Soil Fertility

Soil Fertility

Soil Fertility A Guide to Organic and Inorganic Soil Amendments Robert Parnes May, 2013 c 2013 Robert Parnes This work is licensed under http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nd/3.0 i To Jo Josephson ii Contents Contents iii List of Figures vi List of Tables vi Acknowledgements ix Preface xi I Background1 1 Introduction3 2 Essentials of Soil Fertility 11 2.1 Organic Matter and Biological Activity ............. 11 2.2 Air and Water ........................... 21 3 Food Quality 25 3.1 Summary .............................. 25 3.2 Food Quality ............................ 34 3.3 Organic Versus NPK Fertilizers ................. 36 3.4 Effects of Environment and Culture on Quality......... 37 4 Nutrient Requirements 39 4.1 Summary .............................. 39 4.2 Fertilizer Uptake.......................... 39 5 Soil Nutrient Supply 47 5.1 Summary .............................. 47 5.2 Methods Of Evaluating The Soil ................. 47 5.3 A Survey Of Soils ......................... 50 iii Contents II Organic Fertilizers 53 6 Unprocessed Residues 55 6.1 Summary .............................. 55 6.2 Animal Manure .......................... 55 6.3 Hay And Straw .......................... 63 6.4 Other Local Residues ....................... 68 7 Compost 71 7.1 Summary .............................. 71 7.2 Hot Composting .......................... 71 7.3 Cold Composting ......................... 74 7.4 Manure In Compost ........................ 75 7.5 Nutrient Value of Compost .................... 77 8 Other Organic Fertilizers 79 8.1 Summary .............................. 79 8.2 Cover Crops ............................ 79 8.3 Organic Byproducts ........................ 81 8.4 Commercial Organic Products .................. 84 8.5 Soil Activators ........................... 85 III Nutrients and Fertilizers 87 9 Introduction to Part III 89 9.1 Summary .............................. 89 9.2 Fertilizer Blends .......................... 89 9.3 Cations and Anions ........................ 90 10 Nitrogen 93 10.1 Summary .............................. 93 10.2 Nitrogen In The Plant....................... 93 10.3 Nitrogen In The Soil........................ 96 10.4 Nitrogen Fertilizers ........................ 101 11 Phosphorus 105 11.1 Summary .............................. 105 11.2 Phosphorus In The Plant ..................... 105 11.3 Phosphorus In The Soil ...................... 107 11.4 Phosphorus Fertilizers....................... 109 12 Potassium 115 12.1 Summary .............................. 115 12.2 Potassium In The Plant...................... 115 12.3 Potassium In The Soil....................... 117 12.4 Potassium Fertilizers ....................... 118 iv 13 Sulfur 121 13.1 Summary .............................. 121 13.2 Sulfur In The Plant ........................ 121 13.3 Available Sulfur .......................... 121 13.4 Sulfur Fertilizers .......................... 122 14 Calcium And Soil PH 125 14.1 Summary .............................. 125 14.2 Calcium In The Plant ....................... 125 14.3 Calcium In The Soil ........................ 126 14.4 Soil PH And Cation Exchange .................. 126 14.5 Calcium Fertilizers......................... 130 15 Magnesium 133 15.1 Summary .............................. 133 15.2 Magnesium In The Plant ..................... 133 15.3 Magnesium In The Soil ...................... 134 15.4 Magnesium Fertilizers ....................... 136 16 Micronutrients 139 16.1 Summary .............................. 139 16.2 Micronutrients In Plants ..................... 139 16.3 Micronutrients In The Soil .................... 140 16.4 Sources Of Micronutrients .................... 142 IV Appendices 147 A Conversion Factors 149 B The Energy Index 151 C Acid And Basic Fertilizers 153 C.1 Cation Equivalents ........................ 153 C.2 Liming Fertilizers ......................... 154 C.3 Acidifying Fertilizers ....................... 157 D Compost Losses 161 Glossary 163 Index 167 v Bibliography 171 List of Figures 5.1 Survey of the Nutrient Content of 1800 Soils ............ 51 7.1 Compost Retained as a Function of Nitrogen Retention and C/N Ratios.................................. 76 List of Tables 3.1 Effects Of A Non-Nutrient Disorder On Crop Quality . 26 3.1 Effects Of A Non-Nutrient Disorder On Crop Quality (cont.) . 27 3.1 Effects Of A Non-Nutrient Disorder On Crop Quality (cont.) . 28 3.2 Effects Of A Nutrient Disorder On Crop Quality.......... 29 3.2 Effects Of A Nutrient Disorder On Crop Quality (cont.) . 30 3.2 Effects Of A Nutrient Disorder On Crop Quality (cont.) . 31 3.2 Effects Of A Nutrient Disorder On Crop Quality (cont.) . 32 3.2 Effects Of A Nutrient Disorder On Crop Quality (cont.) . 33 4.1 Estimated Fertilizer Requirements - Field Crops .......... 40 4.2 Estimated Fertilizer Requirements - Vegetables and Fruits . 41 4.3 Average Nutrient Requirements For Vegetables........... 44 4.4 Phosphorus And Potassium Requirements Relative To Nitrogen . 45 6.1 Manure Production........................... 56 6.2 Density And Porosity Of Manure................... 57 6.3 Principal Nutrient Content Of Manure................ 57 6.4 Mineral Content & Feeding Capabiity Of Manure Relative To Nitrogen 58 6.5 Nutrient Content Of Hay ....................... 65 vi List of Tables 6.6 Nutrient Content Of Straw ...................... 66 6.7 Comparison Of Cow Manure With Hay And Straw......... 67 6.8 Nitrogen Absorption By Fresh Residues............... 67 8.1 Nitrogen Value Of Assorted Weeds.................. 82 8.2 Nutrient Content Of Processing Wastes ............... 83 8.3 Nutrient Content Of Commercial Organic Products......... 84 10.1 Comparison Of Nitrogen Fertilizers.................. 94 10.2 Application Of Nitrogen Fertilizers.................. 95 11.1 Comparison Of Phosphorus Fertilizers . 106 12.1 Comparison Of Potassium Fertilizers . 116 13.1 Fertilizers For Supplying Sulfur.................... 123 14.1 Fertilizers For Supplying Calcium................... 131 15.1 Fertilizers For Supplying Magnesium . 136 16.1 Sensitivity Of Plants To A Micronutrient Deficiency . 141 16.2 Micronutrient Content Of Various Materials . 144 16.3 Typical Application Rates Of Micronutrient Fertilizers . 146 vii Acknowledgements Whatever value this presentation has is due to the efforts and achievements of many people. In addition to the numerous references listed, I wish to acknowl- edge valuable discussions on soil microorganisms with Larry Zibilske, University of Maine, and equally important discussions on manure and compost with William Brinton, Jr, Woods End Laboratory. I thank Stuart B. Hill for the use of the Ecological Agriculture library at Macdonald College in obtaining information which would have been difficult to find elsewhere. I wish also to thank Frank Eggert, University of Maine, Winston Way, University of Vermont, Stuart Hill, and Robert Kimber, for reading the manuscript at an earlier stage of revision and offering their valuable literary and technical comments. Pam Bell, former editor of the Maine Organic Farmer and Gardener, devoted considerable time and effort in editing the manuscript, adding the readability that it so desperately needed, and offered further technical comments. I am grateful to Jo Josephson for her encouragement during the several years while this book was in preparation and in her help in editing this edition. In my early years at Woods End Laboratory, William K. Kruesi sent me nu- merous references tabulating the nutrient content of produce. Those tables helped me considerably in interpreting soil tests, and they eventually became part of the impetus and the basis for this book. ix Preface This book is a modification of the book "Fertile Soil" published by AgAccess in 1990, which itself was an updated version of the book "Organic And Inorganic Fertilizers" published by Woods End Laboratory in 1985. During the many years since it has been out of print, it seems to have attracted some popularity, judging by the resale market. Also in this interval, AgAccess kindly mailed me the original masters. Furthermore, noone seems to have picked up the main message in the book. The last straw was prodding (nagging may be closer to the mark) by a friend to "get up and do something". The result is what you see: an online version freely available to the public under a creative commons license. The book arose during the years that I ran the soil testing facility at Woods End Laboratory. Its specialty was to offer recommendations for organic fertilizers and had a working arrangement with certifying organizations in Vermont and California. The research conducted in an effort to understand the distinctions among fertilizers led to the book. What is the main message? Actually it has two messages. One is to state as fairly as possible, subject to an occasional bias, differences among the fertilizers commonly available. I am not currently aware of any other publication with that goal. The second message is to emphasize the need in the soil for energy required to maintain soil fertility. The book accomplishes this by identifying a value of the energy in organic residues. The book has four parts. The first part discusses the importance of organic residues to soil fertility and proposes an energy index for comparing organic and inorganic fertilizers; addresses the controversy regarding the effect of organic and inorganic fertilizers on food quality; and discusses options for determining fertilizer applications. The second part covers the range of organic fertilizers including unprocessed locally available residues

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