Bodie Kitchel knows agriculture—not just from years of supporting growers, but from putting those practices to work on his own farms. Over his career, he’s pushed beyond what’s considered standard, especially when it comes to fertility. His passion for biologics has led him to ask—and answer—the tough questions:

• What data can growers truly trust?

• When should intuition take the lead?

• Why is now the time to be open to biological use on your operation?

If you’ve ever wondered how to apply commercial fertilizer more efficiently, this episode is for you. Bodie breaks down how to grow the biology in your soil and rethink the way fertility works on your farm.

Recorded LIVE at the Dealer Meeting 2025, agronomists Jason Schley, Mason Claude, and Josh Messer sit down to tackle one of the hottest topics of the season: the rapid spread of Southern Rust across Midwest farms.

This candid conversation dives into the big questions every grower and dealer is asking:

• How do you build a plan of attack when disease pressure shows up late in the season?

• When is it still worth the pass—and when is a crop too far gone to save?

• What strategies actually pay off in protecting yield potential at this stage?

With boots-on-the-ground insights and years of agronomy experience, Jason, Mason, and Josh cut through the noise to deliver practical, actionable advice that can make or break a grower’s bottom line.

Whether you’re scouting fields, advising growers, or simply wanting to understand the latest agronomic battlefront, this episode is packed with real-world perspective you won’t want to miss.

A Day With Agronomy in Wabash, Indiana:

Link here: https://bw-fusion.com/a-day-with-agronomy

Host Sean Nettleton brings a quick update on what's coming next for the Crop Cast podcast. Season 2 is launching in early September, and we’re taking a short break to line up a fresh guest list and tackle real, impactful solutions for growers facing a challenging season. Thank you for listening, and stay tuned. There's a lot to look forward to.

Find us on social: https://bw-fusion.com/cropcast

Submit a topic or guest request: https://bw-fusion.com/cropcast

Find Sean Nettleton on X: https://x.com/sean_nettleton

In the final installment of the Seed to Harvest series, host Sean wraps up an impactful three-part conversation with Jason and Jaren Schley, zeroing in on the critical late-season stages of crop development. This episode dives deep into how growers can finish strong, emphasizing late-season nutrient management, the role of auxins, potassium, boron, zinc, and the importance of understanding phosphorus availability and mobility.

Jason and Jaren share eye-opening results from their on-farm trials, including surprising data on phosphorus uptake and the limitations of traditional P applications. They challenge conventional thinking by highlighting how most growers focus heavily on the first 40–50 days of crop development, while the final 60 days, R3 to R5, hold untapped yield potential.

Listeners will gain insights on:

• The diminishing returns of early phosphorus applications and the value of in-season phosphorus strategies

• Why foliar feeding immobile or oxidized nutrients can be more effective late in the season

• How potassium acts as the “invite” that moves sugars into the grain and enhances kernel fill

• Trial data showing significant yield gains from R4-R5 foliar applications. Up to 10.5 bushels in some cases

• Lessons from the Herman Warsaw study and the vital role of potassium in maintaining nitrogen uptake and photosynthesis late in the season

The episode closes with a compelling call to rethink crop finish strategies, maintain plant health longer, and take full advantage of the back half of the season. If you’re looking to maximize kernel weight, reduce phantom yield loss, and finish your crop strong, this episode is a must-listen.

If you’ve ever questioned whether your K applications are delivering ROI, this episode is a must-listen.

Join Sean Nettleton and Dr. S.A. Khan from the University of Illinois to discuss the eye-opening research behind the Potassium Paradox. Dr. Kahn unpacks decades of soil science and long-term field data, challenging the conventional wisdom around potassium (K) fertilization. Dr. Khan explains why most Midwestern soils already contain more than enough potassium to support crop production and why typical soil tests often fail to accurately represent the true soil availability.

For full context and to follow Dr. Khan’s slides, we highly recommend watching the episode on our YouTube channel.

Topics Covered:

• The science behind exchangeable vs. non-exchangeable potassium
• How soil moisture and weather cycles impact soil test values
• Why overapplying K can hurt calcium, magnesium, and even your soil’s structure
• Results from over 2,000 response trials across North America
• Practical, cost-saving fertility recommendations
  

Don’t miss this deep dive into one of the most misunderstood nutrients in agronomy.

In this episode, Dr. Mulvaney challenges the common belief that most of a crop’s nitrogen comes from fertilizer. Instead, he explains that the soil itself is the primary source of nitrogen uptake—thanks to the natural process of mineralization, where organic matter breaks down and releases plant-available nitrogen.

Key takeaways:

• Fertilizer isn’t the dominant source of N—soil N plays a much larger role.

• Soils differ dramatically in their nitrogen-supplying capacity.

• Yield-based N recommendations ignore this variation, often leading to over-application.

Dr. Mulvaney’s research is focused on improving nitrogen efficiency—boosting crop uptake while minimizing environmental harm. He collaborates with industry partners to refine fertilizer practices and promote the use of the Illinois Soil Nitrogen Test (ISNT) for more precise, site-specific N management.

If you’re looking to improve yields without wasting nitrogen dollars, this episode offers critical insights that could reshape how you think about nitrogen use.

Watch the full length presentation here: https://youtu.be/JoExUqhuJas

In this insightful episode, Sean Nettleton talks with Josh Linville, a widely followed fertilizer market expert, about the complex dynamics of the global fertilizer industry and its impact on U.S. agriculture.

Key Topics Covered:

• Fertilizer Price Volatility: Josh emphasizes that neither he nor local retailers set fertilizer prices—global events and market structures do. Price swings often stem from geopolitical instability, trade restrictions, and global supply chain disruptions.

• Global Dependence & Supply Challenges: The conversation highlights how North American agriculture remains tightly linked to international fertilizer markets, including inputs from China, Russia, and the Middle East. Disruptions—like conflicts in the Strait of Hormuz or export bans—can quickly affect local supply and pricing.

• Domestic Production Gaps: Josh discusses the U.S.'s underinvestment in nitrogen production, despite having cheap natural gas and strong environmental standards. He argues for more domestic manufacturing to reduce dependence and exposure to foreign market volatility.

• Fertilizer Futures & Market Tools: The industry is slowly evolving toward offering farmers better tools, such as micro futures contracts for urea, to hedge fertilizer costs similarly to how they manage grain risk. But adoption remains in early stages.

• Fertilizer Efficiency & Biologicals: The two also touch on improving nutrient efficiency through soil testing, biologicals, and smart application timing. Josh acknowledges the role of companies like BW Fusion in helping farmers stretch input dollars with more targeted fertility management.

• The Call for Education: Both Sean and Josh stress the importance of education and proactive planning. With tight margins, farmers must stay engaged year-round, rather than waiting until fall or spring to make buying decisions.

In this episode, host Sean speaks with Ed Baumgartner, founder of BASS Hybrids, to explore their unconventional approach to corn breeding. Ed discusses BASS Hybrids’ 20-year mission to reduce farmers’ reliance on synthetic inputs by developing corn hybrids with native tolerance to insects, drought, and stress without genetic modification.

Here's what we cover:

• Origins & Purpose: BASS Hybrids began in Puerto Rico under intense insect pressure. Their breeding program focuses on native insect tolerance, drought resilience, and reduced need for nitrogen inputs.

• Hot-Cold Stress Connection: Through tropical breeding, they discovered that ~70% of genes related to heat tolerance also confer cold tolerance—allowing successful adaptation of their tropical genetics to northern climates.

• Durability & Stay-Green Trait: Their hybrids tend to stay green longer, maturing naturally rather than dying and drying. This stay-green attribute is linked to better plant health and microbial interactions.

• Focus on Regenerative Agriculture:

  • BASS is intentionally breeding hybrids that thrive in low-input and biologically rich systems.

  • Their hybrids show strong responses to biologicals and microbial activity—contrasting with GMO varieties bred for high-input systems.

  • They've identified products that perform better in manured or cover-cropped systems, including those with reduced nitrogen.

• Biological Integration:

  • Root exudates, microbial interactions, and high BRIX levels (sugar content) are central to their approach.

  • Some hybrids display signs of nitrogen fixation or increased microbial activity at the root level, including brace roots contributing to nutrient acquisition.

• Durayield Line:

  • Their flagship product line emphasizes stress tolerance, wider leaves, enhanced rooting systems, and yield consistency under biological management systems.

  • The Durayield concept is continuously evolving based on breeding cycle improvements.

• Real-World Testing:

  • BASS is now present in 22 U.S. states and markets internationally, including Kazakhstan.

  • Collaborations allow year-round breeding and stress testing, including trials under regenerative and conventional systems.