[EBOOK] Fertilizers and their Efficient Use, Harold F. Reetz, Jr., International Fertilizer Industry Association (IFA)

This book is intended to serve as a reference guide to people throughout the world who need a general understanding of fertilizers and how they are most efficiently used to maintain or improve soil productivity, crop yields, farmers’ profits, and environmental services. The focus of the book is around nutrient stewardship, which addresses nutrient management from economic, environmental, and social perspectives.

A brief outline of the 17 essential plant nutrients and their sources and functions in plants sets the stage for the discussion. The general soil nutrient management approaches of maintenance, build-up, and sufficiency are described. Characteristics and management of individual macro-nutrients (nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium) most often needed as fertilizers are discussed in detail, and secondary nutrients and micro-nutrients are briefly reviewed, with some important examples.

The book should prove valuable for understanding the role of improved management practices on the efficient use of fertilizer. It is not a “how to...” guide, but more of a “why...?” guide to nutrient management.

The Global Framework for Nutrient Management-the 4R Approach is used to show how agronomic, economic, environmental, and social aspects of fertilizer use interact, and how changes in management practices affect all of these areas. Details of each of the components are discussed along with some of the performance indicators that can be used to monitor and evaluate these practices.

The development of site-specific precision agriculture over the past two decades has greatly improved the management of nutrients, our ability to practice nutrient stewardship, and the tools for monitoring and evaluation of the results. The technology and its role in both developed and developing economies is a critical component of improving nutrient management. Use of sensors, from hand-held data collectors to satellite imagery, have opened some new possibilities for fine-tuning nutrient applications. New formulations of fertilizer and various additives have created a variety of fertilizer options from which a farmer and his advisers can develop an integrated nutrient management plan.

Nutrient use efficiency (NUE) is a central component of the book, with an outline of different definitions of NUE, and the kind of data and analytical processes needed to evaluate NUE. Approaches used by governmental bodies, academics, industry, NGOs, and farmers are discussed with a specific review of the site-specific nutrient management (SSNM) approach developed for rice by the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI).

Having the right data is a critical factor in efficient use of fertilizer. Collection of data, managing and interpreting it with proper analysis and modeling, and communication with various advisers and stakeholders rounds out a solid fertilizer program.

Farmers, advisers, input suppliers can use this book to make better-informed decisions on crop nutrient management. Reviewing these concepts will help government agencies and NGOs better understand the “why...?” of nutrient management. Further, this information can be used to help the non-agriculture community to better understand the importance of fertilizer to their well-being in supporting the food, feed, fiber, and fuel production industries that depend upon a viable and sustainable agriculture worldwide.

Soil fertility and plant nutrition constitute a dynamic system. While it has been studied for over 100 years, there is still much to be learned. As global requirements for crop production continue to grow, fine-tuning of the nutrient management systems becomes more and more critical. Involvement of soil microbiology and interactions among plants and microbes need to be better understood and managed whenever possible. It has been attempted to introduce these interactions and learn how to manage them to enhance crop nutrition. Environmental stewardship related to nutrient management has also been discussed in terms of making decisions about fertilizer products, rates, timing, and placement.

[EBOOK] Fertilizers and their Efficient Use, Harold F. Reetz, Jr., International Fertilizer Industry Association (IFA)

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