# What Not To Do When Applying Fertilizers

- Link: https://rd2.co.nz/what-not-to-do-when-applying-fertilizers/
- Published: 2023-03-29T00:52:52+00:00
- Author: RSF Admin

Written by Donald Lester

Applying fertilizer is not as easy as it seems. Here are the top 10 errors Don Lester
has seen people make over the years… Read, learn and don’t repeat!

As a product manager for a global fertilizer manufacturer, I routinely get technical
calls and troubleshooting requests from customers. Over the years, I have kept a
log of these calls, and recently I decided to review them and make a summary of 
the top ten biggest mistakes growers make when preparing and using fertilizers and
other plant products. I present them here so that you may learn from the mistakes
of others.

## 1. Not reading the label

I receive many complaints calls from customers who simply didn’t read the label.
For example, our commercial agriculture division offers an organic herbicide that
is oil-based. The label requires that the user have mechanical agitation to ensure
that the oil and water mixture is constantly mixed. One fellow called and said the
product did not work. I asked him what he did and he told me that he put it in his
wick applicator. I informed him we do not recommend on the label using a wick applicator.
His response was that we should have put that on the label.

Keep in mind that as manufacturers, we cannot think of every instance of things 
you should not do and put it on the label. And it’s not just individuals who ignore
the label. This product was sent to a university for field trials. As you might 
imagine, the university hired some students to perform the test using backpack CO2
sprayers that have no mechanical agitation. They simply added the product to the
tank with water, physically shook it for about 30 seconds, set it on the ground 
and went on preparing the other backpacks with their treatments. Upon returning 
to the first backpack, they put it on their back and began spraying. Oil and water
separate into two separate layers almost immediately, and in the backpack sprayer,
it acts the same way. The results came back with three plots having zero control
and the fourth plot having 100% control. It is easy to see that the water layer 
was applied to the first three plots and the oil product layer on the fourth. They
averaged the results, and our product came out with 25% control (a failure). Had
they read the label, the results would have been far different.

## 2. Having unreasonable expectations

Conventional growers are trying to make the switch to softer chemistries, and there
is a learning curve involved. In conventional growing systems, farmers wait until
there is a problem and then find a product to cure it. They want to see results 
immediately. Organic growers, on the other hand, have a holistic approach and keep
balance in the system to prevent problems. So when a conventional grower asks about
an organic version of this or that product, I gently try to educate them that there
is no real one-for-one substitution of products and that expecting the same results
from an organic product versus a conventional product will only lead to disappointment.
Similarly, we have a product for mildew control that is extremely popular with organic
growers. The product will clean off the mildew from a leaf that is entirely covered
in grey-coloured fuzz. Underneath that fuzz is a yellow, wilting leaf. The take-
home message here is that when treating any infection or infestation, there is a
point of no return. Killing the pest organism at this point will not magically make
everything okay. You will have a better outcome if you attack the problem early.
Again, you need to have realistic expectations of the product.

## 3. Not educating yourself

It is important that the grower know the plants they are trying to grow and the 
common problems associated with growing that plant. I have had several calls where
the grower will describe to me that they have powdery mildew on their plant and 
need a solution. I recommend a product; they buy it, use it and then call back disappointed,
claiming it did not work. As it turns out, they did not have powdery mildew at all.
Instead, in one case, a caller had downy mildew, a completely different fungus. 
Your doctor cannot correctly diagnose a problem and suggest a remedy for you on 
the phone if you give them bad information. Be sure that you have correctly identified
the problem. Do your homework, and it will save you and everyone involved a lot 
of headaches.

## 4. Not cleaning the tank

If you’ve got a spray tank or nutrient tank that is used for several mixtures of
products, it is imperative that the tank be thoroughly cleaned before adding a new
mixture. This includes properly flushing the lines and adequately rinsing all components
after washing. I get several troubleshooting calls a year from growers who skip 
cleaning the tank and simply go on adding new products. Even small amounts of a 
chemical in the presence of another can cause problems—settling out in the tank,
plant burn, clogging of filters, or deactivation of the main product rendering it
useless or ineffective. 

For example, a helicopter crew from an aerial application company came into the 
office and complained that when our product was added with three others, a black
tar-like substance formed and clogged the filter shutting them down for repairs 
for several hours. I asked our chemist about the mixture, and he said it was impossible
to form a black substance with our product and the three mentioned. We asked the
crew to bring in the filter for analysis. After a week, our chemist had the lab 
results. We had a meeting and walked them through the results. You could see the
data for each of our products and then other separate peaks for zinc and two other
ingredients. By analyzing the results, the zinc and two other items clearly identified
another company’s product. It turns out the crew had been using this zinc product
in the load before and did not wash out the tank. The zinc reacted with our product
to make the sludge. The crew was so amazed that we had the answer and could prove
it. We did not have to tell them again about the importance of cleaning the tank.

## 5. Starting with an inferior product

Sometimes I get calls from customers who have confused us with another manufacturer.
In other words, I get complaint calls for another company’s products. This has been
very educational for me because now I can see what problems competitor products 
are having. In almost every instance, the problem has been due to an inferior product(
i.e. snake oil). These complaints happen with watered-down, low-analysis fertilizer
products that have nothing more to them than dirty water. For example, there is 
a product derived from sea salt that claims to have over 90 elements inside. But,
if you read the analysis, the amounts of each element are less than 1 part per trillion,
nowhere near what a plant needs. In fact, chemists would call these trace levels
barely detectable by today’s analytical instruments. For reference, one part per
trillion is roughly equivalent to one drop in a 15,000-gal. swimming pool. It is
the same for biological products. Some products list over 20 species of beneficial
organisms. The problem is that I have seen some lists where at least six of the 
species listed eat each other and again, the levels of each are so low they do not
make any difference in the soil.

## 6. Improper timing

The timing of an application can make a big difference in the results. Greenhouses
that use bumblebees or other bees as pollinators should not apply products during
the day when bees are active. Some products may damage sensitive flowers or plant
parts if applied during the heat of the day. And biological products will be inactive
below certain temperature thresholds. Most of these problems can be avoided by observing
tip number one: read the label.

## 7. Not checking spray water pH

We all assume that the water that comes out of the tap is clean and suitable for
any purpose. But in many parts of the country, the pH of the water can be very acidic(
low pH) or very caustic (high pH), which can greatly influence the activity of plant
products. I get several calls a year where growers have made a witch’s brew concoction
of products and then tried to adjust the pH of the solution only to have it all 
fall out of the solution into a thick sludge layer on the bottom of the tank. Rule
of thumb: put water in the tank first, adjust the pH and then add other products.
Some products have on their label suggested orders of adding various products, but
invariably adding water first and correcting the pH is step one.

## 8. No jar test

Every grower wants to minimize the cost of application and save effort by applying
as many products as they can in one application. Pretty much all product labels 
recommend that a jar test be performed when mixing up any new combination of products
that haven’t been tried before. The jar test is a simple procedure where you mix
in a jar proportionate amounts of the concentrated products that you intend to combine.
If they are going to react with each other, then it will happen at full concentrations.
This method gives you a quick idea of whether the combination is going to work before
you mix hundreds of gallons and have a problem. Too often, though, growers call 
me after mixing hundreds of gallons of products that were not compatible and assert
that our one product was the one that had a problem with compatibility.

## 9. Not knowing the toxicity of the product

I receive maybe half a dozen phone calls a year from panicked customers and veterinarians
saying that a child or pet has swallowed some of our product. They want to know 
if they should take the child to the hospital or take the pet to the veterinarian,
induce vomiting or call the poison control center. In general, organically certified
products must be formulated from an approved list of ingredients that are “generally
recommended as safe” (GRAS) as defined by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
This means that the product is not likely to be life-threatening. In fact, usually,
little nausea or mild skin burn is all that is involved. So, don’t panic. If you
are exposed and concerned, call your family physician or visit the emergency room
to be checked out.

## 10. Not applying mix in a timely manner

Many products lose effectiveness once they are mixed or “activated”. This is especially
true of biological products. Biological products are usually in a dormant stage 
when you get them, and adding water brings them to life. They need to get into the
environment quickly to reach their food source and optimum environmental conditions
to grow and thrive. If you mix them up in the water and let the tank set for a few
days before application, you might be disappointed with the results. Letting a tank
of material set over a period of time may let suspended products settle out. Also
in this category is the problem of applying expired products. Always use the fresh
products and don’t let them sit around only to degrade.

To view the original paper,** [click here.](https://rd2.co.nz/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/What-not-to-do-When-Applying-Fertilizers.pdf)**