Soil Nutrients and

Fertilizers

Essential Standard 6.00- Explain the role

of nutrients and fertilizers.
Objective 6.01

• Discuss macro and micro nutrients and

the role they play in plant deficiencies.
 Macro vs Micro Nutrients

• Macro nutrients are required by the

plant in relatively large amounts
• Micro nutrients are required only in
small amounts
– minor or trace elements
 Macro nutrients

• Non-mineral • Secondary Nutrients

elements – calcium (Ca)
– carbon (C) – magnesium (Mg)
– hydrogen (H) – sulfur (S)
– oxygen (O)
• Primary Nutrients
– Nitrogen (N)
– Phosphorus (P)
– Potassium (K)
 Micro nutrients

• Iron (Fe)
• Copper (Cu)
• Zinc (Zn)
• Boron (B)
• Molybdenum (Mo)
• Manganese (Mn)
• Chlorine (Cl)
 Functions of Nitrogen

• Promotes growth of leaves and stems

• Gives dark green color and improves
quality of foliage
• Necessary to develop cell proteins and
chlorophyll
 Nitrogen

• Deficiency symptoms
– sick, yellow-green color
– short stems, small leaves, pale colored
leaves and flowers
– slow and dwarfed plant growth
Nitrogen deficiency
 Functions of Phosphorus

• Stimulates early formation and growth

of roots
• Provides for fast and vigorous growth
and speeds maturity
• Stimulates flowering and seed
development
• Necessary for the enzyme action of
many plant processes
 Phosphorus

• Deficiency symptoms
– decrease in growth
– slow maturity
– older leaves are purplish color
Phosphorus Deficiency
 Functions of Potassium

• Used to form carbohydrates and

proteins
• Formation and transfer of starches,
sugars and oils
• Increases disease resistance, vigor and
hardiness
 Potassium

• Deficiency symptoms
– mottled, spotted, streaked or curled leaves
– scorched, burned, dead leaf tips and
margins
Potassium Deficiency
 Secondary Nutrients

• Calcium (Ca)
• Magnesium (Mg)
• Sulfur (S)
 Functions of Calcium

• Improves plant vigor

• Influences intake and synthesis of other
plant nutrients
• Important part of cell walls
 Calcium

• Deficiency symptoms
– small developing leaves
– wrinkled older leaves
– dead stem tips
Calcium Deficiency
 Functions of Magnesium

• Influences the intake of other essential

nutrients
• Helps make fats
• Assists in translocation of phosphorus
and fats
 Magnesium

• Deficiency symptoms
– Interveinal chlorosis-yellowing of leaves
between green veins
– leaf tips curl or cup upward
– slender, weak stalks
Magnesium Deficiency
 Functions of Sulfur

• Promotes root growth and vigorous

vegetative growth
• Essential to protein formation
 Sulfur

• Deficiency symptoms
– young leaves are light green with lighter
color veins
– yellow leaves and stunted growth
Sulfur Deficiency
 Micro Nutrients

• Also called “trace” elements

• Needed by plants in small amounts
 Iron (Fe)

• Functions of Iron
– Essential for chlorophyll production
– Helps carry electrons to mix oxygen with
other elements
• Deficiency symptoms
– mottled and interveinal chlorosis in young
leaves
– stunted growth and slender, short stems
Iron Deficiency
 Copper (Cu)

• Functions
– Helps in the use of Iron
– Helps respiration
• Deficiency symptoms
– young leaves are small and permanently
wilt
– multiple buds at stem tip
Copper Deficiency
 Zinc (Z)

• Functions
– plant metabolism
– helps form growth hormones
– reproduction
• Deficiency symptoms
– retarded growth between nodes (rosetted)
– new leaves are thick and small
– spotted between veins, discolored veins
Zinc Deficiency
 Boron (B)

• Functions
– affects water absorption by roots
– translocation of sugars
• Deficiency Symptoms
– short, thick stem tips
– young leaves of terminal buds are light
green at base
– leaves become twisted and die
Boron Deficiency
 Manganese (Mn)

• Functions
– plant metabolism
– nitrogen transformation
• Deficiency symptoms
– interveinal chlorosis
– young leaves die
Manganese Deficiency
 Molybdenum (Mo)

• Functions
– plant development
– reproduction
• Deficiency symptoms
– stunted growth
– yellow leaves, upward curling leaves, leaf
margins burn
Molybdenum Deficiency
 Chlorine (Cl)

• Functions
– essential to some plant processes
– acts in enzyme systems
• Deficiency symptoms
– usually more problems with too much
chlorine or toxicity than with deficiency
Chlorine Deficiency
 Assignment: Nutrient Heros

• Work with you assigned group members.

• Name your assigned nutrient with a
superhero name. Example: Zoro Zinc
• Draw and color your superhero
• You must include:
– Name of your nutrient
– What it does for the plant
– Draw and color a left showing the nutrient
deficiency.
• Include your group members on the poster.
Fertilizers
Objective 6.02

• Discuss the advantages and

disadvantages of various fertilizers.
 Types of Fertilizers

• Complete
• Incomplete
• Organic
• Inorganic
• Soluble
• Insoluble
 Complete vs. Incomplete

• Complete has all three primary

nutrients-nitrogen phosphorous &
potassium
– Examples: 10-10-10, 15-30-15, 20-5-20
• Incomplete DOES NOT have all three
primary nutrients
– Examples: 20-0-0, 0-20-0, 12-0-44
 Organic Fertilizers

• Comes from plant or animal matter and

contains carbon compounds
• Examples: urea, sludge and animal
tankage
 Advantages of Organic

• Slow release of nutrients

• Not easily leached from the soil
• Add organic components to growing
media
 Disadvantages of Organic

• Hard to get
• Not sterile
• Low nutrient content
• Expensive
 Inorganic Fertilizers

• Comes from sources other than animals

or plants
• Chemical products
 Advantages of Inorganic

• Can make the desired ratio of nutrients

• easy to get
• lower cost
 Disadvantages of Inorganic

• No organic material
• possible chemical building up in growing
media
 Soluble Fertilizer

• Dissolve in water and are applied as a

liquid solution
• Fertigation
– fertilizing through irrigation water
– big advantage
 Insoluble Fertilizer

• Includes granular and slow release

applied to the growing media
 Granular vs. Slow Release

• Granular
– relatively inexpensive
– easy to find
• Slow Release
– more expensive because it is coated
– more uniform release of nutrients over time
period
 Fertilizer Analysis

• Fertilizer analysis expresses weight as

a percent of nitrogen, phosphorus and
potassium

20-10-20
 Fertilizer Analysis

• For Example
– A 100 pound bag of fertilizer has an
analysis of 15-5-15. How many pounds of
nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium are in
the bag?
• Nitrogen: 100lbs X 15%=15lbs
• Phosphorus: 100lbs X 5%=5lbs
• Potassium: 100lbs X 15%=15lbs
 Fertilizer Ratios

• A fertilizer with a 10-10-10 analysis

would have a 1:1:1 ratio
• A fertilizer with a 24-8-16 analysis would
have a 3:1:2 ratio
• What would be the ratio for a fertilizer
with an analysis of 36-18-27?

4:2:3
 Application Procedures

• Banding • Assignment:
• Sidedressing – Work with your group to
define the fertilizer
• Topdressing application method you
• Perforating are assigned.
• Broadcasting – Only visual images may
be used
• Foliar spraying – Save a copy of your
• Fertigation picture to your network
space
– Be prepared to explain
your pictures
 Banding

• Placing a band of fertilizer about two

inches to the sides and about two
inches below seed depth.
• DO NOT place below the seeds
because fertilizer will burn the roots.
 Sidedressing

• Placing a band of fertilizer near the soil

surface and to the sides after seedlings
emerge from the soil.
 Topdressing

• Mixing fertilizer uniformly into the top

one to two inches of growing media
around the plant.
 Perforating

• Placing fertilizer in 12”-18” holes drilled

18” to 24” around the canopy drip line
of fruit trees. Cover the holes and
fertilizer slowly dissolves.
 Broadcasting

• Spreading fertilizer to cover the entire

production area
 Foliar Spraying

• Spraying micronutrients in a solution

directly on plant leaves.
• Quickly corrects nutrient deficiencies
• Fertilizer concentration should not be
too high or leaf burning will occur.
 Fertigation

• Incorporating water-soluble fertilizer into

the irrigation system of greenhouse and
nursery crops.
• Concentrated solutions usually pass
through proportioners or injectors to
dilute to the correct ratio.
– Venturi-type
– Positive-displacement
 Venturi-type

• Simple and inexpensive

• less accurate
• depends on water pressure in the hose
and in the smaller tube to proportion
• Example: Hozon
 Positive-displacement

• More expensive
• very accurate
• physically inject and mix specific
amounts of concentrated solution and
water
• Examples: commander proportioners,
and Smith injectors
 Rules for applying fertilizers

• Method used should be practical,

effective and cost efficient
• Method used affects nutrient availability
for plant use
• Fertilizer must be dissolved and reach
plant roots