What Is Fertilizer Made Of? Breakdown Of Ingredients

What is Fertilizer Made Of?

Fertilizer is made of essential nutrients that enhance soil quality and promote plant growth. The primary components include:

1. Nitrogen (N) – Supports plant growth, chlorophyll production, and overall crop yield. Found in fertilizers for leafy greens like lettuce, spinach, and corn.
2. Phosphorus (P) – Helps plants convert energy into essential compounds, promoting root development and overall health. Commonly needed for crops like tomatoes, carrots, and blueberries.
3. Potassium (K) – Strengthens plants, improves resistance to pests, and enhances fruit quality. High-potassium fertilizers benefit crops such as bananas, strawberries, and watermelons.

Fertilizers can be organic (e.g., compost, manure) or synthetic (e.g., human-made chemical compounds) and are applied in dry or liquid form to support plant nutrition.

Other Nutrients Fertilizers Provide

Plants also need other nutrients, depending on the soil condition and type of plant.

Here are other nutrients that fertilizers provide to soil and plants.

Calcium (Ca)

This element is responsible for strengthening plants’ cell walls, growing plants, and making them resilient to diseases and pests.

Putting or mixing crushed eggshells into the soil is one natural way to increase your plant’s calcium intake.

Plants that respond well to calcium include citrus, peanuts, pears, peppers, tobacco, potatoes, and cotton.

Magnesium (Mg)

This nutrient helps regulate absorbing plant food and create seeds.

It’s involved in chlorophyll synthesis, giving plants a dark green color. Plants also need magnesium for specific enzyme systems.

Crops in the Solanaceous (e.g., eggplants and tomatoes) and Cucurbit (e.g., squash and cucumber) families tend to need more magnesium than others.

Sulfur (S)

Sulfur provides plant growth functions, such as enzyme activity, nitrogen metabolism, and protein and oil synthesis.

Few crops need a high level of sulfur. These include linseed, sunflower, canola, soybean, and flax.

Other minor or trace elements that plants need to function include iron (Fe), manganese (Mn), boron (B), zinc (Zn), copper (Cu), molybdenum (Mo), chlorine (Cl), and cobalt (Co).

Note that most fertilizers rarely add chlorine and cobalt.

Crops, flowers, trees, and shrubs only need small amounts of these elements to aid overall plant health.

Classification of Fertilizers by Nutrition

Fertilizers are classified as a single-nutrient or a multi-nutrient fertilizer.

Single-nutrient or straight fertilizers provide one of the main nutrients (nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium).

For example, a nitrogen fertilizer contains a compound of the element, such as ammonium nitrate, urea ammonium nitrate, and calcium nitrate. These are usually synthetic nitrogen fertilizers.

Meanwhile, multi-nutrient or complex fertilizers provide two or more nutrients. Common binary fertilizers include NP, NK, and PK combinations.

If you’re looking for an NP fertilizer, its common varieties include monoammonium phosphate and diammonium phosphate.

Consider these varieties before buying fertilizer:

Common Raw Materials of Organic Fertilizers

Organic fertilizers usually come from animal- or plant-derived matter. Here are common ingredients or materials used in fertilizer production.

Compost

Compost consists of decomposed organic materials, like grass clippings, leaves, food waste, wood chips, and paper. This mixture releases nutrients over time, keeping the soil healthy. You can create your compost with a compost bin.

Animal Manure

Animal waste has long been used to fertilize soil. Landscapers, farmers, and manufacturers usually use feces from pigs, cows, horses, chickens, and other livestock, as they provide primary nutrients for the soil and plants.

Byproducts of Human-Nature Industries

These include processed plant or animal wastes, such as cottonseed meal, sugar residue, crop straws, blood meal, and fish processing waste.

Minerals

Some fertilizers include minerals mined from natural deposits, like phosphate rock or atmospheric nitrogen. Phosphate rocks are one of the key components of creating phosphate fertilizers. The standardized and concentrated amounts of minerals in fertilizers allow you to give the optimal amount of nutrition for your soil and plant.

Biosolids

Biosolids are treated and processed river or sewage sludge. When recycled and applied as fertilizer, it helps improve soil health and plant growth. Since these are treated, use them carefully according to the instructions or regulatory requirements.

What Are Synthetic Fertilizers Made Of?

Synthetic or inorganic fertilizer uses chemical treatments to create compounds for effective plant nutrition.

These human-made compounds include ammonium nitrate, potassium sulfate, and ammonium phosphate.

Production of these elements varies per nutrient. For example, a synthetic nitrogen fertilizer uses the Haber process, which manufactures ammonia.

Manufacturers then convert ammonia as feedstock for nitrogen fertilizers like urea and anhydrous ammonium nitrate.

This synthetic nitrogen fertilizer is then manufactured into a water-soluble product, enabling plants to absorb the nutrients faster.

Synthetic fertilizer is also cheaper and easier to use or apply in the right amounts than organic fertilizers.

How to Buy the Right Fertilizer for Your Plants

Follow this three-step guide to know what fertilizer your plants need based on their nutrition deficiency.

1. Start with Soil Testing

Soil testing identifies and measures the primary and secondary nutrients in your soil. It also determines the soil pH, organic matter, and exchangeable acidity.

The result lets you know the type and amount of fertilizer to buy.

If you’re a beginner gardener or haven’t had the opportunity to check your soil’s condition, a soil test will provide a baseline of your garden or lawn’s soil health.

You can get a soil testing service with your local lawn service provider.

2. Learn to Read N-P-K Numbers

Fertilizer products often have an N-P-K ratio, which indicates the type and amount of major plant nutrients they contain.

A fertilizer with a 10-10-10 NPK ratio means the compound contains 10 percent of each element.

A higher number indicates a higher concentration of that nutrient.

Higher concentrations require you fewer applications.

Most soils lack nitrogen so you can find plenty of fertilizers with a high nitrogen concentration.

Many soil conditions also need a balanced ratio, like 10-10-10 or 8-8-8.

Organic products usually have low NPK ratios.

However, they also contain other micronutrients and improve soil microbes and the soil food web.

Ultimately, base your NPK ratio on your soil test results to provide your plant and soil with the right nutrients.

3. Consider Other Factors Before Buying

Although soil testing and NPK ratios provide enough information to help you choose a suitable fertilizer for your plants, consider these other factors when buying a fertilizer.

Type of Plant or Crop

Plants vary in nutrient needs per growth stage. For example, you need to fertilize tomatoes once during planting, after the first fruit, and after harvesting the first fruit.

Application Method

Should you use a granular or liquid type of fertilizer? Granular fertilizers break down over time, providing plants with continuous nutrients, while liquid fertilizers help plants absorb nutrients quicker.

Choose one based on your purpose and the plant’s nutrient needs.

Organic or Inorganic Fertilizer

Plants can receive either organic or synthetic fertilizer as long as it provides the right type and amount of nutrients.

If you prefer an eco-friendly fertilizer, go with organic fertilizers.

You may also consider organic hybrid fertilization to balance lawn care and environmental sustainability.

Budget

Chemical fertilizers are cheaper and more readily available than organic options.

Synthetic fertilizers have more concentrated nutrient levels per weight than organic ones, making them more cost-effective, especially for large farms.

Provide the Right Fertilization Program for Your Lawn, Garden, or Produce

Choosing fertilizer is a strategic decision involving understanding your fertilizer, soil, crops, and other gardening practices.

If you’re unsure of the best fertilization program for your plants, consider seeking the help of professionals.

A lawn care service provider like SunCo offers various services to help you fertilize your lawn or garden, control weeds, maintain your landscape, and more.