This newsletter focuses on metals and micronutrients from two points of view: environmental hazards and agronomic benefits. The newsletter starts with an introductory article to refresh all of our memories with the basics. The next several articles focus on environmental concerns, specifically, heavy metal contamination of fertilizers, soil copper accumulation due to its use in footbaths for livestock, and arsenic in groundwater. After that, we switch focus to agronomic utilization of micronutrients with several articles on zinc that cover sources, application methods, and interactions with phosphorus.

The last three articles focus on iron in corn, boron in alfalfa and potatoes, and sulfur in wheat. Numerous outside authors contributed to this issue including: Terry Tindall from Simplot, Alan Blaylock from Agrium, Bryan Hopkins from the University of Idaho, Bart Stevens from the University of Wyoming, and Gary Hergert from the University of Nebraska. I'm grateful to all of the contributing authors and hope this newsletter is helpful in weighing both the hazards and benefits of metals and micronutrients.

Jessica Davis
Soil Specialist
Colorado State University