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Urea Uses for Corn

Corn crops drain the soil of available nitrogen and phosphorus and prevent consistent high yields of cattle feed from year to year. The addition of urea is a viable alternative for the addition of nitrogen to farm fields to improve the yields of corn. Urea also offers the benefit of reduced greenhouse gases as compared to others fertilizer options.

  1. Urea as Fertilizer

    • A study published by the University of Missouri in September 2010 investigated the effects of nitrogen applications to corn crops applied either between rows or broadly in plants ranging from 1 to 4 feet tall. Nitrogen was in the form of ammonium nitrate, urea ammonium nitrate (UAN), urea alone or urea in a product called Agrotain. The report state that UAN application damaged between 32 to 55 percent of the corn plants, whereas the application of urea damaged only 4 to 8 percent of the crops and could be safely applied to plants ranging from 2 to 4 feet tall.

    Uses of Urea

    • A University of Nebraska publication documented the effects of nitrogen and phosphorus applications in reduced-till sprinkler irrigation systems. The report stated that urea phosphate, as a source of nitrogen and phosphate, produced higher crop yields and total uptake of these elements into the plants. The authors found that urea should be placed beneath the soil surface to inhibit microbes and prevent losses of the chemical released into the atmosphere.

    Feed Corn

    • A study published in the December 2002 issue of "Animal Feed Science and Technology" assessed the effects of nitrogen supplementation on crops for feeding cattle. The researchers used four corn-based diets: a nitrogen-deficient control diet; a urea supplemented diet; a urea and isolated soy protein (ISP) diet; and a urea, ISP, and blood meal (BM) diet. The study found that cattle feed grown with urea supplementation produced a greater daily average of weight gain in the test animals. The study concluded that the addition of urea had no effect on the blood glucose levels or insulin levels in the cattle.

    Greenhouse Gases

    • Fertilizers can release greenhouse gasses into the atmosphere in the form of nitrous oxide (N2O). A study published by the U.S. Department of Agriculture in March 2010 assessed the gas emissions from fields growing solely corn or a rotation of corn and soybeans using urea or anhydrous nitrogen fertilizers. The researchers monitored N2O emissions over three growing seasons and found that anhydrous nitrogen produced twice the emission as urea. The study concluded that N2O emissions could be greatly reduced by using urea as a nitrogen source for crops.

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