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Fertilizer Calculation Worksheet
Background Review
The fertilizer elements are present in various compounds (e.g., urea, ammonium nitrate, phosphoric acid, calcium phosphate, potassium chloride). The composition by percentage of each of the ‘big 3’ elements present in the fertilizer must be stated on the bag and is referred to as the fertilizer guarantee , which expresses each of elemental N, phosphate, and potash as a percentage of the contents. For example, suppose your fertilizer has the numbers 10-5-8 (an unconventional fertilizer but useful as an example). This fertilizer contains 10% (1st number) elemental nitrogen, 5% (2nd^ number) available phosphate (P2O5) and 8% (3rd^ number) water soluble potash (K2O). The remainder of
the material is comprised of the other elements in the compounds and filler. The filler may be ground limestone to offset the acid potential of the fertilizer, along with some inert material. The filler facilitates spreading of small amounts of nutrients over a large area.
In order to make sure that those values are understood, we will calculate the amount of elemental N, P and K in a bag of fertilizer.
Calculate the weight of the three elements (N, P, K) contained in a 100 pound bag of 10-5-8 fertilizer.
We begin with N, the easier calculation.
The 100 lb of fertilizer is ____% N.
- Convert 10% to a decimal. _____. (fill in the answer)
- Compute the weight of N in the 100 lb bag of 10-5-8: = 100 lb * ______ = ____ lb N in a 100 lb bag of 10-5-
Check your answer. You should have 10 lb of N in the 100 lb bag of 10-5-8 fertilizer.
P is more difficult, so we move on to the next page
Elemental P requires another step The guarantee is expressed as phosphate (P2O5). We need to find out how much P is
in P2O5. The next step shows you that P2O5 is 43.7% P.
Atomic weight: P = 31 O = 16
P 2 : two of them so 2 X 31 = 62g
O 5 : five of them so 5 X 16 = 80g Total weight for P 2 O 5 142g
The proportion of P in P 2 O 5 is [62 / 142] = 0. 437
Now we can calculate elemental P.
The 100 lb bag of 10-5-8 fertilizer is ____% P 2 O 5 , which is ____ lb P 2 O 5 So the amount of P in that bag is 0.437 * 5 lb = ______ lb P in the 100 lb bag of 10-5-8 fertilizer
Check your answer- You should have 2.185 lb of P in the 100 lb bag of 10-5-8.
Elemental K requires a step similar to P The guarantee is expressed as potash (K2O). We need to find out how much K is in K2O. The next step shows you that K2O is 83.0% K.
Atomic weight: K = 39 O = 16
K 2 : two of them so 2 X 39 = 78g O: one of them so 1 X 16 = 16g Total weight for K 2 O = 94g
The percentage of K in K 2 O is [78 / 94] * 100 = 83.0% (or 0.830 as a proportion)
Now we can calculate elemental K. The 100 lb bag of 10-5-8 fertilizer is ____% K 2 O, which is ____ lb K 2 O
So the amount of K in that 8 lb of K 2 O = .830 * 8 lb = ______ lb K
Check your answer- You should have 6.64 lb of K in the 100 lb bag of 10-5-8.
Answers to questions above.
If you add 2 oz of 33-15-20 to a single tree, (a) how much elemental P did you apply, Answer = 0.1311 oz (b) how much elemental K did you apply? Answer = 0.332 oz
If you use a 46-0-0 fertilizer, how much do you need to provide 2 oz of N? Answer = 4.35 oz
The quick take – the 30 second version of fertilizer guarantee:
First Number - N itrogen percentage of the fertilizer
Second Number - P 2 O 5 phosphate percentage; multiply by 0.437 to get P
Third Number - K 2 O potash percentage; multiply by 0.83 to get K
