What are the common types of fertilizer? A complete guide in one article

Fertilizer is a class of substances that supplies one or more nutrient elements essential to plants, improves soil properties, and raises the level of soil fertility. It is one of the material foundations of agricultural production. In broad terms, fertilizers can be divided into two types: inorganic fertilizers and organic fertilizers.

Inorganic fertilizers

Inorganic fertilizers are chemical fertilizers, such as various nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium fertilizers or compound fertilizers. In crop production, the commonly used chemical fertilizers include: diammonium phosphate, urea, potassium sulfate, potassium chloride, and various compound fertilizers. For fruit trees, slow-release fertilizers such as ground phosphate rock, also called superphosphate, can also be used.

1. Nitrogen fertilizer: a chemical fertilizer whose main component is the nutrient element nitrogen, including ammonium bicarbonate, urea, ammonium nitrate, ammonia water, ammonium chloride, ammonium sulfate, etc. Nitrogen fertilizer is the main fertilizer that promotes the growth of flower roots, stems, and leaves. Those inedible beans, peanuts, sunflower seeds, as well as hemp seeds, small hemp seeds, and other oil-bearing materials, are all very good nitrogen fertilizer raw materials. If these things are fermented and decomposed, diluted with water, and poured onto the soil, they will promote the vigorous growth of flowers.

2. Phosphorus fertilizer: a chemical fertilizer whose main component is the nutrient element phosphorus, including ordinary superphosphate, calcium magnesium phosphate fertilizer, etc. The raw materials of phosphorus fertilizer include fish bones, bones, eggshells, the offal and scales of freshwater fish, cut hair, nails, etc. Mix these odds and ends evenly into the flower soil in an appropriate amount, or after fermenting and decomposing them, dilute with water and pour into the potting soil, and the flowers will become brightly colored, glossy, and full-fruited.

3. Potassium fertilizer: a chemical fertilizer whose main component is the nutrient element potassium. At present, it is not applied much. The main varieties include potassium chloride, potassium sulfate, potassium nitrate, etc. Applying potassium fertilizer can increase the ability of flowers to resist lodging and prevent and control pests and diseases. Water from washing rice, leftover tea water, and water from washing milk bottles are all very good potassium fertilizers, and they also contain certain components of nitrogen and phosphorus.

4. Compound and mixed fertilizers: that is, fertilizers containing two of the three major fertilizer elements (nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium) as binary compound and mixed fertilizers, and those containing the three elements nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium as ternary compound and mixed fertilizers. Among them, mixed fertilizers are spreading very quickly across the country.

5. Trace element fertilizers and certain secondary element fertilizers: the former includes fertilizers containing trace elements such as boron, zinc, iron, molybdenum, manganese, and copper, while the latter includes fertilizers such as calcium, magnesium, and sulfur.

Organic fertilizers

Organic fertilizers are farmyard manures, such as excrement, decaying animal carcasses, or decomposed plants. Organic fertilizers such as pig manure, chicken manure, various decomposed dead branches and fallen leaves, and plant ash can all be used as organic fertilizers.

The characteristics of organic fertilizers are a wide source of raw materials and large quantities; complete nutrients but low content; slow but long-lasting fertilizer effect, requiring decomposition and transformation by microorganisms before they can be absorbed by plants; and a good effect on improving soil and building fertility. Commonly used natural fertilizer varieties include green manure, human excrement and urine, stable manure, compost, waterlogged compost, biogas fertilizer, and waste fertilizers, etc.

Comparing organic fertilizers with chemical fertilizers in terms of nutrient content, the former has many types of nutrients, including nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium, calcium, magnesium, sulfur, and trace elements, while the latter is relatively simple: nitrogen chemical fertilizer contains only nitrogen, phosphorus chemical fertilizer contains only phosphorus, potassium chemical fertilizer contains only potassium, and even compound fertilizers contain only a limited number of nutrients such as nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium. However, although organic fertilizers contain a complete range of various nutrients, their concentration is relatively low. Taking chicken manure as an example, its nitrogen content is about 1.6%, phosphorus content is about 1.5%, and potassium content is about 0.9%, that is, 100 kg of chicken manure contains 1.6 kg of nitrogen (N), 1.5 kg of phosphorus (P2O5), and 0.9 kg of potassium (K2O). In chemical fertilizers, urea contains 46% nitrogen, that is, 100 kg of urea contains 46 kg of nitrogen (N), and potassium chloride contains 60% potassium, that is, 100 kg of potassium chloride contains 60 kg of K2O. The nutrient concentration contained in chemical fertilizers is much higher than that in organic fertilizers. Organic fertilizers contain a large amount of organic matter, which chemical fertilizers do not have. After organic fertilizers are applied to the soil, they must be decomposed and rotted by microorganisms before they can release nutrients for crops to absorb, whereas chemical fertilizers can take effect immediately after being applied to the soil. Therefore, organic fertilizers contain many types of nutrients, at low concentration, and release slowly; chemical fertilizers are the opposite, with single nutrients, high concentration, and fast release. Both have their own advantages and disadvantages, and organic fertilizers should be applied in combination with chemical fertilizers to make the best use of their strengths and avoid their weaknesses, so as to give full play to their benefits.