Fertilization

Brief summary
 Fertilization
 Purpose is to promote the growth and
development of correct size and species of
zooplankton prey for fish fry.
 Zooplankton Groups
Name Primary Body Life Food
Reproduction Length Span Size
(mm) (days) (mm)
Rotifers Asexual 0.04- 4-42 0.001-
2.5 0.02
Cladocerans Asexual 0.2-3.2 25-100+ 0.001-
0.05
Copepods Sexual 0.3-3.2 10-900+ 0.2-20
 Population Trends
? Copepods
3-4 weeks
Rotifers Cladocerans
1-2 weeks 2-3 weeks
Target Organisms
 Application Rates
 Organic fertilizers
• 400 to 1400 kg/ ha (500-1500 lb/ac) applied in 3-5 portions over a 4-6
week culture period
 Inorganic fertilizers
• 0.25-1.00 mg/L active ingredient/volume
 maintain 20:1 nitrogen:phosphorus ratio
 maintain 5-10:1 nitrate:phosphorus ratio
 E.g. TAN: 1 ppm
 Actual rates determined by individual pond fertility.
 A typical target nitrogen concentration in a growout pond is
between 0.5 and 1 ppm (GAA review).
 A typical target phosphorus concentration is between 0.1 and
0.2 mg/l.
Permitted maximum levels
TAN levels of up to 4 ppm and
phosphorus levels of up to 0.25 can
be encountered.

In fertile regions ambient (natural)

nitrogen and phosphorus levels are
0.4 and 0.2 gm/m3 respectively.

TAN should be no higher than 2

mg/L and unionized ammonia less
than 0.1 mg/L.
At 33o Celsius, 40 ppt and a pH of
8.6, 20% of TAN is in the unionized
form.
 Nutrient levels algae vs ammonia
 Maintain fertilization rates as long as water quality
allows (Morris and Mischke (Iowa State
University)).
 Manage excessive ammonia by water changes and
molasses application.
 Dosages of 50 kg of molasses per hectare of pond
area at 1.5 metres deep should reduce TAN by about
0.65 to 1 mg/L. over a six hour period. Up to 100 kg
molasses may be required, but the oxygen demand
can lead to low dissolved oxygen.
 Fertilization: basic concepts
 Supply of nutrients must be balanced.
 Most often limiting: N, P and sometimes C.
 Phytoplankton: 50% C, 9% N, 1% P
 C:N:P of 50:10:1 in the algae
 Practical upper limit of gross primary productivity is
around 10-12 g C/m2/day.
 To achieve this you need 8 kg N and 0.8 kg P/ha/day.
 This works for pure cultures, but not for ponds where algae
are consumed – so figure would be higher.
 Thus, nutrients are required for compensation.
 Turbidity would reduce this capacity (or potential).
 Primary productivity
 To achieve the practical upper limit of gross primary
productivity , you need 8 kg N and 0.8 kg P/ha/day
• Adding 100 kg urea = about 45 kg N
• 20 kg of urea will therefore add 9 kg N
• 10 kg of urea will add about 4.5 kg N
• Phytoplankton therefore has the capacity to consume up to 20
kg urea nutrients per day.
• Urea quickly hydrolyzes to ammonia.
• TSP is 46% P2O5 (20.1% P) and the mass works out at ¼ the
urea application for most phosphate fertilizers.
 Fertilization: inorganic sources

 A fertilizer designated as 15-15-5 will typically

contain urea, TSP and KCl.
 In 100 kg of 15-15-5 you’ll have 15 kg N, 15 kg
P2O5 and 5 kg of K2O.
 @ 0.45 kg N/kg urea = 33.3 kg urea.
 @ 0.46 kg P2O5/kg TSP = 32.6 kg TSP.
 @ 0.60 kg K2O/kg KCl = 8.3 kg KCl.
 Thus, you have 74.2 kg fertilizer compounds and
25.8 kg fillers (limestone).
 Adding 100 kg urea = about 45 kg N
 Fertilization: inorganic sources
 The rate and frequency of fertilization depends upon what
you have on hand and what you require.
 With high exchange rates of water, you must fertilize two or
three times per week.
 Check what your water has (N, P) and make adjustments
accordingly.
 Overfeeding requires a reduction in fertilization rate and
frequency.
 No need to fertilize after biomass exceeds 300 kg/ha or
feeding exceeds 30 kg/ha/day.
• Fertilization of ponds with feeding rates above 20 to 30 kg/ha
per day may encourage excessive phytoplankton blooms.
 Application rates
 The best rates of nitrogen and phosphorus
application for establishing a plankton bloom will
vary with the availability of these two nutrients in
pond soil and source water.
 A good application rate for general purposes is 2
to 4 kg/ha both of N and P2O5 (orthophosphate)
= 5 to 10 kg of urea.
 One way to accomplish this is with an aggressive
fertilization program of 1 to 2 kg N and 0.5 to 1
kg P2O5/ha per week = 2.5 to 5 kg urea and 1 to
2 kg MAP (see next slide).
 MAP
 Mono-Ammonium Phosphate
• typically: 12-61-0
• 61% P2O5 / 27% P
 1 kg P then = 3.7 kg MAP
 1kg P2O5 = 1.67 kg MAP
 0.5 to 1 kg P2O5/ha per week = up to about
2 kg MAP per week
 In 2.2 Ha pond, this is about 4kg/week
 Application Rates
 The objective of water quality management
should be to maintain a moderate but stable
phytoplankton bloom (Boyd and Tucker 1998).
 Fertilizer applications should be made at 2-or
3-day intervals until a good plankton bloom is
established.
 Fertilizer table
 If one is applying fertilizer weekly at the rate of 10
kg/ha, the following scale illustrates a way to adjust
fertilizer application rates for Secchi disk visibility:

Urea Fertilizer MAP

Secchi Disk (cm)
(kg/ha/week) (kg/ha/week)
35 0 0
40 2.5 1
45 5 2.5
50 7.5 3.5
60 10 5
 Organic load
Organic input 1000 50 kg/ha
Carbon 400 20 kg/ha
cBOD 747.6 37.38 kg O2/ha per crop
Organic decomposition time 6.7 6.67 days
Oxygen demand 112 5.6 kg O2 per day
Pond depth 1.5 1.5 metres
DO demand 7.48 0.37 mg/L per day

Source: J. Fox (Tammuc lectures) and Avnimelech (0.15/day for organic

carbon)
 Fertilization: organic sources

 Organic fertilizers are typically composed of

manures and other agriculture wastes.
 Most organic compounds, but some pure N, P.
 It takes a large quantity of manure to give the same
amounts of inorganic fertilizer.
 This is due to moisture content (fresh manures).
 2.67 kg urea contains as much nitrogen as 100 kg
of poultry manure.
 Fertilization Effects on Water Quality

 Goal of fertilization: stimulation of

autotrophic and heterotrophic production via
organic and inorganic fertilizers.
 Major effects:
1) nutrient levels
2) alkalinity
3) dissolved oxygen
4) ammonia
 Summary
 Fertilization protocol:
Establish pond TAN ammonia; if < 1ppm, then add fertilizer.
After stocking shrimp apply weekly:

Urea Fertilizer MAP (kg/ha/

Secchi Disk (cm)
(kg/ha/ week) week)
35 0 0
40 2.5 1
45 5 2.5
50 7.5 3.5
60 10 5
 Summary
 No need to fertilize inorganic fertilizer after
biomass exceeds 300 kg/ha or feeding exceeds 30
kg/ha/day.
 Soya husk, 30 kg/ha/week, declining by an
amount at a rate, feed + 10 kg (ie at 10kg feed, 30
kg soya, at 20 kg feed, 20 kg soya, at 30 kg feed,
10 kg soya and at 40 kg feed, 0 kg soya husk.
 Molasses: 10 kg/ha per week or as needed to
manage ammonia (and pH).