Rethinking Stabilized Nitrogen

Controlling the release of nitrogen usually takes the form of the slow diffusion of nitrogen through a polymer or sulphur coating, or the break-down of large complex molecules, like urea-formaldehyde, by microbes. Stabilized nitrogen, on the other hand, works by delaying the soil nitrogen cycle. In the past, early nitrogen demand by plants was supplied by blending in your fertilizer mix some regular urea-nitrogen.

However, current thinking is centered on the fact that most of our nitrogen applications are top-dressed, not incorporated as was much more common many years ago. This is the case over the Fraser Valley’s 30,000+ acres of blueberries and caneberries. Loss of nitrogen to volatilization is much more likely from urea sitting on the soil surface. For this reason, it makes less sense to blend in regular urea with stabilized nitrogen, as much of the urea-N will be lost. Therefore, we now recommend that all your nitrogen in your fertilizer blends should be stabilized, rather than some of it. The crop won’t suffer, as some nitrogen is always available sub-surface from the oxidation of organic matter. All the top-dressed stabilized nitrogen will have a chance of being taken up by the plants in this way, as the delay in the nitrogen cycle means less urea is converted to ammonium and ultimately to ammonia gas which will be lost on the first few warm days.

For use alone or in your liquid fertilizer blends, TerraLink has developed a new nitrogen product; a 23-0-0 with 100% of the nitrogen in the form of stabilized N. With this product, you can confidently apply it knowing more will be taken up by your crop, and less lost to the atmosphere.

For more information please contact us. We will help you find the proper nitrogen for your crops.