Organic vs Chemical Fertilizers: Pros & Cons

The plant gets its food in two ways. One is organic, and the other is chemical fertilizer. The organic fertilizer for plants are such as compost, animal poop, yard waste etc. Chemical fertilizer means nitrogen, potassium, ammonium, etc, which are customized. Organic fertilizer makes the soil healthy for a long time instead, and chemical fertilizers help in quick growth but do not help the soil as much.

Before proceeding further, it’s important to understand the basic differences between Organic vs Chemical Fertilizers and how they impact plant tissues and crop yields.

Advantages and Disadvantages of Organic vs Chemical Fertilizers

Chemical fertilizers are synthetic compounds designed to increase crop yield that contain a mix of ammonium, nitrogen, phosphorus, and other nutrients. There are two ways in which they work on enhancing plant growth.

●     Provide structural support in the growth of the plant.

●     work well in alkaline soil and adjust the pH of the soil to facilitate crop production in a better manner.

 Let’s discuss the pros and cons of chemical fertilizers.

Synthetic fertilizers Advantages

Nutrient specific

Control the nitrogen, potassium and phosphorus content of the soil in a customized manner.

Quick nutrient release 

Release nutrients in a faster manner that accelerates plant growth. This helps them address any nutrient related deficiencies and optimize plant growth.

Better solubility 

They are water-soluble and are absorbed quickly by plants.which helps in rapid growth by developing a strong root-system.

Gradual-release

Unlike their organic versions, synthetic fertilizers are controlled-featured and covered by a semipermeable membrane that gradually releases nutrients in the soil.

Readily Available

Chemical fertilizers are available in several varieties of liquid, granular, powder, and other forms in large amounts that makes it convenient to procure and use them.

Unfortunately, their ready availability leads to their overuse at times, which impacts soil quality and crop output.

Some of the chief problems associated with synthetic fertilizers are

Synthetic Fertilizers Disadvantages

Risk of over-fertilisation 

Excess fertilizer use can increase the salt content of the soil that can kill the essential microorganisms. 

Failure to balance plant and root growth

With chemical fertilizers, the excess plant growth is sometimes accompanied with insufficient root supply to circulate water and nutrients throughout the system.

Groundwater pollution

Excess potassium from the fertilizers can leach into groundwater and surrounding water bodies, degrading its quality.

Deplete the soil quality in the long run.

The excess nitrogen amount in synthetic fertilizers can give rise to stimulate excessive microorganism growth that deplete the soils existing organic matter.

Fertilizer burn

Excess use of the nutrients in fertilizers damages the ability of the plant to photosynthesise and cellularly respire, resulting in wilting, curling and defoliation of the plant.

A word about organic fertilizers

Organic fertilizers are compounds derived from natural resources like organic compost, cattle manure, poultry droppings and domestic sewage that can maintain and improve plant nutrition.

They contain naturally available mineral resources and micronutrients that work on the soil structure to promote leaf foliage and plant growth in a natural manner.

Studies have shown that continuous use of organic fertilizers can reverse the soil damage caused by chemical fertilizers.

Some of the main advantages of organic fertilizers are 

Natural fertilizer Advantages

Increases soil fauna feeding activity

Use of organic fertilizers increases the microbial activity of the soil that improves its nutrient mineralisation and helps the crop nutrients avail them in a better manner.

Increases soil porosity 

The use of organic manures increases the soil water holding capacity and porosity, which helps the roots absorb water, air, and nutrients in a better manner.

Increases the pH of the soil

Soil pH influences the availability of nutrients to plants and their reactivity with each other. Through increased soil pH, organic fertilizers increase nutrient reuptake along with the quality of yield.

Natural fertilizer Disadvantages

Take a longer time

Unlike their synthetic counterparts, natural fertilizers are slower because the components are required to decompose before they can release nutrients in the soil.

What do studies say

In a study conducted to observe the impact of organic vs chemical fertilizers on tomato plants, researchers observed a higher yield with the use of chemical fertilizers. They further found out that the continuous use of chemical fertilizers degrades soil quality along with resulting in the accumulation of heavy metals in plant tissues.

In excess use, chemical fertilizer degrades the protein content and carbohydrate quality along with giving rise to over fertilized soils that make the resulting crops more vulnerable to insects and diseases.

Chemical fertilizers when used for short periods can greatly contribute to increasing agricultural productivity. But in the long run their negative qualities can weaken soil quality and increase production costs for cultivators along with exerting a strain on food security.

Now you know about Organic vs Chemical Fertilizers. You may also like to read our article comprehensive buyers guide for zero turn lawn mowers.