Fertilizers can be defined as natural or artificial amendments that usually contain elements that are chemical, and are applied either on the leaves or in the soil to improve the productivity of a piece of land. Natural fertilizers are commonly referred to as organic fertilizers where as artificial or synthetic fertilizers are commonly referred to as inorganic fertilizers. Inorganic fertilizers are manufactures in industries, where a combination of Nitrogen, Phosphorus and Potassium in the required ratios is used to come up with the final product.
As a point of note to farmers, inorganic fertilizers eventually destroy the soil that they are put in, rendering it unproductive and toxic. Such kind of land is totally unsuitable for planting any plants. Fertilizers can be used for subsistence farming, small scale farming, large scale farming, and horticulture, setting a food plot, commercial farming and many others to yield better harvests.
Uses of Fertilizers
1. Some plants have special needs to grow, and the natural soil may not contain all the nutrients needed for these plants. This is where the fertilizer comes in, to restore those special nutrients to the soil.
2. Fertilizers are also used to encourage the plants to grow healthily as they increase nutrients to the soil that the plants are planted in.
3. Fertilizers may also be used to assist in hastening the greening process of the leaves, which enhances production of chlorophyll which aids in production and storage of food.
4. Fertilizers add nutrition to the soil, which aids in the multiplication of harvests.
5. Some people like to plant plants such as flowers, herbs or food crops indoors. Here they use containers such as pots to plant their crops. This makes the soil placed in the pots to loose nutrients quickly. Fertilizers may be used to restore the nutrients lost to enhance the growth of such plants.
6. They can be used in improving different soil texture. This is basically the hardness or softness of the soil, which can be detected by feeling the soil. Fertilizers come in to soften or harden soil, depending on the type of the soil and what the soil is required for.