What is the differencenatural and artificial fertilizers ? What are their uses in the garden? When are natural fertilizers better and when is it better to use artificial fertilizers? Here are the bestexamples of natural and artificial fertilizers , a comparison of their advantages and disadvantages and tips on what fertilizers to use in specific situations, depending on the condition of our plants and the quality of the soil in the garden.
Natural and artificial fertilizers
Why do we need to use fertilizers?
Plants take nutrients from the garden soil every year for growth, stems, leaves, flowers and fruit.In the wild, nutrients return to the soil when plants die and their residues decompose. However, in the garden, we prevent such a return of nutrients to the soil, because we use the crops from the plot for our own needs - we collect fruit and vegetables, cut flowers into a vase, remove plants affected by diseases and pests. In this way, a deficiency of nutrients necessary for plants is created in the soil, which is supplemented by usingnatural and artificial fertilizers
Often in the garden we plant plants very densely so that they fulfill a specific decorative or functional effect (e.g. lawns or hedges). By using various covers, we extend the duration of the growing season by growing several generations of vegetables on one plot in one year. Thus, we exploit the soil very intensively. These are other reasons why the soil we have in the garden, often not very fertile, is not able to feed the plants planted in it and is less and less fertile every year.The soil loses its fertile humus layer, i.e. the priceless humus. Then it becomes necessary to fertilize the aim of which is to replenish the nutrients in the soil and improve the soil structure. To make it possible, we usenatural and artificial fertilizers
Nutrients that plants need for growth are divided into macro- and microelements. Macronutrients are consumed by plants in large amounts. The most important macronutrients are:
Nitrogen (N)- necessary for plants to grow and largely influencing the yield. Symptoms of nitrogen deficiency in plants are light green color of leaves and stems and a thin habit.
Phosphorus (P)- necessary for the proper course of photosynthesis, respiration and metabolism in plants. Its deficiency causes serious weakening of plants, especially the root system. A visual symptom of phosphorus deficiency are purple discoloration on the stems and petioles.
Potassium (K)- plays a huge role in the water management of plants (water uptake, transpiration).The resistance to drought and frost resistance depends on the good supply of plants with this ingredient. Potassium deficiency manifests itself in the form of yellow discoloration on the oldest leaves, as well as bending downwards.
Apart from these 3 most important macronutrients, magnesium (Mg), which is an important component of chlorophyll, calcium (Ca) and sulfur (S), also play an important role. No less important are micronutrients such as iron, zinc, copper, boron, molybdenum and chlorine. Plants use them in very small, trace amounts, but they are as necessary for the proper growth of plants as macronutrients.
As you can see, plants need to be provided with a fairly large set of different ingredients and the question arises - what fertilizers to choose to meet the needs plants in our garden?To answer this question, we need not only to know the fertilization needs of the plants we want to cultivate, but also to check what soil we have in the garden. It is best to submit a soil sample for analysis.If we do not have such a possibility, let's try to determine the type and abundance of soil in the garden on our own. Rubbing the soil between your fingers, performing a pH test, and observing whether indicator plants are growing in the garden, characteristic for a specific type of soil, rich or poor in selected minerals, will help us.
Natural and organic fertilizers
In amateur crops on the plot and in the home garden, we should primarily usenatural fertilizersand organic.
The most famousexample of natural fertilizer is a compost made from plant waste, which perfectly enriches the soil with humus, increases its water and air capacity, and improves plant growth and development. However, in small, home gardens, and even more so on balconies and terraces, there is not enough space to set up a compost heap. Thus, the independent production of compost becomes impossible. Even when there is a compost heap on the plot, the amount of compost obtained is often insufficient.Therefore, it becomes necessary to buy additional fertilizers.Among organic fertilizers, we can buy granulated or dried manure in stores (it is obtained from livestock excrement), as well as biohumus, obtained from California earthworm excrement. Biohumus, also known as vermicompost, contains a rich bacterial flora, thanks to which it greatly increases the biological activity of the soil and its ability to self-clean from various contaminants.
The
natural fertilizers listed here , not only replenish the deficiencies of minerals in the soil, but also through the content of organic substances, improve the structure of the soil and enrich its microflora. With relatively skilful use, the risk of over-fertilization is negligible.But
natural fertilizers , although rich in organic matter, also have some disadvantages. The elements contained in them can be taken up by plants only after the mineralization of organic compounds, a process that takes place thanks to soil microorganisms.This means that you usually have to wait a while for the effects obtained thanks to these fertilizers. In addition, the specifiedorganic fertilizer , depending on its composition, may not contain all the necessary minerals and must be supplemented in other ways. The available natural fertilizers can also be quite expensive in relation to their limited efficiency.Therefore, if it is necessary to quickly supplement the deficiencies of minerals or the fertilization needs of plants are so large that the purchase of organic fertilizers will turn out to be too large an investment, we reach for po
fertilizers
Chemical - mineral fertilizers
Artificial fertilizers , in other words - mineral, contain highly concentrated nutrients in a form that is easily absorbed by plants. Thanks to this, they are very efficient, and the effects of their operation can be seen much faster than in the case ofnatural fertilizersand organic fertilizers. There is, however, a high risk of over-fertilization.Their excess is harmful to the soil and the organisms living in it. Therefore,artificial fertilizersmust be used very carefully and not exceed the doses recommended for the cultivation of individual groups of plants.
In terms of composition,mineral fertilizerswe can divide into traditional (single-component) and multi-component. One-component fertilizers enable very precise adjustment of the fertilizer dose to the needs of our plants. Depending on the chemical composition of the soil and the observed plant growth disorders, they also allow you to supplement a specific component that is missing. These are most often nitrogen fertilizers (ammonium sulphate, calcium ammonium nitrate), phosphorus (superphosphate), potassium (potassium s alt, potassium sulphate) and magnesium (magnesium sulphate). With this type of fertilizer, we can also acidify the soil, using e.g. ammonium sulphate, or vice versa - deacidify the soil using calcium nitrate.
The use of artificial fertilizers , however, requires a lot of precise information on the fertilization needs of individual groups of plants.These fertilizers, used mainly in agriculture, are usually available in too large packages, for the needs of an amateur garden plotter. And although we can precisely choose the proportions of basic ingredients, such as nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium, fertilizing only with these macroelements, we contribute to soil degradation, lack of other substances needed by plants in the soil, and destruction of the natural bacterial flora of the soil. These negative effects can be seen on soils that have been exploited by agriculture for many years.
Therefore, in amateur crops on the plot and in home gardens, it is better to choosecompound fertilizerscontaining the composition of minerals needed by plants to grow. These can be universal fertilizers or fertilizers tailored to the fertilization needs of specific groups of plants (e.g. fertilizers for lawns, fertilizers for conifers, fertilizers for azaleas and rhododendrons, fertilizers for balcony flowers). When buying this type of fertilizer, make sure that the packaging contains the exact composition of the fertilizer (the lack of this information may indicate that the manufacturer of the fertilizer did not take care of its good composition at all), as well as the dosage and instructions for using the fertilizer.Let's also check the use-by date to make sure that the fertilizer will be used on time (perhaps it is better to buy a smaller package). These types of fertilizers are available in packages of various sizes, tailored to the needs of owners of larger gardens, small home gardens, and only a balcony or terrace. It is worth choosing fertilizers from proven producers, known and existing on the market for a long time, especially if we are not able to assess whether a given fertilizer has the right composition.
Multicomponentartificial fertilizersfor amateur applications they are available in solid (powders, granules) or liquid form. Solid fertilizers can be sprinkled under plants or mixed with the soil before planting. On the other hand, liquid fertilizers are mixed with more water (of course, according to the instructions on the packaging) and the plants are watered with this solution. Some of them can also be used for foliar fertilization.Among solid fertilizers, it is worth distinguishing slow-release fertilizers, or in other words - slow-acting ones.The convenience of using this type of fertilizer is that the ingredients contained in them are released for a long time (up to several months) and it is enough to apply only one dose of fertilizer at the beginning of the growing season. The disadvantage of such a solution, however, is the inability to adjust the dose on an ongoing basis, depending on the needs of plants, and usually a higher price.
Natural and artificial fertilizers - how to combine them?
Natural fertilizersare not always sufficient to meet the needs of plants with all the necessary macro and microelements. On the other hand,fertilizersdo not contain organic substances and do not enrich the soil with humus. When looking for the best solution, we should therefore, if possible, rely on the use of natural and organic fertilizers, supplementing them with mineral fertilizers.
In response to such needs of amateur gardeners and lovers of growing plants in home gardens and on balconies and terraces, fertilizer producers more and more often they offer us organic and mineral fertilizers.As the name suggests - these fertilizers, in addition to a set of minerals, also contain an organic substance. They can be produced, among others based on peat or brown coal extracts. These types of fertilizers may prove to be the most convenient choice for amateur gardeners who are aware of the side effects of overusing mineral fertilizers and see the need to supplement soil organic substances.
Of course, opinions on the use of particular types of fertilizers are divided. Some experts believe thatnatural and organic fertilizersare more than enough to provide the plants with the appropriate nutrient mix. Others point to the possibility of lowering the cost of cultivation and increasing the quality and abundance of crops, thanks to much more efficient mineral fertilizers. In amateur cultivation, we should therefore rely on common sense, primarily using fertilizers of natural origin and, if necessary, supplementing them withartificial fertilizers
