Nutrient Management

Fertilizer Materials
and Calculation
 FERTILIZER TERMINOLOGIES
• Fertilizer – any substance which is added to the soil
or applied to the plant to supply the elements essential
for plant nutrition

• Fertilizer grade – the guaranteed percentage of total

nitrogen (N), available phosphorus (P2O5), and water
soluble potassium (K2O), in that order, in a fertilizer
material

16-20-0 0% K2O
16% N
20% P2O5
 FERTILIZER TERMINOLOGIES

• Total plant food – the total percentage of nutrients

(usually of N,P,K and S) in a fertilizer material

17-0-17-12 = 46% total plant food

14-14-14-12 = 54% total plant food

• Carrier – a material that is necessary to hold the

fertilizer element in a form suitable for use

100% – 46% total plant food = 54% carrier

 FERTILIZER TERMINOLOGIES

• Filler – a material used to provide the fertilizer with the

desired amount of nutrient per unit of weight, to make
application easier, or to reduce the absorption of water
from the air

• Fertilizer recommendation – the amount (kg) of

N,P2O5, and K2O recommended per hectare

90+30+60 = 90 kg N, 30 kg P2O5, and 60 kg K2O per hectare

application
Classification of Fertilizer Materials
 According to form

1. Natural organic – any fertilizer of plant and/or animal

origin that has undergone
decomposition.
Examples: Commercial organic fertilizer (OF),
compost, chicken manure

Commercial OF may either be pure organic or fortified organic:

Organic Moisture N+P2O5+K2O
C:N Ratio
Matter (%) Content (%) (%)
Pure Organic ≥ 20 12:1 ≤ 35 ≤7
Fortified
≥ 20 12:1 ≤ 35 >7
Organic
General Characteristics of Fertilizers

1. Organic Fertilizers

Fertilizer derived from plants or animals (compost,

animal manures, green manure and guano)

Characteristics of organic fertilizers

a. low nutrient analysis – low nutrient content,

bulky
b slow availability – nutrients release is dependent
on decomposition
c. contain all the essential elements – N, P, K and
other essential nutrients
d. improve soil structure (stabilize soil aggregation)
Organic Fertilizers

Derived from biological materials – animal by-products

and excreta, green manure, crop residues, household
organic wastes or products processed from these materials
such as compost.

1. Farm manure
-mixture of excreta and solid beddings that
accumulate in stables or barns.
-vegetable farmers use 5 to 10 tons of
chicken manure
2. Compost

Composting of organic residues accomplish three

things:

a. removal of readily decomposable material and

the percentage of nitrogen is increased;
b. the physical nature of the material is changed
such weakening of strength of the OM
component for easy breakdown; and
c. removal of obnoxious odors and organic
toxins.
3. Crop residues

- stalks, straw and plant stover plowed under

after harvest.
- most of the potassium taken up by the plant,
half of the phosphorus, and two-fifths (40%) of
nitrogen will be returned to the soil.
- straw yield of peanut per hectare contains 40 kg
of N.

4. Green manure
- incorporation of plant material while still
green – legumes
5. Ipil-ipil
-Yield about 120 tons of green manure
per hectare per year

6. Azolla
-water fern whose symbiotic association with
the blue-green algae, Anabaena azollae, fixes
atmospheric nitrogen to as much as 30-60 kg
N
per hectare per cropping in paddy rice.
 According to form

2. Chemical or inorganic – any fertilizer material which is

natural or synthetic product of chemical reaction of
certain raw materials.

 Natural chemical – rock phosphate, Chilean

nitrate of soda, most potassium materials
 Synthetic chemical – ammonium sulfate,
ordinary superphosphate, ammonium phosphate,
complete fertilizer; Urea is synthetic but in organic
form.
According to number of fertilizer elements present

1. Single fertilizers – contain only one of the 3 major

fertilizer elements (N,P, and K)

Examples: Urea, Ammonium sulfate, ordinary

superphosphate, muriate of potash, sulfate of potash

2. Incomplete fertilizers – contain 2 of the 3 major

fertilizer elements

Examples: ammonium phosphate, 17-0-17, potassium

nitrate, potassium phosphate, urea superphosphate
(20-10-0)
According to number of fertilizer elements present

3. Complete fertilizers – contain all the 3 major fertilizer

elements

Examples: 14-14-14; 17-7-17; 10-15-15; 12-12-12

4. Mixed fertilizers – contain 2 or more of the major

fertilizer elements that are supplied by 2 or more
fertilizer materials

Examples: ammonium phosphate + muriate of potash;

urea superphosphate (20-10-0)
Fertilizer Management
1. know the nutrients needed by the crop and
the amount the soil can supply to produce a
given yield level

o refer to various soil testing laboratories

or results of fertilizer trials
o economic value of the crop, nutrient
removal and absorbing ability
o analyze the soil prior to planting-
whether additional fertilizer is needed or not
o hybrids require more fertilizer than local
varieties - OPV
2. choose the right kind and form of
fertilizer to apply

o the nutrient content of

fertilizers applied
o the nutrient required by the
crop
o the comparative cost of
different fertilizers and their
availability
3. Know the amount of fertilizer sources
to be applied

o must know how to compute and

calibrate the fertilizer need of a
given crop in a unit area
4. know the right time of fertilizer application

o must be applied at different stages

of crop development that are
most nutrient requiring
o early vegetative stage,
the maximum tillering stage
in field crops like rice
o the onset of flowering for
fruit trees and plantation
crops
o corn - at planting and 25-30 days after
5. know the proper fertilizer placement
o proper application involves
placing the right kind and amount
of fertilizers where they will be
readily available to the plant at
the time they are needed

o consider nutrient distribution,

moisture content, leaching, time of
the day (wet leaves)