Fertilizers - Science topic

Here are a few references that discuss salinity and plant tolerance

Salinity in Agriculture

Chapter 13 Plant Salt Tolerance

Handbook 60 -

Article - Protocols and Guidelines for Field-scale Measurement of Soil Salinity Distribution with ECa-Directed Soil Sampling

ِDear, Aurelia Ayi-bonte,

First of all, we have to test the soil inside the pot to see if it has fertilizer components and what it needs. Then, according to the target plant for planting, determine the fertilizer requirement for the plant. Finally, you choose the soil volume of the pot as the target for you.

@ Murlee, the shelf life of fertilizer depends on chemical make up and proper storage. I think, the study should be the minimum period of three years. Normally, liquid fertilizers can last upwards of 10 years, and granular fertilizer has no finite expiration date.

Dear Professors

Please, thank you for your explanation. I am grateful.

In your experiment the nitrogen level is the x variable and the y variable is spad reaading. Y = mx + b spad reading is equal to a slope times the nitrogen plus a y intercept value

Also the Y cam be yield as the final yields and this can dependent on both the nitrogen level and the spad readings

The expected relationship is a law of diminishing return on the nitrogen level or the spad readings related to yield

The yield response is expected to plateau as susfficiency is met fot nitrogen and Spad which is chlorophyll level.

The level of plateau can be used to determine maximum cumulative response and the level of maximum economic response can also be calculated.

The spad level can be used to determine a sufficient level that supplemental nitrogen would not be useful.

Hope you find some of these ideas useful.

Thank you Paul for your response. This is in line with other sources I have been gathering. From a high level, synthetic fertilizer has a significant GHG emission factor for production and a large one for application (primarily due to over-fertilization and the nitrification of unused fertilizer), but transportation and storage are minimus. Organic fertilizers, such as that coming from compost, have a much larger GHG from storage (since GHG continues to off-gas as the compost ages), however, transportation is low because of the small distances anyone is willing to transport compost (primarily a local product from local waste). The one thing, which is certain in all of the papers I have reviewed, is that determining GHG emissions is not yet a science. It is still an art that depends upon the ability of the researcher to define the vast number of variables needed as input into the equation.

The following RG link is also very useful:

for calculate phosphorus emissions, you can use SALCA model.

Kindly also check:

@ Nicolo, please have a look of the attached file.

Portia Phohlo We compared ten P-tests to extract P from acidic soils (Podzol) managed under forest and managed fields with different fertilizer application histories. Water, citric acid, ammonium bicarbonate diethylenetriaminepentaacetic acid (AB-DTPA), Morgan, Olsen, Bray-1, Bray-2, Mehlich-1 and -3 solutions were used to extract and analysed with ICP and colorimetric techniques. The studied soils had a pH range from 3.4 to 6.9; clay contents ranged from 6% to 38%; SOM varied between 0.5% and 47%. We found that Water ≤ Morgan < AB < M1 < B1 < M3 ≤ Olsen << B2 <<<citric acid. B2 extracted 2-folds, and citric acid extracted 4 to 6- folds more P than M3. Proper selection of P-test is required based on the soil properties such as Al, Fe, and SOM content and pH, of course, calibration against nutrient removal or crop yield is very important.

Note: if the acidic soil is currently converted from forest or low in SOM, M3 will overestimate P; if it has been under the management and has higher SOM (5%), M3 might underestimate P.

I will share the manuscript after the final decision of the editor.

You need to avoid having high concentrations of free Ca and P present together if that is your question

It is rarely to be found in one article, for there are many and different variable that crops respond to. Regards

I do agree with Prof Dr Medhat Elsahookie.

Furthermore, overuse of these chemicals causes Release the warming gases especially from those contained halogens groups.

@ Marja, energy consumption values for phosphate and potash fertilizer are estimated at 5,600 BTUs per pound of phosphate(P2O5) and 4,700 BTUs per pound of potash (K2O).

Kindly check:

Surface row-seeded crops are generally sown in undisturbed wet soils when it is difficult foe tractor or even animal drawn implements to operate. Normally seeds and fertilizer nutrients are placed right on the wet soil surface and covered with residues of the previous crop. Subsequent done of fertilizer can also be broadcasted, followed by a light irrigation. It is better to kill weeds before fertilizer application. Herbicides spray may be used to control weeds. In row planted crop situations, fertilizers can be dibbled or band placed manually or with machine during an intercultural operation.

Seed drills of different makes are fitted with seed metering devices to increase or decrease seed rates within specified limits. First, fix seed metering lever in appropriate seed rate delivery notch measure circumference of drive wheel (Cd). Measure width of the drill (Wd) or else multiply the number of tynes with distance between the two tynes. Put seed material in seed- box and rotate drive wheel manually ten full rotations and collect seed delivered trom each tube separately in polythene bagd. Weigh seeds in each bag and also determine pooled/ total seed weight (Sw). If the difference in seed weight between individual delivery tubes more than 10% contact the machinf for adjustment/repairs of the drll. Repeat operations with fertilizers in box to find weight of fertilizer material (Fw), delivered in ten full rotations of the drive wheel as described. Calculate seed and fertilizer application rate per hectare using the following formula:

Seed rate (kg/ha) = (Sw/ Cd x Wd)

Where, Sw = Total weight of the seed released in 10 revolutions (gm)

Cd = Circumference of drive wheel (m)

Wd = Width of the drill (m)

Similarly, fertilizer rate (kg/ha) can be determined using the same total weight of fertilizer released in gram (Fw) in place of total weight of seed (Sw).

It is cautioned that calculated seed and fertilizer rates can differ by 5% from the actual rates due to drag and slippage of the drive wheel depending upon the soil moisture, surface roughness, presence of crop residues and field level. Carry out minor adjustment in seed/ fertilizer rates by actually testing drill in the field.

All fertilizer nutrients are not equally mobile in soils. Under aerobic conditions, relatively mobile nutrient such as nitrate moves deeper into soil profile beyond the reach of the active root system. Under anaerobic puddled conditions with water - table close to soil surface , nitrate nitrogen gets transformed into ammonical form and is absorbed on the negatively charged clay particles, thus not able to move freely with water. This reduces losses of deep placed N. Therefore, it is often recommended for a single deep placement of total N in rice. It seems that it could even be practiced in wheat and other upland crops to harness synergy of nutrient - water interaction for greater photosynthetic activity.

Excellent answer @ Abesh

Also check please the following useful links: https://biointerfaceresearch.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/20695837125.63366360.pdf

http://www.diva-portal.org/smash/get/diva2:720771/FULLTEXT01.pdf

The entire argument about particle size centers around an increased availability of the nutrient to the plant. Following links, and attached pdfs throw light on effects of particle size of fertilizers on soil and crops:

Can you ask the manufacturer?

Such a material can be used for the treatment of Acid Rock/Mine Drainage in mine site remediation. See https://www.imwa.info/piramid/files/PIRAMIDGuidelinesv10.pdf for instance.

the main goal of organic farming is to reduce crop yields to avoid overproduction. therefore, organic agriculture is popularized in Europe, where the state can afford to pay subsidies to farmers and is completely unsuitable for poor and developing countries. This issue is more political than agronomic. Organic fertilizers can never completely replace mineral fertilizers, the most optimal approach is to combine both types of fertilizers.

The content of greenhouse gases in our environment is largely a function of the current excessive exploitation of fossil fuels and the lack of counteractive ability for the plant biome to deal with the fossil fuel use.

The fossil fuel use is mostly related to electricity transportation and industrial activities and also commercial and residential activity.

Agriculture production in the United States has a slightly less 10% greenhouse gas foothill and about half of this is laid at the feet of fertilizer especially ammoniated fertilizer.

While producing our food with legumes instead of fertilizer and will marked reduce the carbon footprint. The biggest way to improve both production and the carbon footprint is the adoption of conservation and regeneration agriculture to improve soil organic matter resources.

Increasing soil organic matter can allow the avoidance of drought losses the principle cause of erratic field crops and it can contribute to reduce the excessive atmospheric gas level.

The monitoring of soil organic matter and the targeting of soil organic matter goals can combine with reduced the production practice footprint to optimize crop performance reduce inputs and give more reliable production especially in stress environments as periodic droughts in rain fed agriculture.

@ Sudarshan, the attached file may be useful to you.

Adding the fertilizer needs at the appropriate time, quantity and fertilizer ratio that are proportional to the productive capacity of the land, the stage of growth, the age of the plant and the degree of its tolerance to salinity, to reduce the possibility of the plant being exposed to salinity problems.

📷

I do agree with Prem Baboo.

Yes you can used Calcium Hydroxide as a soil conditioner but depends upon soil pH. It has higher pH and corrosive in nature you can apply carefully. Hydrated Lime Treatment is particularly suitable for the rapid response phase due to its short treatment time, simple process and use of readily available materials. With trained and skilled staff, it allows for safe, cost-effective and rapid treatment of faecal sludge with outputs that can be safely used for irrigation or soil amendment or can be safely infiltrated or disposed of, if the environmental conditions permit.

And kindly check:

Because ferttlizes are supplying essentionl elements reqired for better crop growth development thereby increading biomass yield

And kindly check:

More exposure to air and sunlight more oxidation of SOM occur as a result SOM content decreases. SOM enrichment results reduced in BD, increases microbial proliferation, improve aeration etc. Hence it improves soil health.

Calculate the weight of one hectare of soil: Psoil (kg ha)=Da * 0.2m * 10000m2, assuming a Da (bulk density of your soil, at 0.2m depth), then calculate the amounts of N, P and K for 2 kg potted soil: N pot (kg )=(2kg soil * 20 kg N ha) / Psoil(kg ha), then calculate the amount of fertilizer needed: Kg Fertilizer=( N pot (kg) * 100 kg Fertilizer ) / 19 kg N (in 100 fertilizer). Use same formula for P and K. Since double P is needed, you would have to use another fertilizer to add the remaining 20 kg, but if you use a phosphate that contains N or P then you would have to take this excess contribution into account to carry out the calculations again using the 19:19:19 fertilizer formula . You could use phosphoric acid or calcium phosphate to avoid this.

I think 25 kg bag.

Very interesting question

Interesting question

You should also check:

Muriate of potash, NaNO3 etc. are abit toxic to skin.

First of all, yes, fertilizers provide crops with nutrients which allow crops to grow bigger, faster, and to produce more food. To grow, plants require nitrogen compounds from the soil, which can be produced naturally or be provided by fertilizers. However, applying excessive amounts of fertilizer leads to the release of harmful greenhouse gases into the atmosphere and the eutrophication of our waterways. The synthetic chemicals in the chemical fertilizers adversely affect the health of naturally found soil micro-organisms by affecting the soil pH. The use of chemical fertilizers also jeopardizes the health of bacteria that fix the nitrogen balance in the soil. Though chemical fertilizers increase crop production; their overuse has hardened the soil, decreased fertility, strengthened pesticides, polluted air and water, and released greenhouse gases, thereby bringing hazards to human health and environment as well. However, there is imbalance of NPK. It has been observed that, continuous application of DAP has caused build up of P in the soil.

Fertigation process is more effevtive

Dear Saheb Soodaee Mashaee many thanks for posting this interestng technical question on RG. Being a synthetic inorganic chemist, I'm certainly not a proven expert in this field. However, I often made the experience that it can be very helpful to use RG directly as a valuable source of information. Numerous relevant research articles have been posted by RG members, many of them even as public full texts. For example, please have a look at the following potentially useful article which might help you in your analysis:

Measurement of total phosphorus and organic phosphorus contents of animal manure composts by the dry combustion method

This paper can be freely downloaded as pdf file. Good luck with your work and best wishes, Frank Edelmann

Mechanization and resource use efficiency have significant effect on production, so there better management could lead to Environment friendly agriculture. Environmentally sustainable agricultural practices are now available, and it is essential that this information are widely disseminated and promoted. Feeding a growing and increasingly affluent population is clashing with efforts to conserve habitat and natural resources. Sustainable intensification, an effort to increase crop yields with fewer inputs and without expanding land use, seeks to balance these priorities. However, agriculture is focused on the working of soil and other facilities to produce crops, animals and trees for human consumption or further refinement into products, while industry is focused more on refining and processing raw materials into products for sale.

Chandrakala Marigowda ,

Thank you very much for your response. The missing value technique could not be employed here as the value is true. For example, you evaluated 10 varieties of a given crop for their aluminum tolerance and if 5 of them failed to grow and give zero yields, we can not assume here missing value methods.

Thank you again and with kind regards,

Tadele Amare

Directly inorganic fertilizer application won't increase OM in soil.

You should ask the lab, but it appears that the exchangeable cations and acidic components (from the KCl extract) have been summed. This sum is usually described as effective cation exchange capacity (ECEC). In contrast, CEC is measured at a high pH, and the pH value should be stated (typically in the range 7.5 to 8.5). For soils of pH values less than that at which CEC is measured, CEC is expected to exceed ECEC.

Dear Emma Hickey

The calculation of fertilizer per Ha to g/kg is very clear

See, the dose of fertilizer/ha is calculated for 15 cm of plough layer holding 3 million kg of soil i.e. 3000000 kg

so, in case of 90 kg/ha dose, if you want to calculate it for 1 kg soil, it would come to 90/3000000

In the given case of 600 g soil, the fertilizer would be, (90/3000000)*0.6

Make sure that the dose mentioned is for 90 kg of 'fertilizer' per se, not the 90 kg of 'nutrient' (in the second case you need to consider nutrient content of the given fertilizer, e.g. 60% N in urea, 18 kg N and 46 kg P2O5 in DAP)

Don't forget to follow row randomization and column randomization for your experimental pots for maintaining homogeneity

Best of luck

The basic method involves reaction between phosphate rock and sulfuric acid. Ground phosphate rock is mixed with sulfuric acid to form a semi solid product and left for cooling. After cooling they are left for additional curing. At the end the product is crushed, and screened and marketed.

Also check please the following very good RG link:

I do agree with J. C. Tarafdar.

You are most welcome dear

Dr Alem Redda .

Wish you the best always,

Dear Dr Rondla Sai Kumar . Yes. See the following useful RG link:

Good answers but for perennial tree crops, leaf analysis is technique which gives estimation of nutrients requirements. For annual crops, after every harvesting soil samples are taken for soil analysis to know fertility status, but for perennials leaf analysis/ tissue analysis is best technique.

Also check https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4395/11/2/379/pdf

If you are talking about composting prior seeding or transplanting, better to consider:

1. Field should be free from previous crop.

2. The first ploughing should be already accomplished.

3. FYM must be well decomposed.

4. Do not spread the FYM in the field to prevent from nutrient loss from volatilization and leaching.

5. If you need to store the FYM for few days in the field, cover it with mulching materials, soil or black polythene sheet.

6. Spread the FYM thoroughly/uniformly in the field.

7. Cover the spread FYM with soil properly for efficient use of its nutrients by plants.

It may be leaf rolling insect.

Interesting. I agree with Dr. Paul Milham and Dr. Anoop

It is not difficult, but you need three dimensions, let us take wheat, to draw that , you take same doses of each of N , P, and K. Sketch the diagram, and you will find it as a volume. A cube or parralelopiped structure .

An interesting question . The rhizocompetent microbes would prefer broadcast method of fertilizer application , uniformly available to microbes spatially over band placement ...it will be an interesting execise to evaluate the crop response under two different methods of fertilizer applications vis-a-vis microbial growth ( population counts and diversity as well).

Dear Dr. Redda,

Very nice and practical question you raised. Normally, agriculturists recommend 50. 100 and 100% of N, P205 and K20, respectively as a basal dose. As you mentioned, until and unless plants have roots they can not utilize the applied fertilizers. Potassium and phosphatic fertilizers takes a little longer time to to be ready to the plants. Therefore they must be applied as basal. There should be wise application of Nitrogenous fertilizers as they are lost through volatilization, leaching and run off water. If Phosphatic fertilizer is complex one with some amount of N, it is not necessary to apply additional N through Urea or other sources. This is the reason, instead of applying 50% N as basal; increase the number of top-dresses at various stages. It will automatically increases the N use efficiency by crop.

Also see the following RG link.

Organic fertilizers improve the soil long after the plants have taken the nutrients they need. Therefore, the longer your soil is fed with organic fertilizers, the better its composition and texture. So, while inorganic fertilizer is cheaper in the short term, it adds less to the soil in the long term. So in my opinion the best option is organic fertilizer,better for the soil and the environment.

Dr. Srivastava answered rightly. @Tsegaye Babege, you can suggest accordingly.

Regards.

For applying the same, you need 12 degree of freedom. You have 3 treatments. 5 subplots can be treated as replication. Then your df is only 8. If you have 4 treatments, it would be good.

Expecting comments from the statisticians.

I can't send material but strongly suggest that you support the research by performing foliar analysis

Please find the attachments.

Regards.

Look at the Rodale Institute and their farming trials and experience.

Look at this , it's an example in an apple orchard:

An analysis of energy use, input costs and relation between energy inputs and yield of apple orchard

look also at FAO resources such as

https://www.fao.org/3/X8054E/x8054e01.htm#TopOfPage

Tomato blossion end rot increases under ammonium fertilization it is related to boron calcium deficiency.

Boron can be deficient in many global soil situations and the boron content optimized by address acid soil aluminum toxicity.

A dewatering machine will instead lead to loss of dissolved nutrients. i think solar drying is the most appropriate

In such sandy calcareous soils , mango is comapratively tolerant to calcareousness , i would be good idea to keep additional 25% phosphorous , preferably as single superphosphate and micronutrients like Fe and Zn , considered three most crunch nutrients . Irrigation is another factor ( otherwise calcareousness with pH 8.4 will create osmotic pressure , detrimental to growth of such young mango seedling) to keep partial pressure of CO₂ well under limit for an optimised plant growth. We very often also add manures 9 farm yard mansucre or vermiocmpost , preferably 250 g with 25 g sulphur to keep calcareousness well under control through acids from these two divergent sources. You cant get any text book like prescription , its more of a your practical instinct than anything else. ...