A year ago, we all were talking about fertilizer prices reaching decade lows. Fast forward 12 months, fertilizer prices are approaching 10-year highs. Whether Potash, Ammonium Sulfate or urea, costs continue to climb.
As we look at a lot of fertilizers used by the Professional Lawn Care Industry, we are seeing more and more straight urea in blends in an effort to save costs. The problem with using straight urea is that once it is spread on the turf, as much as 70% of the nitrogen can volatize into the atmosphere or leach into the soil before the plant can actually use it. With a potential of only 30% being used by the turf, why put more of a product down that has no cost benefit to the turf when prices are headed towards an all-time high? The use of enhanced efficiency fertilizers like slow-release fertilizers (SRN) or controlled release fertilizers (CRN) may be a better value in the long run, now, more than ever.
Slow-Release Fertilizers
- Slow-release fertilizers like Sulfur Coated Urea, Methylene Urea and Stabilized Nitrogen slow down the conversion of urea into plant available nitrates. Basically, they increase the longevity of the Nitrogen beyond its typical release curve. This is usually represented on a fertilizer label as a percent of “Slowly Available Nitrogen”. The downside to these type of slow-release nitrogen sources is they either have one release curve or the rate of nitrogen conversion can be accelerated by heat and moisture thus reducing the amount of longevity of the urea. Bio Solids and granulated composted Poultry manure are also other sources of slow-release nitrogen.
Controlled Release Fertilizers
- Controlled release fertilizers like polymer or polyurethane coated urea’s, allow for a much more predictable release of nitrogen over a specific period of time. Usually, this predictable release, is the amount of Nitrogen that a plant can actually uptake each week. These fertilizers are much more expensive than straight urea, therefore, typically only a small percentage of them actually make it into a blend of turf fertilizers; also represented on a fertilizer label as a percent of ‘Slowly Available Nitrogen”.
With urea reaching historical highs in the commodity markets, using efficient fertilizers makes more sense than ever. The cost of these enhanced efficiency fertilizers is more expensive than straight urea however when you compare the controlled release products with the efficiency release curves, more of the nitrogen is actually used by the turf. This means, you are not wasting money by allowing straight urea to volatize or leach away. You will need to put more pounds of nitrogen down than usual because of the slow release, but it will be much more efficient. The benefits to the turf, your wallet, and the environment make using enhanced efficiency fertilizers more important now than ever.
Finally
If you are unclear how these products work, reach out to your Central Turf and Irrigation Sales Associate to explain how these work in more detail and to help put together a fertilizer program that will work for you and your customer base.
Better yet, there is still time to take advantage of our Turf Early Order Program. Planning your purchases can help you save money on your bottom line but more importantly, with supply chain challenges, you can guarantee you have the product you need, when you need it. See how an Early Order Program can help you get a step ahead of your competitors and grow your business.
About Bob Hartman
Bob Hartman is an industry veteran with more than 15 years of experience in the green industry; specifically, turf. Bob brings a solid background in both the organic and synthetic methods of feeding turf and plants. His diverse background and experience on the manufacturing makes him an excellent resource to help you grow your business.