I will continue to recommend using N-Serve as a stabilizer, because it’s one of those products that has continually delivered a return on investment for us.
Joe Dee has supported the Minnesota farming community since 2013 through his role as an agronomy sales lead with Ag Partners. Growing up on a dairy farm in northeastern Iowa, he is ingrained in the agriculture industry.
Ag Partners is a full-service ag retail cooperative with locations in Minnesota and Wisconsin. It provides agronomic services and supplies, energy and grain marketing to more than 12,000 customers in the region. Ag Partners takes a lead role in providing growers new ways of enhancing the profitability of production agriculture.
“Ultimately, we’re about building relationships and continuing those. And, to me, that’s the best part about working in agriculture,” Dee said.
Dee discussed the variability in harvest outcomes over the last two years.
“In 2025, we’ve harvested probably some of the best crops we’ve had in the last five years. Although in 2024, with the amount of rainfall we had in this particular territory, it was probably the worst crop we’ve ever had,” he said. “And it varies as you go territory to territory, so it’s been up and down as Mother Nature kind of dictates.”
Dee highlighted the benefit of utilizing a nitrogen stabilizer on growing plants. The additional longevity of usable nitrogen when plants need it most is vital to maximizing productivity.
“We get that massive uptake curve by having the nitrogen in the root zone where we need it,” Dee said. “We’re not going to see the nitrogen deficiency that we would otherwise without a stabilizer, especially with the extreme weather events that we’ve had.”
For Dee, using a nitrogen stabilizer is non-negotiable. He’s successfully demonstrated to his customers the advantages of utilizing N-Serve® nitrogen stabilizer. With 50 years on the market, N-Serve has proven value to farmers time and again—and then some.
“Our customers rely on us as agronomists to make the best decisions on their farm, and nitrogen stabilization is one of those things,” Dee said. “It’s not something that we think about or argue that ‘Hey, is this something that doesn’t pay or do we really need it?’ because it’s one of those products that has a long-standing reputation, and it’s been proven.”
Dee is confident recommending N-Serve nitrogen stabilizer to his customers, because he’s witnessed the benefits in the field year after year. His company has performed successful trials with the product and he sees the return on investment for growers. He knows that when growers see the results on their farms, they are believers.
“It’s been proven since it came out in the 1970s,” Dee said. “It’s a product that keeps nitrogen in the root zone when the plant needs it most.”
Even with weather events like extreme rainfall, Dee remains firm on the value of N-Serve.
In his experience, Dee says, “The return on investment is always there.”
Dee also considers principled land-stewardship practices when he’s recommending nitrogen stabilizers to Ag Partners’ members. He knows that for farmers, stewardship means leaving their land better than they found it - for generations to come.
“It’s about protecting what’s there and protecting our groundwater as well,” Dee said. “Using stabilizers is just a sound agronomic practice.”
Dee has his customers’ best interests in mind, and he takes the consulting part of his role to heart. He makes recommendations based on his experience with products and his knowledge of the industry and the region.
“I will continue to recommend using N-Serve as a stabilizer, because it’s one of those products that has continually delivered a return on investment for us,” Dee said.
Learn more about the importance of nitrogen stabilizers and how they can increase yield potential here.
