GREENHOUSES I SHADE NET I HYDROPONICS I AQUAPONICS
WHY WATER SOLUBLE FERTILIZERS?
Tanks filled with different soluble fertilizers and electronics system to finetune mixing.
E
fficient fertilizers and fertilization methods have become the main answer to the ever-growing demand for agricultural products. Modern agriculture must supply crops with optimal rates of nutrients throughout the growth cycle in the most efficient manner possible, and without degrading soil and water resources. Nutrigation™ (Fertigation) and foliar nutrition enable highly efficient use of nutrients. All of Haifa’s water soluble fertilizers are fully water soluble and comprised of 100% plant macronutrients. It is virtually free of chloride, sodium and other detrimental elements for plants. Efficient absorption by plants Water soluble fertilizers are fertilizers that can be dissolved in water and added or
leached out of the soil easily. With water soluble fertilizers it is easy to control the precise amount of nutrients available to your plants (the control is more exact with soilless mixes). Soluble fertilizers usually have N-P-K numbers listed on their label. The N is for nitrogen, the P is for phosphorus and the K is for potassium or potash. Of the 16 (12 of which are contained in water soluble fertilizers) known elements necessary for plant life, N-P-K, are the three that are of the most importance and always listed on water soluble fertilizers, in that order. Following N-P-K, calcium (Ca) and magnesium (Mg) is the two second most important nutrients listed on the label. The rest, iron (Fe), sulphur (S), manganese (Mn), boron (B), molybdenum (Mo), zinc (Zn) and copper (Cu) are trace elements or micronutrients. Nitrogen is the most important of the nutrients. It controls the processes used to make proteins vital to new protoplasm in the cells. Nitrogen is essential to the production of chlorophyll and is responsible for leaf growth, as well as overall size and vigour. Phosphorus is necessary for photosynthesis and provides a mechanism for energy transfer within the plant. Phosphorus is associated with overall vigor and is used at its highest levels during germination, seedling and the fruiting or flowering stages of growth.
Tanks filled with different soluble fertilizers and electronics system to finetune mixing. Potassium, or potash, provides the manufacturing and movement of sugars and starches, as well as, growth by cell division. It also increases chlorophyll levels in the foliage and helps regulate the stomata openings so plants make better use of light and air. Potassium is important in all stages of plant growth. Magnesium is the central atom in every chlorophyll molecule and is essential to the absorption of light. It aids in the utilisation of nutrients and also neutralises soil acids and toxic compounds produced by the plant. Adding dolomite lime before planting helps stabilize pH and adds magnesium and calcium to the soil. The other secondary nutrient, calcium, is for the manufacturing of cells and overall growth. Trace elements are vital to chlorophyll formation and must be present in minute amounts. Little is known about the exact amounts needed. They function mainly as a catalyst to the plant’s processes and the utilization of other elements. The ultimate goal of fertilizing is to supply your plant with the right amount of nutrients, yet, at the same time not toxifying the soil via over-fertilization. Tanks filled with different soluble fertilizers and electronics system to finetune mixing. With water soluble fertilizers it is easy to control the precise amount of nutrients available to your plants (the control is more exact with soilless mixes).
16 Undercover farming I January/February 2022 I Volume 19 No 1
