As a soil scientist, I enjoy weighing the pros and cons of different types of fertilizers. Comparing granular vs liquid fertilizer forms has surprising results. The answer is to hand down liquid fertilizer but why? The two fertilizer forms interact with the soil and plant in entirely different ways. This means yields, blooms and your garden as a whole will perform differently depending on the type you choose.
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Applying science in the garden makes your garden journey a little bit easier by cutting through all the noise. In today&#;s Gardening in Canada blog post, we are going to be talking about granular versus liquid fertilizer. I personally enjoy liquid fertilizer, especially in the beginning phases of the plant&#;s journey. I also prefer liquid fertilizers if I have a plant in desperate need of immediate nutrient delivery.
However, I have used granular forms of fertilizer and enjoyed the result. The convenience factor and the storage ability factor are undeniably beneficial. One thing I want to drive home is that comparing liquid to granular is difficult there are two totally different delivery systems of nutrients. however oddly enough granular organic and inorganic act similarly in the garden.
When I say similar, I mean the way that it is degraded to be made bioavailable for the plant is very similar in process. This can be through mechanical weathering such as sun, water, and wind. Or through a microbial activity that biodegrades polymer coatings or the organic material containing the nutrients.
When we apply granular fertilizer, it is typically mixed throughout the soil system. This form of application means we have it in situ where it no longer is able to move. This is not a big deal for a majority of nutrients that are water-soluble. However, for the nutrients that are not water-soluble, this can be a problem. With granular fertilizers that contain insoluble nutrients such as phosphorus, we have to rely on the roots of the plant to get to that granular position. This must be done in order to uptake the nutrients. Unfortunately, plant roots do not have Spidey sense and are not able to take an educated guess as to where the nutrient granule is located. Plants can be lazy, and they will end up releasing something called an exudate which is a fancy word for sugar.
I will often underapply granular fertilizer in my houseplants and supplement with liquid fertilizer as needed. Something to keep in mind is organic fertilizers are difficult to burn your plants with. So if the concern is that using both liquid and granular fertilizer can be curbed by using a blend. If you use synthetic granular fertilizer and sub it organic liquid fertilizer you will not see any burning effects.
If you are looking for ways to reduce waste with liquid fertilizer then you will want to pre-water. This simply involves watering your plants with water only prior to fertilizing. This will help will the pore spaces being filled prior to the fertilizer additions. Now you will fertilize with full concentration fertilizer water and maximize results while limiting losses.
Do not worry about overwatering. If you have your potting soil designed for drainage over watering will be a thing of the past.
Granular fertilizer can be mixed throughout a potting soil, top dressed or placed into the transplant hole. If you choose to top-dress you may have some losses due to volatilization, aka gassing off. Always aim to incorporate granular fertilizer when possible.
When using granular fertilizers you want to ensure your soil moisture is adequate. Allowing your plants to go below 20% moisture can result in a number of different issues. This will not only decrease nutrient availability as well as slowing doing microbe activity. Ideal soil moisture will be between 80%-30% for nearly all plants.
Granular fertilizer for tomatoes can be placed in the transplant hole or mixed into the soilless medium. Always follow the granular application rules and place it within the rhizosphere. The rhizosphere is the area of soil that interacts with our plant roots. For tomatoes specifically use fruit and flower formulas because this will have higher levels of phosphorus and potassium along with micronutrients.
Granular fertilizer is also notorious for burning your lawn due to the high localized concentration of salts. For lawn applications, the granular fertilizer has less interaction with the soil interface. This lack of interaction can result in the burning of the surrounding foliage.
There is a right and wrong ways to use liquid fertilizers for houseplants and the garden. The correct application will allow for reduced waste and prevent the burning of the plant roots.
Using granular fertilizer simply involves even distribution to reduce the burning of roots. There are three ways to use granular fertilizer, each one has their own benefits and disadvantages.
If you are using granular fertilizer in potting soil then simply mix it in prior to potting up your plants. For those of you wanting to use granular fertilizers when transplanting you want to avoid too much fertilizer near the roots. Roots take up nutrients through osmosis and diffusion, meaning based on salts. An excess of salt needs the roots can cause burning and harm the nutrient uptake of the plants.
This sugar is the equivalent of a microbe big gulp and therefore it attracts microbes that then will decompose surrounding organic material. This decomposition process turns the soil&#;s carbon-based structures into a format that is usable for the plant. This means the roots no longer have to travel to the area that contains phosphorus they can just produce it within that region.
This means when answering of which is better, granular vs liquid fertilizer, we can say liquid is more available. The plant has little to no work to do with liquid fertilizers. With granular fertilizers, we need the plant to do some work.
With a liquid fertilizer, soil dispersion is a little bit different. This is because it is mixed into the soil water solution. Therefore, we have the benefit of saturating the entire soil system with equal parts of nutrients. Meaning the plants do not have to travel to get those water-insoluble nutrients. It has been delivered directly to the root system as a whole. This arguably could be less stressful for the plant especially if it&#;s going through a rough time.
Liquid fertilizers are far superior in specific situations. One case where it would be more beneficial for nutrient delivery would be after:
The best way to think of liquid fertilizer is as a protein shake. Granular is the T-bone steak.
Hot zones are common with granular fertilizer. Due to the manufacturing process salts are common in fertilizer both organic and inorganic. However, with a granular system, it tends to be a bit more relevant. This is due to the localized area that which granular is applied. As water penetrates the system and the granular fertilizer is broken down. Salt will be released into that general area of the grain. If you have a salt-sensitive plant ultimately what happens is the roots will avoid that hot zone.
This evasion of the hot zone is a way for the plant to protect itself from the salt burn. that means the nutrients that are not mobile are therefore hard for the plant to obtain without the use of exudates. with a liquid formula, we are not out of the hot zone necessarily, but it is dispersed throughout the entire system. what this means is that if we over-fertilize, we tend to get signs of fertilizer burn.
Salts are water-soluble meaning we can use the laws of physics and simply drown out the system for lack of a better term. This could only happen with the overapplication of liquid fertilizer. With the overapplication of granular fertilizer, we would actually have to remove the plant and all the soil that comes with it. This means starting from scratch. Liquid allows us to back out of our mistakes by simply washing out or flooding out the access levels of salt.
Consistency in the number of nutrients in each granule is hard to determine. However, with liquid fertilizer, it is almost a guarantee that it is equally dispersed throughout the entire product. It is important to remember that we need to shake a liquid fertilizer in order to ensure equal dispersion in the liquid. If we fail to shake the product, we may end up with more of 1 nutrient than the other as things tend to settle out in the package.
This is especially true with organic fertilizers that do not use agents to help with mixing. The other issue with liquid is that it cannot freeze, and storage is important. If we allow a liquid fertilizer to freeze it is more or less garbage. I personally would not use this on my plants mostly because I would be concerned about the potential denaturing of the nutrients.
With granular however storage is much easier. As long as you keep a granular fertilizer moisture-free you can let it get as hot as you like or allow it to freeze. Granular is not only cheaper to purchase it lasts longer if you do not use it all within one season. With organic granular, it is important that you do allow the product to breathe sometimes. Because organic products are alive and do require some microbial activity to stop it from going completely anaerobic. You will know an organic granular product has gone bad if it smells rancid.
The last factor that may go into determining whether or not you want to use granular versus liquid is the convenience factor. How often are you willing to fertilize once a week or once a season? if the answer is once a season then granular is your choice. But if you&#;re a helicopter plant parent then something like a liquid may be more beneficial.
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I hope you guys enjoyed this post if you did let me know in the comments down below and be sure to share. what is your preferred method for fertilizing liquid or granular?
Granular Vs. Liquid FertilizerOne of the biggest discussions that&#;s occurring related to lawn care is the use of granular vs. liquid fertilizers. Many prefer liquid fertilizers due to their overall efficiency and consistency, however, granular fertilizers remain to be a big hit for home lawns.
The truth is, comparing granular vs. liquid fertilizer is like comparing apples to oranges&#;each serves its own different purpose. Read below to learn the benefits and disadvantages of each as well as when it&#;s best to use one or the other.
Granular fertilizer is sold in little granules that resemble small, sometimes multi-colored pellets. Granular fertilizer is typically sold in medium or large-sized bags or bottles for turfgrass, gardens and other plants.
Granular fertilizer is a great option for situations that favor traditional slow-release formulations. Although some liquid fertilizer features slow-release components, granular fertilizer is always absorbed at a slower rate because the soil and plants have to break it down first. This can be described as &#;spacial difference&#;&#;the distance between the fertilizer nutrients and the plant roots to reach absorption.
In general, granular fertilizer has a greater spacial difference, which can work in favor of various situations. For example, if you want the fertilizer you applied to last all season without constantly making applications, a granular fertilizer takes a while to break down.
However, it is becoming a frequent practice for granular fertilizers to be &#;sparged&#; with liquid fertilizer. In other words, the granular fertilizer is covered with a coat of liquid fertilizer that is immediately absorbed into the plant upon application.
Granular fertilizers are often a lot cheaper than liquid fertilizers when bought in bulk. Granular fertilizer can be a great option for homeowners who&#;ve always used the traditional bags of fertilizer and are satisfied with the results.
Some of the major disadvantages of granular fertilizer include its application consistency when compared to liquid fertilizer. Granular fertilizer contains a mix of different granules for each nutrient included in the package. This may be indicated by the different colors of granules. When spreading it out on your lawn or plants, the plants don&#;t receive the same amount of nutrients in every location.
Granular fertilizers usually come in heavy bags that can be hard to lift whereas a liquid fertilizer comes in smaller bottles you simply hook up to your garden hose for application or mix with water in a spray tank.
A lot of granular fertilizers also take a while to be broken down by the plant, so your plants may not be receiving the nutrients when they need them at the time of application. They contain a higher amount of salt content, which results in newly developing roots steering away from the fertilizer instead of towards it.
Lastly, immobile nutrients like phosphorus, which is a main macronutrient for plants, are hard to be transported throughout the plant when it&#;s not in its liquid form.
With granular fertilizer, it is more common for application to occur by hand spreading on plants, or in most cases, with the use of a broadcast or drop spreader for lawns and gardens. A measured amount of granular fertilizer specified on the product label will be poured into a granular or broadcast spreader and then applied when you begin pushing the spreader across the area you want to fertilize.
The amount of fertilizer and the spreading rate will be specified on the product label. Be sure to also check out our Sod University article on How to Avoid a Common Fertilizing Error, which addresses the issue of fertilizer striping.
Lawnifi® Foundation is granular fertilizer used for residential lawns and gardens that can be used throughout the different seasons all year long. With a 29-0-5 formulation, Lawnifi Foundation features a slow-release mixture of nitrogen that feeds your plants over a longer duration of time while enhancing the green color of your lawn.
The 2 percent iron included in Lawnifi Foundation serves to help plants move oxygen throughout the leaves, roots and other parts of the plant, resulting in a green color that lets you know your lawn and garden are healthy.
Powered by Catalyst TechnologyTM, Lawnifi Foundation is sparged with liquid fertilizer containing nano-sized nutrients that are immediately absorbed into the plant at the time of application. This increases efficiency and maximum nutrient uptake. Each 25 lb. bag of Lawnifi Foundation will feed your plants for up to three months at a time.
Lawnifi Foundation Granular Fertilizer
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Add to cartLiquid fertilizer, in opposition to solid, granular fertilizer, is a liquid product that is typically added to water and applied to turfgrass or plants. Liquid fertilizer is usually a more concentrated form of granular fertilizer, contains more nutrients and it is frequently sold in bottles that simply attach to the end of your garden hose.
Liquid fertilizer carries a great amount of benefits as it can be as simple as watering your lawn on a normal basis. Liquid fertilizers, including the kind sold under Lawnifi, attach to the end of your garden hose for an even spray distribution. It also delivers the same amount of nutrients with every drop.
With the use of Catalyst Technology, nutrients are nano-sized so that they are quickly and easily absorbed by the plant. Less nutrients sit in the ground and more are actually absorbed into the plant.
Catalyst Technology protects individual nutrients by encapsulation. Phosphorus, potassium and other nutrients are protected from tie-up with other ions in the soil and water by forming a net neutral particle. This technology ensures extended plant availability.
Liquid fertilizers also have less salt content, which is usually why liquid fertilizers are usually better for starter fertilizers. Granular fertilizers contain a lot more salt content, and roots tend to steer away from granular fertilizers for this reason&#;especially if there&#;s a lot of nitrogen and potassium.
The main disadvantages that come with liquid fertilizer is that they can sometimes be more expensive than granular fertilizers, and they are more susceptible to volatilization (or turned into a gas and potentially evaporated into the atmosphere).
Most liquid fertilizers, like Lawnifi&#;s array of bottled formulations, can easily be hooked up to the end of your garden hose. Make sure that you have the fertilizer attached to the garden hose before turning it on. Turn your garden hose on, switch the fertilizer bottle into the &#;On&#; position and walk backwards as you apply the fertilizer so that you don&#;t walk through any of the product.
Other bottles of liquid fertilizer can require tank mixing or hose-end mixing with a hose-end attachment.
Overall, both liquid and granular fertilizers have advantages and disadvantages. It really depends on your lawn&#;s needs at the time of your personal preference. For example, if you have newly installed sod you want to fertilize, it may be better to use a liquid fertilizer like Lawnifi&#;s New Lawn Starter Box. If you are applying fertilizer seasonally, either liquid or granular fertilizer will work.
For more information, please visit 19-19-19 fertilizer rate.