Fertilizer Part II

Outdoors

Fertilizer Part II
This week I’m going to continue talking about fertilizers, but I’m going to go into some more specifics of different types of fertilizers and their pros and cons. I’m going to talk about organic fertilizers, weed & feeds, slow release, synthetic fertilizers, and manures.

Let’s get started with organic fertilizers. There are a number of different organic fertilizers out there. Generally speaking, these fertilizers will have lower concentrations of nutrients in them. They can be less likely to burn plants because of the lower concentrations. They can be a good fit for perennial ornamentals or vegetable gardens. Plants that are heavy feeders, like corn, are going to need more organic fertilizers applied so that their nutritional demands are met. Milorganite is an organic fertilizer that studies have shown can reduce deer browsing. Milorganite can be effective but it does have an odor that comes with it. Compost is also an organic fertilizer. Again, compost is not going to be a very strong fertilizer, but it will help build the soil organic matter, improving soil health. This is going to be beneficial in the long term for your plants.

Weed & feed products can be useful if you have issues with weeds on your properties. They are usually a granular herbicide and a fertilizer mixed together. Using one of these products can make lawn management simpler because you can kill two birds with one stone. Most of the time the herbicide is a combination of 2,4-D, mecoprop, and dicamba. These are commonly used herbicides for lawn care and are effective on broadleaf plants. The only drawback to using a weed & feed product is that you are also fertilizing the plants while you are trying to kill them. As these products have a pesticide in them make sure you always read the label before using them.

Slow release fertilizers are a very good option in certain circumstances. Slow release will release its nutrition over a period of months instead of one shot like most fertilizers. This is beneficial for a lot of perennial plants. Trees typically don’t need a lot of fertilizer, and applying a strong fertilizer can actually stress trees. Slow release doesn’t cause stress on trees, and they last for a few months. If you have perennial ornamentals that need a little fertilizer but not a big shot all at one time, slow release might be the way to go.

Synthetic fertilizers are the most common ones used. These will usually have higher concentrations of nutrients, meaning you get a bigger bang for your buck. As I’ve already discussed, that may not be what you’re after. If you are doing some vegetable gardening or your soils are very deficient in nutrient synthetic fertilizers will give you the biggest boost.

Finally, I want to say something about manures as fertilizer. Similar to organic fertilizers, their nutrient concentrations will probably be low. Also, you may not know what you’re getting nutritionally if no analysis has been done. Manure can be really good for building organic matter in soil. It is easy to add too much phosphorus if you are solely relying on manure; this can lead to eutrophication downstream. Some people are concerned with weed seeds in chicken litter. Studies have been done showing that chicken litter carries very little to no weed seed in it.

There are pros and cons to many different types of fertilizers. If you have questions about fertilizers contact your local Extension Office or send me an email at [email protected].

Leave a comment

Back to Top