Ammonium nitrate - what is it and how to apply in the country

Ammonium nitrate is an inexpensive and convenient to use nitrogen fertilizer. More than a third of its weight is pure nitrogen. Saltpetra is universal, suitable for any crops and soils, so it is often used in the country. Find out what is ammonium nitrate and when it is needed.

Ammonium nitrate and urea are one and the same?

Ammonium nitrate is a fine-grained white powder that dissolves rapidly even in cold water. The substance is combustible, explosive, easily absorbs water vapor from the air and then cracks, becoming hard-to-separate lumps and lumps.

Ammonium nitrate is called ammonium nitrate or ammonium nitrate, but not urea. From the point of view of an ordinary summer resident, far from chemistry and agronomy, urea and nitrate are the same, since both substances are nitrogen fertilizers.

Chemically, these are two different inorganic compounds. Nitrogen in them is contained in different forms, which affects the completeness of its assimilation by plants. In urea, more active substance - 46%, and not 35%, as in saltpeter.

In addition, they act differently on the soil. Ammonium nitrate acidifies the earth, and urea is not. Therefore, it is more appropriate to use these fertilizers on different soils and for different vegetables.

The use of ammonium nitrate in the country is advantageous in that the desired trace element is contained in two types: ammonium and nitrate. Nitrates easily spread along the soil, quickly absorbed by plants, but can be washed out of the root layer by irrigation or melt water. Ammonium nitrogen is released more slowly and serves as a long-term top dressing.

Read more about what urea is and how to correctly introduce it in our article .

Composition of ammonium nitrate

Formula of ammonium nitrate NH4 NO3.

In 100 grams of the substance contains:

• oxygen - 60%;
• nitrogen - 35%;
• hydrogen - 5%.

Application in the country

Fertilizer is suitable for the main filling of the soil during the spring digging and fertilizing of plants during their vegetation. It accelerates the growth of the aboveground parts, increases the yield, adds the amount of protein in the fruits and grains.

On neutral soils, for example, chernozem, and those with a lot of organic matter, nitrate can be used annually. The earth with an acidity index below six during or after the introduction of ammonium nitrate must be additionally lime so that it does not become even more acidic. Usually, in such cases, kilogram of calcareous flour is added per kilogram of fertilizer.

Nitrate can be used in conjunction with phosphorus and potassium fats, but they must be mixed before they are added.

Types of ammonium nitrate

Normal ammonium nitrate has serious drawbacks - it rapidly absorbs water in any form and is explosive. To remove defects, lime, iron or magnesium is added to it. The result is a new fertilizer with an improved formula - lime-ammonium nitrate (IAS).

Fertilizer is non-explosive, quick-dissolving, enriched with calcium, iron or magnesium, useful for agricultural crops. It is more suitable for farming than conventional saltpetre.

IAS does not change the acidity of the soil. Chemically it is an alloy of "ammonia" and dolomite flour.

The fertilizing looks like balls with a diameter of 1-4 mm. It, like all nitrates, is combustible, but not compressed, so it can be stored without special precautions.

Due to the presence of calcium IAS is better suited for acidic soils than the usual "ammonia". Studies have shown that the effectiveness of a stabilized fertilizer is not less than that of a conventional fertilizer, although it has less nitrogen.