WHY USE EXPERT SC (SUSPENSION / GEL) FERTILIZERS?
PULCU TARIM has unrivaled expertise in the manufacturing of SC fertilizers with over 35 years’ experience. Full-automated state-of-the-art technology is employed throughout the whole manufacturing process. All PULCU TARIM suspensions include a range of additives for soil amendment, and nutrient efficiency enhancement that is reinforced with micronutrients, and biostimulants, allowing overall crop nutrition to fulfill your crops’ complete requirements in a single application.
LET’S EXPLORE THE BENEFITS OF SC FERTILIZERS!
Suspension fertilizers belong to the group of liquid fertilizers
ü Suspension fertilizers combine the advantages of liquid and solid fertilizers but also have unique features, making them an attractive proposition on the fertilizer market.
As an important tool for growers, suspension fertilizers meet the set environmental and agronomic criteria. Their unique agronomic and financial advantages include accurate fertilizer placement and distribution, macro and micronutrients that stay blended in solution, and a product that is exceptionally easy to surface or subsurface band apply. These factors together result in reduced fertilizer fixation, increased nutrient availability, and often statistically higher crop yields and net returns than broadcasted granular fertilizers.
ü Their liquid formula and high concentration of fertilizing salts enable the more effective absorption of nutrients by your plants.
The use of suspension fertilizers improves the soil structure, thanks to gelling clay substances. Before applying the fertilizer, these substances are designed to disperse the insoluble elements of the suspension system and, when applied to the soil, increase its absorbency.
ü Suspension Vs. Granular & Clear Liquid Fertilizers
The use of suspension fertilizers allows growers to increase the concentration of fertilizing components to almost twice that found in clear liquid fertilizers and allows for competition in this respect with solid fertilizers.
Suspension fertilizers can be tank-mixed with many different pesticides, and micronutrients can be evenly blended in liquid solutions. These factors result in uniform nutrient application for both macro and micronutrients, and increased profitability due to higher crop yields and fewer trips across a field when compared to dry granular fertilizers.
Moreover, averaged over 112 comparisons of banded vs broadcasted phosphorus fertilizer sources, researchers found that banding phosphorus fertilizer increased nutrient uptake by 12%.
Suspension fertilizers provide the same agronomic and economic advantages as clear liquids (starter fertilizer, foliar sprays, those used in drip tape or over the top irrigation systems), but are more reasonably priced than clear liquids.
ü Ease of Application & Storage
Suspension fertilizers are convenient to use, transport, reload and store. Their production and operation are not very laborious since they can be fully mechanized. Due to its liquid form, the explosion hazard associated with the use of solid ammonium nitrate was also excluded
As the fertilizer is liquid, it can be pumped through pipes and can be sprayed onto the soil through nozzles. Therefore, the amount of work associated with the application is reduced. These fertilizers do not require packaging, which reduces the consumption of non-biodegradable packaging, and do not contain ballast substances, e.g., anti-caking agents.
ü Suspension fertilizers can be applied to the field using typical agricultural equipment, in conjunction with irrigation and plant protection treatment.
An important advantage of this type of product is the possibility of introducing additional substances improving the condition of plants, together with the nutrients. The effect of such fertilization is an even distribution of the fertilizing ingredients over the surface of the field. Pesticides that are introduced into a suspension fertilizer may dissolve in it or be dispersed as fine, insoluble particles or immiscible liquids. The advantages of the agricultural application of suspension fertilizers are shown in figure below:
ü Suspension fertilizers are eco-friendly
The use of suspension fertilizers ensures better utilization of nutrients by plants, limiting the amount of leached nutrients into groundwater. On the other hand, the possibility of fertilization under the soil surface reduces the gaseous losses of nitrogen compounds
The figure below shows a comparison of the production stages of solid and liquid fertilizers. The production of liquid fertilizers consists of two main steps: mixing and storage. Conversely, the production of solid fertilizers consists of the following stages: mixing, granulation, drying, classification, and storage. The stages marked with a darker color in the figure require more energy than those marked with a lighter color.
The production of fertilizers is waste-free. The use of waste materials in their production results in the lower extraction of natural resources and a smaller amount of landfilled waste.
ü Cost-saving effect of suspension fertilizers
Greater accuracy in the application of fertilizers in the field with the use of liquid fertilizers significantly improves the efficiency of fertilization.
REFERENCES
Bogusz, P., Rusek, P., & Brodowska, M. S. (2021). Suspension Fertilizers: How to Reconcile Sustainable Fertilization and Environmental Protection. Agriculture, 11(10), 1008.
Nkebiwe, P. M., Weinmann, M., Bar-Tal, A., & Müller, T. (2016). Fertilizer placement to improve crop nutrient acquisition and yield: A review and meta-analysis. Field crops research, 196, 389-401.