Question 1

When should we sample?

Accepted Answer

After harvest and before the ground freezes, as weather and field conditions allow. Fall sampling gives you results over the winter for planning. If fall doesn't work out, spring is still an option.

Question 2

Zone or grid?

Accepted Answer

It depends on the field. Zones work best when several layers agree — yield history, soils, topography, imagery, and what you know about the ground — and show variability that persists year to year. Imagery alone isn't a diagnosis. Grid can make sense for a baseline, new ground, or mixed manure history. We'll talk through it for your fields.

Question 3

How deep do you sample? Do I need deep nitrate?

Accepted Answer

That depends on the crop, field history, the nutrient question you're trying to answer, soils, and your goals. Deep cores for residual nitrate are an optional add-on we'll discuss when it fits.

Question 4

Can you use drone imagery you already flew?

Accepted Answer

It can be one input. We look at whether the patterns in current-season imagery line up with persistent variability in other layers before using it to help shape zones — we don't turn one season's NDVI straight into a sampling plan.

Question 5

Do I have to buy fertilizer from you?

Accepted Answer

No. We don't sell fertilizer, lime, seed, or custom application. You buy product wherever you already do.

Question 6

What do I get back?

Accepted Answer

GPS sample locations, lab results, and a field summary. Custom zone or grid maps and variable-rate prescription files are optional add-ons, formatted for the controller you run.

Question 7

How fast do results come back?

Accepted Answer

Lab turnaround depends on the lab and the tests. Sending details early gives us time to review location and plan routing around harvest, weather, and field conditions.

Question 8

Do you work outside Minnesota and North Dakota?

Accepted Answer

Minnesota and North Dakota are our main area. Elsewhere in the Upper Midwest depends on location, timing, acreage, and routing — send the field location and we'll tell you straight.

Question 9

Is there a minimum?

Accepted Answer

Tell us the acres and location. We'll be upfront about whether it fits the route and what it would cost.