Fertilizer Applicator Certification Training
Fertilizer certification is required if you apply fertilizer to more than 50 acres used for agricultural production grown primarily for sale. The deadline for fertilizer applicators to be in compliance with Ohio Law is 9/30/2017. To learn more about who needs certification, and trainings near you, visit the Ohio Nutrient Education website.
Program Progress
As of 11/30/2018, the program has trained 17,500 applicator throughout Ohio. The number of applicators trained and certified in each county, as reported by Ohio Department of Ag, can be found here.
OSU Extension has trained more than 10,000 Ohio farmers on best practices to apply fertilizer (2 min) (link)
Training Videos
These videos are provided as review materials for anyone interested in soil fertility information related to plant production and water quality impacts. To attain Fertilizer Applicator Certification you must attend a workshop where training is offered. To learn more about who needs certification, and trainings near you, visit the Ohio Nutrient Education website.
1. Introduction: Fertilizer Applicator Certification Laws-- SB150 and SB1 (10 min) (link)
2. Calculate 12 and 24 Hour Precipitation Forecasts (10 min) (link)
3. Water Quality and Agriculture (5 min) (link)
4. Agriculture and Types of Water Quality Impairments (7 min) (link)
5. Why the Focus on Agriculture? (7 min) (link)
6. Edge of Field Studies (6 min) (link)
7. Soil Sampling (6 min) (link)
8. Soil Sampling and the Lab (9 min) (link)
9. Tri-State Fertilizer Recommendations and Phosphorous Management (15 min) (link)
10. Training Exercise 1: Reading a Soil Test Result for Phosphorous (15 min) (link)
Download used with video: Exercise 1: Reading a Soil Test Result for Phosphorous
11. Training Exercise 2: Making a Fertilizer Recommendation (15 min) (link)
Download used with video: Exercise 2: Determining P Nutrient Rec. and Fertilizer Rate
12. Water Quality and the Fate of Nitrogen (4 min) (link)
a. Nitrogen Cycle (6 min) (link)
13. Determining the Nitrogen Rate and Timing for Ohio (11 min) (link)
14. Tools for predicting Crop Nitrogen Need (11 min) (link)
15. Recordkeeping with OnMRK app (coming soon)
Other Supplementary Materials
Fertilizer Applicator Certification Training Manual 2017
Nutrient Testing Laboratory Listing
FactSheet: Soil Sampling to Develop Nutrient Recommendations
FactSheet: Guidelines for Choosing a Soil-Testing Laboratory
Exercise 1: Reading a Soil Test Result for Phosphorous
Exercise 2: Determining Phosphorous Nutrient Recommendations and Fertilizer Rate
Experts related to FACT
- Greg LaBarge- labarge.1@osu.edu. Phone 740 223-4043 office, 419 460-0600 cell.
- Harold Watters- watters.35@osu.edu. Phone 937 599-4227 office, 937 604-2415 cell.