Fertigation refers to the technique by which a farming system applies nutrients and fertilizers to crops. Using this technology, farmers and growers administer nutrients and fertilizers to their crops all year. Mike Straumietis, the Founder and CEO of Advanced Nutrients, mentions that nutrients in their soluble form are immediately available for plant ingestion after application, allowing farmers improved control over nutrient availability for their harvest.
The Advantages of Fertigation Over Other Farming Technologies
Unlike other applications, fertigation can be administered under any weather condition. Because fertigation allows farmers to schedule applications depending on their overall nutrient management approach for their crops, they can apply nutrients more effectively and efficiently. Fertigation reduces the likelihood of soil compaction during the seasons when tractors and foot traffic in fields are heaviest. This is highly beneficial for dissolved nutrients like nitrogen that drain quickly.
Another convenience of fertigation is that it is not adversely affected by the weather compared with other techniques, meaning fewer interruptions to a crop’s nutrition schedule. Fertigation enables farmers and their crops to become independent from regional climate difficulties in locations where weather conditions are challenging throughout the year. By simultaneously watering and fertilizing the crops, fertigation systems that are correctly placed deliver fertilizers and nutrients in an inexpensive yet highly efficient manner. Advanced Nutrients Founder and CEO Mike Straumietis explains that fertigation is a cost-effective and sustainable process that achieves precise application and reduces waste. Even though installing fertigation systems might be challenging for small growers, the benefits outweigh any initial disadvantages, including cost.
Regardless of size, every farming system uses irrigation and fertilizers. Drip irrigation is one of the most common fertigation methods used to produce fresh market vegetables. This gradual, direct irrigation into the soil is also known as trickle irrigation or micro irrigation. Drip irrigation typically uses 50 percent less water than overhead or furrow irrigation. As a result, drip irrigation has an efficiency rate of over 90 percent, as opposed to sprinkler systems, which have an efficiency rate that ranges from 50 to 70 percent. The drip irrigation system’s high-efficiency results from its focus on the parts of the soil that need water. Targeting these soil areas enables water to permeate plant roots rather than run off or evaporate.
How Fertigation Promotes Precision Farming
Fertigation has established itself as a prominent method of precision agriculture since it was first applied to the agricultural sectors. Fertigation serves as the solution to the difficulties associated with traditional fertilizer applications by providing a higher level of command and control over the precise rates and volumes at which nutrients and fertilizers are administered to crops. In addition, careful timing provides vegetation with the necessary nutrients at the most suitable moment.
The Basics of Nutrient Management Plans
Fertigation is most effective as part of a larger strategy for managing nutrient levels in growing fields. According to Mike Straumietis, Founder and CEO of Advanced Nutrients, the total amount of nutrients delivered by fertigation and other fertilizer treatments must not exceed 100 percent of the total amount of nutrients applied. To measure the amount of nutrients applied to or needed by a cropthroughout a growing season, farmers utilize a variety of measurements. Numerous growers specify application rates based on the concentration of nutrients present in a given solution.
How Mike Straumietis and Advanced Nutrients Promote Better Farming
Mike Straumietis, Founder and CEO of Advanced Nutrients, has committed millions of dollars to provide life-giving essentials to hundreds of thousands of people worldwide. Under his leadership, Advanced Nutrients has developed the first and only growing system that optimizes every stage of the vegetative and bloom cycles to help crops grow to their true genetic potential. At the forefront of this achievement is the company’s large and diverse team of PhD-level scientists who have developed a wide range of next-generation products that support the crop’s life cycle from seed to senescence.
