we received from our partners:
- Government of Alberta Information Management Technology (IMT) Fund
- Growing Forward 2 Research Innovations and Opportunities (ROI)
- Alberta Crop Industry Development Fund (ACIDF)
- Alberta Agriculture and Forestry (AAF) Capital Fund
- Environmental Stewardship Branch
We gratefully acknowledge the extensive field and laboratory research conducted by provincial, federal, university and industry agronomic researchers in Alberta and western Canada. Without this excellent body of research, this project would not have been possible.
Disclaimer
The intent of AFFIRM is not to reproduce fertilizer recommendations and target yield predictions made by various private laboratories. Rather, AFFIRM generates recommendations from procedures outlined in the Soil Test Recommendations for Alberta: Technical Manual, the soil test calibration research conducted by Alberta researchers, the yield response equations developed by Alberta Agriculture and Forestry (AAF) and, when necessary, soil and fertilizer research from western Canada. Soil test laboratories have various mechanisms for developing fertilizer recommendations that may include research from Alberta.
Alberta Agriculture & Forestry, having no control over individual information being entered makes no representations or warranties, expressed or implied, as to the predicted yield responses to fertilizer use generated by this system and assumes no responsibility or liability for use of the program.
Feedback and Questions
If you have questions, comments or problems using AFFIRM, you can obtain help by contacting: AF.AFFIRM@gov.ab.ca. |
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