1. Nutrients and Fertilizers
6.0 Explain the role of nutrients and fertilizers

2. 6.01 Discuss macro and micro nutrients and the role they play in deficiencies

3. Nutrients
Nutrients are elements needed by a plant to promote healthy tissue, processes, and growth
When plants are lacking in nutrients they have a deficiency and may have a number of symptoms:

4. Nutrients They will have a stunted appearance
Pale green or yellow color (chlorosis) may develop initially, but coloring can be related to the nutrient that is lacking
A general appearance of being unhealthy

5. Macro-Nutrients
Macronutrients are nutrients that plants need in large amounts
Macronutrients include three primary elements and three secondary elements
Primary nutrients
Nitrogen (N), Phosphorus (P), Potassium (K)
Secondary nutrients
Calcium (Ca), Magnesium (Mg), Sulfur (S)

6. Primary Nutrients Three primary nutrients needed in the LARGEST amount
Nitrogen (N)
Phosphorus (P)
Potassium (K)

7. Nitrogen (N) First in Fertilizer Analysis Functions
Promotes growth of leaves and stems
Gives dark green color and improves quality of foliage
Necessary to develop cell proteins and chlorophyll

8. Nitrogen Deficiency Symptoms
Sick, yellow-green color
Short stems, small leaves, pale colored leaves and flowers
Slow and dwarfed plant growth

9. Phosphorus (P) Second in Fertilizer Analysis Functions:
Stimulates early formation and growth of roots
Provides for fast and vigorous growth and speeds maturity
Stimulates flowering and seed development

10. Phosphorus Deficiency Symptoms
Decrease in growth
Slow to maturity
Older leaves are purplish color

11. Potassium (K) Third in Fertilizer Analysis Function:
Used to form carbohydrates and proteins
Used in the formation and transfer of starches, sugars and oils
Increases disease resistance, vigor and hardiness

12. Potassium Deficiency Symptoms
Mottled, Spotted, Streaked or Curled Leaves
Scorched, dead, burned leaf tips and margins

13. Secondary Nutrient – Calcium (Ca)
Improves plant vigor
Influences intake and synthesis of other plant nutrients
Important part of cell walls
Deficiency symptoms
Small developing leaves wrinkled older leaves
Dead stem tips

14. Secondary Nutrients – Magnesium (Mg)
Influence the intake of other essential nutrients
Helps make fats
Assist in translocation of phosphorus and fats
Deficiency Symptoms:
Interveinal chlorosis: yellowing of leaves between green veins
Leaf tips curl or cup upward
Slender, weak stems

15. Secondary Nutrients – Sulfur (S)
Promotes root growth and vigorous vegetative growth
Essential to protein formation
Deficiency Symptoms:
Young leaves are light green with lighter color veins
Yellow leaves and stunted growth

16. Required in small amounts, minor or trace elements.
Micro-nutrients
Required in small amounts, minor or trace elements.

17. Micro-nutrients – Iron (Fe)
Functions:
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

18. Iron Deficiency

19. Micro-nutrients – Copper (Cu)
Functions:
Helps in the use of iron
Helps respiration
Deficiency symptoms:
Young leaves are small and permanently wilt
Multiple buds at stem tips

20. Micro-nutrients – Zinc (Zn)
Function
Plant metabolism
Helps form growth hormones
Reproduction
Deficiency symptoms
Retarded growth between nodes (rosettes)
New leaves are thick and small
Spotted between veins, discolored veins

21. Micro-nutrients – 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

22. Micro-nutrients – Molybdenum (Mo)
Functions
Plant development
Reproduction
Deficiency symptoms
Stunted growth
Yellow leaves, upward curling leaves, leaf margins burn

23. Micro-nutrients – Manganese (Mn)
Functions
Plant metabolism
Nitrogen transformation
Deficiency symptoms
Interveinal chlorosis
Young leaves die

24. Micro-nutrients – 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

25. Nutrient Deficiencies
Know the deficiency symptoms for the three macro-nutrients and Iron
For other nutrient deficiencies, the only way to really know is to analyze the plant tissue or to conduct a soil test.

26. 6.02 Discuss the advantages and disadvantages of various fertilizers

27. Fertilizer Analysis
A fertilizer analysis label will indicate the amount of Nitrogen (N), Phosphorus (P), and Potassium (K) contained in a fertilizer as a percentage by weight for each element
For example, will have 10% nitrogen, 20% phosphorous, and 10% potassium

28. Complete Fertilizer
Has all the three primary nutrients – nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium
An advantage is the plants receive all essential elements
A disadvantage is some plants may not need all essential elements

29. Incomplete Fertilizer
DO NOT have all three primary nutrients
20-0-0
0-20-0
An advantage is plants need a selective element
A disadvantage is plants may need more elements

30. Organic Fertilizer
By products of plant or animal matter and contains carbon compounds
Examples:
Urea, sludge, animal waste

31. Organic Fertilizer Advantages:
Released slowly reducing the risk of over fertilizing
It is not easily leached from soil
Improves the water holding capacity of the soil
Improves the physical condition of the soil
Adds organic components to growing media

32. Organic Fertilizer Disadvantages: It has a smell and is heavy
It is expensive
Some are not sterile
It has a low nutrient content

33. Inorganic Fertilizer Comes from sources other than animals or plants
Examples:
chemical products

34. Inorganic Fertilizer Advantages:
It contains the three essential nutrients (N,P,K) in desired amounts
The fast release capability makes it readily available for plants
It is easy to get, as most commercial fertilizers are in inorganic form

35. Inorganic Fertilizer Disadvantages: It contains no organic matter
It can cause a chemical build up in soil
It leaches out in heavy rain or through irrigation
It has a high acid concentration which leads to high soil acidity

36. Soluble Fertilizer
Dissolves in water and is applied as a liquid solution
Water soluble fertilizers are applied through irrigation systems

37. Insoluble Fertilizer Includes granular and slow release fertilizers
Granular is relatively inexpensive and easy to find
Slow release is more expensive than granular because it is coated
Slow release gives a more uniform release of nutrients over time period

38. Application of Various Types of Fertilizer

39. Fertilizer Application
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

40. Banding
Placing a band of fertilizer about two inches to the sides and about two inches below seed depth
The band method is close enough to efficiently supply the young plants with nutrients, but not too close to damage developing roots

41. Side dressing
Spreading of fertilizer in between the rows and around the plants after seedlings emerge from the soil

42. Topdressing
Mixing fertilizer uniformly into the top one to two inches of growing media around the plant

43. Perforating
Placing fertilizer in 12” to 18” holes drilled 18” to 24” around the canopy drip line of trees
Be sure to cover the holes after fertilizer is applied

44. Broadcasting
Spreading fertilizer to cover the entire production area

45. Fertigation
Incorporating water-soluble fertilizer into the irrigation system of greenhouse and nursery crops
Concentrated solutions usually pass through inexpensive proportioners (Hozon) or a more accurate injectors (Smith) to dilute to the correct ratio

46. Foliar Spray
Spraying micronutrients in a solution directly on plant leaves
It is used to quickly correct nutrient deficiencies, but fertilizer concentration should not be too high or leaf burning will occur