Smart Fertilisers

Development and application of smart fertilisers and plant strengtheners for ecological blueberry cultivation

Formulation of novel slow and controlled release fertilizer by developing new materials and techniques-

The steady increase in population growth and food demand induced the increase of fertilizer application in recent years. However, efficiency of nutrients of current fertilizers (e.g. N, P and K) is not satisfactory and causes many environmental problems such as eutrophication of groundwater, emission of greenhouse-gas and accumulation of toxic elements. Slow and controlled release formulations of fertilizers contain mostly urea from mineral oil and non-biodegradable polymers, which accumulate in the soil and consequently destroy the soil quality and microbial community.

Thus, there is a high demand for innovative formulation strategies to optimally supply plants with nutrients throughout the entire vegetation period by an ecological friendly formulation. The primary aim of our recently started project “Formulation of novel slow and controlled release fertilizer” is to formulate biodegradable, eco-friendly fertilizers adapted to the plant demands by developing new materials and techniques.

The project is funded by “Netzwerk Agrar & Innovation Niedersachsen” (EIP) and three interdisciplinary cooperation partners. The working group of Prof. Anant Patel at HSBI focuses on the formulation and encapsulation of slow- and controlled-release-fertilizers, while the Piccoplant Mikrovermehrungen GmbH (Oldenburg, Germany) as company helps to settle the field test on Vaccinium myrtillus. SeedForward GmbH is responsible for agronomical part and the up scaling.