Announcement
Collapse
No announcement yet.
Trying to understand NPK ratings (esp. manure)
Collapse
X
-
Originally posted by Snadger View PostHow about this then?
If a 100-pound bag of fertilizer has an N-P-K ratio of 5-7-4, it contains 5 pounds of nitrate, 7 pounds of phosphate (which contains phosphorous), 4 pounds of potash (which contains potassium) and 84 pounds of filler.
As far as I know, cow manure, which is mainly used as a soil improver rather than a fertiliser is roughly 1-1-1 so a 100-pound bag would add 97 pounds of bulk and 3 pounds of fertiliser.
So methinks the ratio AND percentages ARE linked.
I must admit, being the saddo that I am, I find this quite interesting!
From what I read, the N ratio SHOULD be a % of the total mass. The P-K ratios aren't exact elemental percentages as they represent P2O5 and K2O, but multiplying them by 0.43 and 0.83 respectively gives the elemental figures (this is sometimes shown in brackets on fertilisers).
So long as the person demonstrating the NPK of a manure knows that the the N-P2O5-K2O ratio should be an exact percentage of the mass, then that's fine.
But when I discovered figures for sheep manure that I mentioned before I had to assume one of them was wrong as I seriously doubt any manure could have 18% Nitrogen by mass!Current Executive Board Members at Ollietopia Inc:
Snadger - Director of Poetry
RedThorn - Chief Interrobang Officer
Pumpkin Becki - Head of Dremel Multi-Tool Sales & Marketing and Management Support
Jeanied - Olliecentric Eulogy Minister
piskieinboots - Ambassador of 2-word Media Reviews
WikiGardener a subsidiary of Ollietopia Inc.
Comment
-
Originally posted by Pies View PostCurrent Executive Board Members at Ollietopia Inc:
Snadger - Director of Poetry
RedThorn - Chief Interrobang Officer
Pumpkin Becki - Head of Dremel Multi-Tool Sales & Marketing and Management Support
Jeanied - Olliecentric Eulogy Minister
piskieinboots - Ambassador of 2-word Media Reviews
WikiGardener a subsidiary of Ollietopia Inc.
Comment
-
Originally posted by Nicos View Postdb stands for 'dangling bond'
....whatever those are!!!!Originally posted by WikipediaWhen a metal is deposited on silicon, these dangling bonds give rise to interface states within the energy band gap of silicon.Current Executive Board Members at Ollietopia Inc:
Snadger - Director of Poetry
RedThorn - Chief Interrobang Officer
Pumpkin Becki - Head of Dremel Multi-Tool Sales & Marketing and Management Support
Jeanied - Olliecentric Eulogy Minister
piskieinboots - Ambassador of 2-word Media Reviews
WikiGardener a subsidiary of Ollietopia Inc.
Comment
-
Originally posted by OllieMartin View PostMe Too!
From what I read, the N ratio SHOULD be a % of the total mass. The P-K ratios aren't exact elemental percentages as they represent P2O5 and K2O, but multiplying them by 0.43 and 0.83 respectively gives the elemental figures (this is sometimes shown in brackets on fertilisers).
So long as the person demonstrating the NPK of a manure knows that the the N-P2O5-K2O ratio should be an exact percentage of the mass, then that's fine.
But when I discovered figures for sheep manure that I mentioned before I had to assume one of them was wrong as I seriously doubt any manure could have 18% Nitrogen by mass!My Majesty made for him a garden anew in order
to present to him vegetables and all beautiful flowers.- Offerings of Thutmose III to Amon-Ra (1500 BCE)
Diversify & prosper
Comment
-
NPK, yeah OK, if you want to use chemicals to grow your food (yes I know what it means and how it works), I prefer to rotate crops, compost anything vegetable in origin and use any manure that comes my way for free, pig manure for sandy soil, horse poo for clay soils and cow muck for general use, the bacteria in the soil will release the nutrients, there is a lot of free cardboard out there for digging in to bean trenches, moisture retention, carpet tubes make great 4-5" pots, line your heap with cardboard, it keeps it together insulates and rots down to make more compost, lets just keep it natural!( urine really does activate compost, "ammoniacal nitrogen"!!)Last edited by ohbeary; 19-05-2010, 11:16 PM.Eat well, live well, drink moderately and be happy (hic!)
Comment
-
Originally posted by ohbeary View PostNPK, yeah OK, if you want to use chemicals to grow your food (yes I know what it means and how it works), I prefer to rotate crops, compost anything vegetable in origin and use any manure that comes my way for free, pig manure for sandy soil, horse poo for clay soils and cow muck for general use, the bacteria in the soil will release the nutrients, there is a lot of free cardboard out there for digging in to bean trenches, moisture retention, carpet tubes make great 4-5" pots, line your heap with cardboard, it keeps it together insulates and rots down to make more compost, lets just keep it natural!( urine really does activate compost, "ammoniacal nitrogen"!!)My Majesty made for him a garden anew in order
to present to him vegetables and all beautiful flowers.- Offerings of Thutmose III to Amon-Ra (1500 BCE)
Diversify & prosper
Comment
-
Originally posted by ohbeary View PostNPK, yeah OK, if you want to use chemicals to grow your food (yes I know what it means and how it works), I prefer to rotate crops, compost anything vegetable in origin and use any manure that comes my way for free, pig manure for sandy soil, horse poo for clay soils and cow muck for general use, the bacteria in the soil will release the nutrients, there is a lot of free cardboard out there for digging in to bean trenches, moisture retention, carpet tubes make great 4-5" pots, line your heap with cardboard, it keeps it together insulates and rots down to make more compost, lets just keep it natural!( urine really does activate compost, "ammoniacal nitrogen"!!)
Just been finding it difficult to establish a good 'typical' NPK for some of the organic soil conditioners because they vary so much depending on what goes into them.Current Executive Board Members at Ollietopia Inc:
Snadger - Director of Poetry
RedThorn - Chief Interrobang Officer
Pumpkin Becki - Head of Dremel Multi-Tool Sales & Marketing and Management Support
Jeanied - Olliecentric Eulogy Minister
piskieinboots - Ambassador of 2-word Media Reviews
WikiGardener a subsidiary of Ollietopia Inc.
Comment
Latest Topics
Collapse
Recent Blog Posts
Collapse
Comment