Fertilizer recommendation software for agronomists
Fertilizer recommendation software helps agronomists turn crop needs and field information into a nutrient plan for each field or management zone: which products, how much and when. Good software works from your own methods, with or without a lab report, and keeps the plan connected to what is applied in the field. This guide explains what to look for, and how SoilBeat does it.
What it is
Two kinds of fertilizer recommendation
Most recommendations do one of two jobs. Good software handles both.
Pre-season plans
A plan for the coming crop, built from crop demand and yield target, the previous crop, cover crops, manure and other organic inputs, and a soil test when you have one. The result is a rate per product for each management zone.
In-season corrections
A response to something that changed: a plant sap or tissue result, a symptom or a weather event. The right answer depends on the field’s history, recent applications and crop stage.
In both cases the agronomist decides. Software should take over the calculation and admin, not the judgement.
What to look for
What should you look for in fertilizer recommendation software?
Nine things that decide whether a tool saves you time and improves your advice, and how SoilBeat handles each one.
| What to look for | Why it matters | How SoilBeat does it |
|---|---|---|
| 01Works with or without a lab report | Many plans start from crop needs, the previous crop and cover crops. Some fields have no recent test. | The multizone calculator and soil balance calculator combine crop needs and cover crops with lab results when you have them. |
| 02Uses your own method | Your formulas, rate limits and product choices are your expertise. Generic defaults don’t reflect your local conditions. | Save your own formulas, rate limits, multipliers, products and report templates, and reuse them across clients. |
| 03Plans per management zone | One rate per field wastes inputs where the need is lower and under-supplies where it is higher. | Build multizone fertilizer plans with a rate per product for each zone. |
| 04Reads your lab reports | Retyping values from PDFs takes time and introduces errors. | Upload soil, Haney, PLFA, plant sap, tissue, water, silage and manure reports. SoilBeat supports 100+ lab formats. |
| 05Accounts for what was already applied | Manure, earlier applications and cover crops change what the crop still needs. | Field history, recorded applications and cover crops sit next to every plan. |
| 06Keeps the agronomist in control | AI can help draft, but the advice carries your name. | AI drafts are reviewed, adjusted and approved by the agronomist before anything is shared. |
| 07Turns advice into tasks | A plan only creates value when it is carried out, and you need to know what was actually done. | Published recommendations become tasks for the grower, who marks work as done. |
| 08Builds history across seasons | Next season’s plan should start from this season’s results. | Results, plans and applications stay linked to each field and zone, season after season. |
| 09Lets you leave with your data | Your client records are your business. | Customers keep ownership of their data. Export lab data to Excel and recommendation reports as PDF. |
Spreadsheet, general AI chat or dedicated software?
Most agronomists start with a spreadsheet, and many now try a general AI assistant. Here is how they compare for fertilizer recommendations.
| Spreadsheet | General AI chat | SoilBeat | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Uses your formulas | Yes, if you build and maintain them | Only what you paste in each time | Saved once, reused for every client |
| Multizone plans | Built by hand | Possible, but not stored | Built in |
| Reads lab reports | Values retyped | Can read a PDF, no lasting record | 100+ formats, stored per field |
| Field history | Spread across files | Only within one conversation | Linked to each field and zone |
| Grower tasks and follow-up | Not included | Not included | Tasks with recorded completion |
| Agronomist approval | Your own process | Your own process | Part of the workflow |
Questions about SoilBeat
What should I know before starting?
What is fertilizer recommendation software?
Software that turns crop needs and field information into a nutrient plan for each field or management zone: which products, how much and when. Most tools combine a calculation method with the field’s history, and some also read lab reports and track what was applied. See how SoilBeat builds recommendations.
Do I need a soil test to make a fertilizer recommendation?
Not always. Many pre-season plans are built from crop demand, yield target, previous crop, cover crops and organic inputs. A recent soil test makes the plan more precise, and plant sap or tissue tests help with in-season corrections. Compare soil, tissue and sap analysis.
Can I use my own fertilizer formulas in SoilBeat?
Yes. You can reuse your own formula-based prescriptions, rate limits, multipliers, selected products and report templates, and build field or multizone recommendations from them. You review and adjust every recommendation before publishing. Explore SoilBeat for agronomists.
How is this different from a spreadsheet?
A spreadsheet can hold a formula, but every client file has to be built, maintained and updated by hand. SoilBeat keeps your formulas, products and templates in one place, links each plan to the field’s history, and turns approved advice into tasks for the grower. Explore connected farm records.
Can AI write fertilizer recommendations?
AI can help draft a recommendation and explain the evidence, but it only knows what it is given and can be wrong. In SoilBeat, AI works from the connected field record and your own instructions, and the agronomist reviews and approves every recommendation. Explore agronomic intelligence.
What does SoilBeat cost for an agronomist?
The Advisor plan costs €995 per year (or €90 per month) and includes 20 farms, 25 recommendation reports and 50 AI questions per month. You can start free, with a 30-day trial of the full Advisor plan. See all plans.
Try it on your next fertilizer plan.
Start free with a 30-day trial of the full Advisor plan, or book a demo and bring a real field.