CONTROLLED-RELEASE FERTILIZER A BMP IN TOMATO PRODUCTION. Monica Ozores-Hampton and Luther Carson

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1 CONTROLLED-RELEASE FERTILIZER A BMP IN TOMATO PRODUCTION Monica Ozores-Hampton and Luther Carson

2 CAN WE USE CONTROLLED RELEASE FERTILIZERS (CRF) IN TOMATO PRODUCTION? Monica Ozores-Hampton, Eric Simonne, Kelly Morgan, Kent Cushman, Shinjiro Sato, Chris Albright, Eric Waldo, and Amir Polak

3 FRESH MARKET TOMATO PRODUCTION IN FLORIDA Florida ranks first nationally in fresh market tomatoes production with 29, acres planted and depending of the season with a farm value of $4-6 million. 7% of the tomato production is in the Southwest Florida area: Collier and Manatee County in sandy soils susceptible to nutrient leaching.

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5 FLORIDA VEGETABLES BMP S The Federal EPA and Florida DEP recognize the importance of water quality through the enforcement: 1. Federal Clean Water Act of FL Surface Water Improvement and Management (SWIM) Act of FL Restoration Act of Florida DACS authority to develop BMP BMP manual ( 26 A BMP must be technically feasible, economically viable, socially acceptable, and based on sound science. The BMP program is voluntary Presumption of compliance by NOI

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7 (BMP) NITROGEN RATES Grower Standard 293 ± 38 lbs of N/acre (24) 244 ± 44 lbs of N/acre (214) UF/IFAS Recommendation & BMP 2 lbs/acre pre-plant plus.. Controlled-Release Fertilizer (CRF) a BMP (No recommendation)

8 WHAT IS CONTROLLED-RELEASE FERTILIZER? Controlled release-fertilizer (CRF) are soluble fertilizers (SF) encapsulated in a polymer, resin, or a hybrid of sulfur coated occluded in a polymer coating. Several factors influence N release from CRFs including: 1. Soil temperature and moisture 2. Material coated (Polyon or Resin) 3. Coating thickness

9 CRF MANUFACTURES Manufacturers measure CRF release duration as 75% N release at a constant temperature (e.g., 68 to 77 C). Recorded as high as 14 F during the fall under white polyethylene mulch Accelerated N release may be expected during the fall season Increased electrical conductivity, elevated ammonium concentration Loss of CRF benefits

10 OBJECTIVES 1. Evaluate N release from CRFs buried pouches method (real-time field) in seepage-irrigated tomato mulched beds. 2. Evaluate selected CRF N and rate plus SNF in a hybrid fertilizer system in seepage-irrigated tomato mulched beds.

11 MATERIAL AND METHODS

12 CRFS POUCHES CRFs Abbreviation Release duration (Days) Grade (N-P-K) Manufacturer PC U PCU Agrium AT PC U PCU Agrium AT PC NPK PCNPK Agrium AT PC U PCU Agrium AT PC NPK PCNPK Agrium AT PSC U PSCU Everris NA RC NPK RCNPK Everris NA PC N FL JCAM Agri Co. PC N FL JCAM Agri Co. PC KN FL Florikan ESA PC M FLMix 1 to Florikan ESA Fall Mix 1 M1 1 to Florikan ESA Fall Mix 15 M15 1 to Florikan ESA Fall Mix 2 M2 1 to Florikan ESA

13 FIELD CRF POUCH STUDY Fall 211 and 213 tomato season Randomized Complete Block Design, 4 replication Pouch: nylon mess screen (5x5 inches) with 3.5 g N and placed 4 deep in the bed and collected at: 7, 14, 28, 42, 6, 9, 12, 15. After samples are collected, they will be dried at ambient temperature. Remaining N in the prill will be measured using combustion. Non-linear regression and R 2 Percent N release = a (a-b) * e ct Days to 75% N release

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15 Treatment (CRF/SNF) Bottom mix Hot mix Total (lbs/acre) SF CRF SF CRF SF CRF Total Grower UF/IFAS /5 (75% IFAS) /5 (1% IFAS) /5 (125% IFAS) CRF= Florikcote mix which was NH 4 NO 3 and urea, coated (28N-P-K, 1 and 14 day release) and coated KNO 3 (12N-P-4K, 18 day release) plus all P and micronutrients. Applied as a bottom mix or cold mix

16 CULTURAL PRACTICES Experimental design RCBD, 4 replications Bed spacing 6 feet Bed width 3 inches Plant spacing 2 inches Fumigant Methyl bromide/chloropicrin (5:5), 75 lb/acre Mulch White virtually impermeable film, 1.5 mil Variety BHN 726 Planted plot length 3 feet x 3 beds = 9 feet Harvest plot length 16.7 feet (1 plants)

17 DATA COLLECTION Bed temperature 1 cm deep Watchdog data logger (Spectrum Technologies Inc., Plainfield Ill.) Leaf tissue N - seven times Combustion using a NA25 C/N Analyzer (Thermo Quest-CE Instruments, Waltham, MA) Yield Three harvests, graded using USDA standards Postharvest Fruit firmness - Texture analyzer) and color (Model C125EB; Mitutoyo, Corp.; Aurora, ILL.) Post-season soil samples- Soil and CRF prill: Nitrate, ammonium, urea Analysis of Variance, Duncan s Multiple Range Test 5% level

18 RESULTS AND DISCUSSIONS

19 Soil temperature ( C) Rainfall (cm) Soil temperature ( C) Rainfall Average Air Maximum Soil Average soil Minimum Soil Rainfall (cm)

20 N release (%) N release (%) N release (%) N release (%) 1 N release (%) PCU RCNPK PCU ,dotted PCU PCNPK12 PCU18 1% 3 d 3% in 46 d , solid FL1 6 FL FL M M168 M DAP Days 8 1after placement 2 4 (DAP) DAP N release (%) PSCU PCU18.99 PCNPK FL FL FLmix 14 Days after placement DAP

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22 PETIOLE SAP NITRATE CONCENTRATION Petiole sap NO 3 -N (ppm) NS NS NS NS NS NS Grower IFAS CRF1/SNF5 CRF15/SNF5 CRF2/SNF5 IFAS Upper IFAS Lower NS Days after transplant CRF= Controlled-release fertilizer SNF= Soluble nitrogen fertilizer

23 TOMATO YIELDS Treatments (CRF/SNF) First Harvest Season Total (lbs/acre) Xlg Lg Med Total Xlg Lg Med Total Cull (25-lb boxes/acre) Grower b 1,83b 35b UF/IFAS a 2,94a 547a 1/ b 2,175a 375b 15/ b 2,51a 424b 25/ b 2,53a 549a P value Sig. NS NS NS NS NS NS *** * *** Grower 61b 91-71cd 1,59 1, , UF/IFAS 496b d 1,16 1, , /5 786a ab 1, , /5 88a a 1, , /5 627b bc 1,156 1,, , P value Sig. ** NS - ** NS NS NS NS NS

24 RESIDUAL N IN SOIL AND CRF PRILLS Treatment (CRF/SNF) Soil (kg ha -1 ) CRF prills (kg ha -1 ) N release (lbs/acre) NH 4+ - N NO 3- -N Urea-N NH 4+ -N NO 3 N Urea-N Total N (%) Grower standard 4.3b 12.8a.b UF/IFAS 2.3b 14.2a.1b /5 4.3b 2.4b.8b /5 4.2b 1.7b.4b /5 7.6a 7.9ab 2.3a P value Sig. ** ** ** NS NS NS NS - Contrast linear (CRF) Sig. * ns * ns ns ns * Grower standard b UF/IFAS b / b / a / a P value Sig. NS NS * NS NS NS NS - Contrast linear (CRF) Sig. ns ns * ns ns * ns -

25 POSTHARVEST EVALUATION Treatment (lbs/acre) Color stage Firmness (1 to 6) Deformation (mm) -- Grower standard 5.c c 2.1 UF/IFAS 5.5b bc 2.2 1/5 6.a c /5 5.c ab 2.2 2/5 6.a a 2.2 P value Sig. *** NS *** NS

26 1. CONCLUSIONS In the fall due to high soil temperatures CRF-N resulted in release duration reductions of 23% to 88% as compared to the manufacturers stated release. So (fall), a CRF NPK 12 days 75% of the N will be release in 57 days (53% reduction), but the desire N release should be 89 days after placement (3 weeks fumigation + 8 weeks after transplant). Mixing CRF N release time, sources, technologies will achieved the desire release time. N release (%) PCNPK

27 2. CONCLUSIONS Hybrid Fertilizer Program: CRF 1 and 15 lbs/acre (bottom mix) plus 5 lbs/acre of SNF (15 to 2 lb/acre total N) will allows you an N reduction of up to 25% maintain yields with no impact in postharvest fruit quality. Thus, CRF can be a considered a technically feasible fertilization practice, socially acceptable, and based on sound science. However, CRF did not reduced potential N loss to the environment criteria to be considered a BMP for seepage produced tomato in south Florida. Also, need to be economically viable!!!.

28 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS Agrium Florikan Gargiulo, Inc. Luther Carson Aline and Kiran