Kinds Of Fertilizers And The Different Soil Conditioners

Manure is an inorganic fertilizer that is added to soil to improve its quality. Dung a solid waste matter excreted by animal is the most common form of manure that is added to condition the soil and to improve the growth and yield of plants. Manure that contains other dirt and waste will form a humus (rich soil made by decayed plants) that will strengthen the soil's nutrients and water-holding ability. This will therefore protect the plants from drought, and will help in the prevention of erosion.

Other Benefits of Manure to Farming:

• Manure can make the soil easier to plough
• Manure can promote soil aeration, oxygen is important for plants respiration, lack of it can affect metabolic processes of plants, resulting in the accumulation of toxic substances and low uptake of nutrients.
• Manure by chemical action can help release fertilizing substance locked in soil particles.
• Manure feeds the bacteria, fungi and other organisms that can change fertilizing substances into forms that plants can use to make food.

Kinds of Manure:

• Green Manure - is a crop that is grown mainly to add nutrients and organic matter to the soil, this kind of crop is used in rotation with other crops, which is plowed under to serve the same purposes as animal manure. The roots of some green manure grow deep into the soil and bring up nutrients that are not present in shallow rooted crops. Leguminous crops are especially favored as green manures because they add nitrogen to the soil.
• Compost - are decayed leaves, plants and animal matter that is used similarly to manure. Compost is made by forming an alternate layers of organic matter and soil, commercially made fertilizer can also be added to the compost. Composting requires a mix of carbon, nitrogen, oxygen and water, however decomposition can take place even without these ingredients, but the process can be slow and unpleasant. Like if you decompose vegetables in plastic bag, it will develop a foul smell. The compost should be kept moist to promote the activity of organisms that decay plant and animal matter.
• Peat - consist of plant remains; it improves soil structure.
• Other Organic Fertilizers - include bird and bat droppings (called guano), blood meal, bone meal, tankage (animal wastes from packing plants), and fish meal. All these substances contain nitrogen and other essential elements. Bone meal is an excellent source of the element phosphorus. But blood meal, bone meal, tankage, and fish meal is seldom used on farms as fertilizers, because it is too expensive.

Soil Amendments - are materials that are added to soil, which will help to improve the soil's condition. The type of conditioner added will depends on the current soil composition, the climate, and the type of plant. The soil conditioner will also make it more alkaline or less alkaline.

Different Soil Amendments / Soil Conditioners:

• Limestone, Dolomite and Marl - are added to heavy clay soils to make them less acid and to improve their tilling ability. Limestone also adds calcium and magnesium to the soil, and dolomite is rich in magnesium.
• Fertilizers - like manure, compost, peat
• Clay and Shredded Bark - used to make soil hold more water.
• Gypsum - is applied to heavy soils to make them more penetrable by water and to neutralize excessively alkaline soils. It adds sulfur and calcium.
• Alum - used to make soils more acid, contributes sulfur to soil.