Understanding the Different Types of Fertilizers
All green plants obtain the nutrients they need to grow and reproduce from the soil and the surrounding air. The process of photosynthesis occurs in the leaves, utilising atmospheric carbon dioxide and water drawn by the root system to produce the energy-rich carbohydrate essential for many metabolic processes. However, this crucial activity could not proceed without the elements required to synthesise chlorophyll. To ensure they are available in sufficient quantities, it is frequently necessary to introduce a?fertilizer?into the soil.
Types of Essential Plant Nutrients
Essential plant nutrients can be classified into three types according to the quantities required. The greatest need for all plants is for the three primary or macro-nutrients, nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium. Next in importance are the secondary nutrients, calcium, magnesium and sulphur. While plants need less of these, the requirement is still relatively high compared to the trace quantities of additional elements, equally essential for plant welfare. Though comprising less than 1% of a plant’s dry weight, boron, zinc, manganese, iron, copper, molybdenum, and chlorine are equally essential. There are two primary choices when applying fertilizer to replenish soil nutrients, although it’s convenient to subdivide the second.
The Main Fertilizer Options
Chemical or inorganic products are manufactured products that provide an alternative to naturally occurring elements. Next are the organic mixtures consisting purely of natural ingredients. However, some manufacturers prepare these mixtures by extracting the essential nutrients entirely from natural sources, hence the need for a third category – purely organic, heterogeneous mixes, such as animal manure and compost. However, although fans of organic foods prize the latter, they are unsuitable for intensive farming. A manufactured inorganic or organic fertilizer offers the advantage of having a known and predetermined composition.
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Precision in Composition is Key
In practical terms, access to products of known composition enables growers to create the perfect balance of essential nutrients for a given species based on a preliminary analysis of their unique soil conditions. This degree of precision ensures healthy crops and high yields that are not achievable when using manure and compost.
However, a plant’s nutritional requirements can vary markedly at different stages in its development. What may be helpful to seedlings and root growth may be of little value for foliar development or flowering. Consequently, choosing a fertilizer with the precise composition required during these stages can be crucial. Understanding these changing needs and how to satisfy them requires in-depth knowledge of plant physiology that even experienced farmers sometimes lack.
Kynoch offers the option of farm visits to perform a comprehensive professional soil analysis and compile a unique nutritional programme designed to generate maximum yields based on the results. Please?click here?to learn more about farm visits or?here?to view our world-class fertilizer range.