Compare The Use Of Manure And Fertilizers in Maintaining Soil Fertility

Certain nutrients are necessary for plants to develop and flourish. Water and sunlight are the most apparent. They also need certain particular nutrients, which they take up from the soil, such as magnesium, nitrate, and others. Planting crops one after the other lowers the productivity of the soil. The soil starts to lack certain minerals that plants need to develop. Subsequently, the soil needs to be refilled with these minerals and nutrients to restore its health and productivity, which will increase plant yield. Therefore, manures and fertilizers are necessary for effective crop development since they help to make up for the fertility of the soil. Here, we’ll examine fertilizers and manure, their benefits, and the fundamental differences between the two.

Manure

Manure is an organic fertilizer. Farmers compost plant and animal manure. This breakdown results in a substance rich in organic materials known as manure. Manure does not contain many nutrients. Instead, it enriches the soil with humus (an organic component), making it productive. This improves the physical properties of the soil, allowing for greater moisture retention and aeration. Furthermore, because manure is composed entirely of organic components, it does not damage the environment. In actuality, decomposing garbage to make manure reduces waste on farms.

What are the types of manure?

The manure can be categorized according to the kind of biological waste material used.

Farmyard manure

Farmyard Manure or FYM is a form of farm-produced manure. It is a degraded mixture of bovine dung and urine, as well as waste and organic residues such as roughage or feed. The excrement from the cattle shed is collected every day and dumped in a pit for microorganisms to breakdown in. Farmyard manure contains nitrogen, phosphate, and potassium. 

Compost

Compost is a mixture of decomposed organic matter that is derived from many sources such as vegetable waste, sewage, and rubbish. Composting process involves breaking down of the mixture into pits.

Vermicomposting

Vermicomposting is a process of degrading organic waste that uses earthworm ingestion. Vermicomposting uses two species of earthworms: Drawida Willisi and Dichogaster Bolani.

Green Manure

For producing green manure, one should first sow seeds and then cultivate crops that grow quickly, such as cowpea, horse gramme, guar, and sunhemp. The rapidly growing crop is then plowed back into the ground. Apart from providing the soil with organic matter, nitrogen, and phosphorus, green manure also protects it from leaching and erosion.

What is fertilizer?

Fertilizers are either synthetic or organic substances that are mixed into soil to provide nutrients for plants. They come in both inorganic and organic in nature. Chemical fertilizers doing the job of preventing insects and pests from feeding on plants by doing the job of pesticides as well. Their action mechanism mainly includes providing the plants and crops with the vital nutrients to enable them to reach their maximum potential and to grow more quickly than they could through natural processes. 

Farmers usually opt for fertilizers as they are generally very affordable. They are relatively easy to buy and help in the faster growth of crops. Fertilizers also increase the produce of a farm. The plants look healthier and greener when we use fertilizers.

What are the types of fertilizer?

Fertilizers are a common source of plant nutrients. Fertilizers supplies the crops with nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium. They are being used to boost good vegetative growth, which promotes health of the crops. Fertilizers should be used in a scientifical way, with appropriate dosages along with pre- and post-application precautions. Below are the types of fertilizer and its nutritional availability, along with some regular examples:

• Potassic fertilizer 
• Nitrogenous fertilizer 
• Complex fertilizer 
• Phosphatic fertilizer 

What is the significant differences fertilizers and manures

Aspect	Manure	Fertilizer
Source	Natural decay of plants and animals	Manufactured compounds
Absorption by crops	Slow	Rapid
Nutrient content	Relatively low	High (nitrogen, phosphate, potassium)
Contribution to soil	Adds humus	Does not add humus
Production	Naturally on fields	Manufactured in factories
Impact on soil	Limited improvement in physical properties	Improves physical condition of soil
Impact on plants	Generally not harmful in large amounts	Can be harmful if used in excess

Both Manures and fertilizers are used to promote soil fertility and crop growth, although they differ in several aspects. Below is a list of the key differences between manures and fertilizers:

• Manure is produced naturally from dead plants and animal decay.
• Fertilizers are made of compounds that are not normally present in nature.

• Manure is absorbed by the crops slowly.
• Fertilizer is easily absorbed by the crops.

• Manure is not so much nutrient-rich.
• Fertilizer is rich with compounds nitrogen, phosphate, and potassium, all of which are essential soil nutrients.

• Manure contributes a considerable amount of humus to the soil.
• Fertilizer has no humus-producing properties.

• Manure is prepared naturally on the fields.
• Fertilizer is made at factories.

• The soil’s physical properties is not greatly improved by manure.
• The physical condition of the soil is improved by fertilizer.

• If used in large amount, manure has no harmful impact on the plant or soil.
• Fertilizer usage has a negative impact on both the soil and the plant if used in excess.

What are the things that we should remember regarding manure and fertilizer usage:

• Fertilizers are full of nutrients, water-soluble chemicals that are used to increase the fertility of soil.
• Manure is defined as biodegradable organic matter that is mixed into the soil.
• Organic fertilizer comes from natural resources. They are also known as manure or biofertilizers. Bacteria, cyanobacteria, and fungi is what you shall find in biological fertilizers.
• Green manure is also quite cheap since it can be made from organic material that is available in the environment.
• Manure contains a good chunk of organic matter, which helps to improve structure of the soil. This includes increasing the ability of sandy soil to retain water.  
• Animal waste is one of the most tried and tested DIY fertilizers for vegetable crops.
• For decades, farmers and gardeners have used chicken, horse, and cow dung to fertilize the land.
• Fertilizers degrade soil by gradually increasing its acidity.

What are things that are similar between manure and fertilizer

Provides nutrition

The crops all the essential nutrients they require from fertilizer and manure. They have the vital nutrients like potassium, phosphorus, and nitrogen, all of which are important for the growth and development of plants. Fertilizers and manure supply these nutrients to the soil, which ensures that plants have enough to grow to their full potential.

Improves soil quality 

By using fertilizer and manure, the overall condition and quality of the soil can be enhanced. They improve the structure of the soil, ability to hold water, and its ability to retain nutrients by adding organic matter. This improves the fertility of the soil and increases its potential to sustain the growth of crops.

Boosts growth of crops

To perform their physical functions, the crops get the nutrients they need for from fertilizers and manure, thereby encouraging growth. Both encompasses chemicals nutrients that help plants perform a variety of tasks, such as photosynthesis, root growth, blooming, and fruiting. The crops grow healthier, and stronger, and yield due to it.

Increases production of crops

Production of crops can increase by using fertilizer and manure. Both compounds help in the prevention of nutritional deficits and the promotion of ideal growth circumstances by providing plants with the nutrients they need. Higher yields and increased crop productivity are the end results of this.

Benefits of sustainability

Benefits for sustainability include those related to manure and certain fertilizer kinds, such as organic or slow-release fertilizers. Since manure is a byproduct of the waste of animals, it is a renewable natural resource. In agricultural systems, it aids in waste reduction and nutrient recycling. Analogously, slow-release or organic fertilizers come from natural sources and release nutrients over time, which lowers the chance of pollution from nutrient runoff and the environment.

Recycling of nutrients

In the agricultural sector, fertilizer and manure both contribute to the nutrient cycle. By reintroducing necessary elements to the soil, manure recycling closes the nutrient loop by using animal waste as a source of nutrients. Fertilizers offer concentrated nutrients that support the natural nutrition cycle, even if they aren’t obtained from organic sources.

While manure and fertilizer have different origins and compositions, they have the same targets of supplying nutrients to plants, improving soil fertility, encouraging plant development, increasing crop yields, and adding to sustainable agriculture practices. Understanding the commonalities between these compounds can help farmers and gardeners make more educated decisions regarding soil fertility management.