Fertilizer Q&A

Fertilizer refers to anything given to the roots or ground to provide plants with the nutrients they require to boost yield, improve quality, improve soil properties, and fortify the soil.

Carbon (C), Hydrogen (H), and Oxygen (O) make up >95% of essential elements for plant composition. Major elements, on the other hand, include Nitrogen (N), Phosphorus (P), and Potassium (K), also known as leaf, flower, and fruit fertilizer/stem fertilizer, respectively, and amounting to ≈3%. Minor elements such as Calcium (Ca), Magnesium (Mg), and Sulphur (S), which are important for the synthesis of plant cell scaffolds, chlorophyll, and proteins, account for approximately 1%. Trace elements such as Iron (Fe), Manganese (Mn), Copper (Cu), Zinc (Zn), Molybdenum (Mo), Chlorine (Cl), Boron (B), and Nickel (Ni), account for <0.5%. Despite the tiny amount of these 17 micronutrients, each nutrient is just as crucial to the nourishment and physiological operation of crops.

Chemical fertilizer:

• Chemical fertilizers contain a higher nutrient concentration than organic fertilizers. Consider the regularly used three-element fertilizers: the Nitrogen content of urea is 45%, the Phosphorus pentoxide content of Calcium superphosphate is 17%, and the Potassium oxide content of Potassium chloride is 60%, so the dosage is lower than that of organic fertilizers.
• Chemical fertilizers are 'quick-acting' and 'soluble,' allowing immediate absorption and utilization by crops for a direct and rapid fertilization impact.

Organic Fertilizer:

• In addition to Nitrogen, Phosphorus, Potassium and other nutrients, there are a small amount of trace elements and a high proportion of organic matter. The rate of nutrient release is relatively slow, similar to that of a slow-acting fertilizer, but it has durability and residual effects (plant residue meal is a quick-acting type of organic fertilizers).
• Organic fertilizer can boost the growth of beneficial microorganisms in the soil, enhance its physical characteristics, and thus significantly increase its capacity to retain water, fertilizer, and soil permeability.
• Improves the soil's ability to exchange ions and provide as a buffer against environmental changes to prevent the soil from drastically changing pH and EC levels because of external chemical fertilizers. Helps to clamp down on micronutrients, aids in the solubility of plant nutrients, and boosts the nutrients' effectiveness.

Amino Acids are small molecule organic fertilizers that serve as precursors to pigments, enzymes, hormones, and other plant body components. Aid in cell synthesis, fruit color change, stage control, and flavor enhancement, all of which benefit plant nutritional and reproductive growth.

Incompletely rotted organic matter applied directly to the soil may cause undesirable effects, such as the organic matter starting fermentation, competing with the crop for Nitrogen, depleting the soil air and causing oxygen deficiency, anaerobic fermentation producing organic acids that hinder root development, or soil reductivities that hinder crop growth, spreading pathogens (Salmonella, Clostridium botulinum, and Escherichia coli), weed seeds, and emitting a foul odor.