Abstract

In recent years there has been much discussion regarding the use of homogeneous granular fertilizers vs. blended granular fertilizers on turfgrass. The common thought being that homogeneous fertilizers will provide a more uniform coverage when delivered from a rotary spreader than blended fertilizers. The objective of this study was to determine the relative particle dispersion of seven commonly used turfgrass fertilizers delivered from a rotary spreader. Seven complete fertilizer materials were tested: three homogeneous and four blended. The test procedure involved the spreading of fertilizer over a series of specially designed collection trays. A chemical and physical analysis was conducted on the material collected from each tray. Considering all fertilizers tested, there was relatively uniform dispersion of particles in the 1-mm or greater size range. Particle sizes smaller than 1-mm showed less uniform distribution across the effective spread pattern. For all fertilizers, P showed the greatest CV(5.O) along the spreader swath, followed by K (4.0) and N (1.6). The lowest overall CV (N, P, K combined) was exhibited by a homogeneous fertilizer (1.2), but was closely followed by a blended fertilizer (CV 1.6). Fertilizers having a small particle size range had the lowest overall CV. This study showed that when considering uniformity of fertilizer dispersion from a rotary spreader, a uniform particle size is more important than whether the fertilizer is homogeneous or physically blended.

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