On farms with depleted soils, local application of starter fertilizers is the only option for rapid initial plant development. Latifundist.com writes about this in the blog of Volodymyr Mirnenko, brand manager of the Pötinger Ukraine company Apply fertilizers and not go broke. How to increase the efficiency of starting feeding.

For farms with depleted soils, POETTINGER offers the TERRASEM 1000 DZ line — universal sowing complexes with simultaneous fertilizer application. The advantages of this technique include:

- Reducing the number of passes on the field. Pre-sowing treatment, introduction of starter fertilizers, reverse compaction, sowing and sealing of moisture in one pass.

 - Rapid initial development of plants. Local placement of fertilizers in the immediate vicinity of the root system.

 - Flexibility in applying fertilizers. A bunker under pressure makes it possible to redirect air flows and cross them. Therefore, you can apply fertilizers between rows, in a row or distribute them in a 50/50 ratio.

Phosphorous fertilizers are not mobile in the soil. Potash fertilizers move down 1 cm with every 100 mm of precipitation. That is, we can also consider them as almost immobile. Their consumption requires direct contact with the root system. When spreading during the pre-sowing treatment, phosphorus and potassium fertilizers will be evenly distributed throughout the depth of the treatment, that is, a significant part of them will be above the root system and will remain inaccessible. For these elements, local introduction into the zone of root development will be definitely more effective.

Інша історія з азотними добривами, які легко мігрують в ґрунтовому розчині. Для визначення оптимальної системи внесення азотних добрив на пшениці в 2012 році Віденський аграрний університет BOKU провів дослідження трьох видів добрив (Вапняково аміачна селітра 27%N, Карбамід 46%N та ENTEC 26%N — продукт з амонійною та нітратною формами азоту + стабілізатор амонію) та чотирьох схем внесення (нас будуть цікавити тільки дві — внесенні одноразово 120 кг ДР врозкид та локально в міжряддя).

The graph shows the relative yield. For 100%, the yield was taken when applying 120 kg of DR nitrogen in the spread in the form of calcareous ammonium nitrate. The relatively low yield when applying urea is explained by its toxicity. This type of fertilizer should be applied in smaller amounts and in several doses at different phases of wheat development. If you switch from spreading to local application of starter fertilizers, the expected yield increase will be +10-20%, depending on the type of fertilizers.

Sowing complexes with simultaneous application of fertilizers have a more complex structure (more seeders, more coulters, etc.) and a higher cost. But on unbalanced soils, a 10-20% increase in yield in a short period of time covers the difference in cost.