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Chemical Fertilizers Vs. Organic Fertilizers

Arjun Kulkarni
This is the common dilemma faced by most farmers and gardeners today. It's essentially the decision to choose between the tried and true but slow-working fertilizer; one that promises faster growth. Let's understand about this distinction ahead.
Fertilizers are protein supplements for plants, used to enrich the soil with nutrients it does not inherently have. They must be used as deficiency-buster. Inordinate use of fertilizers kills the naturally present soil ingredients. It is important to use them carefully and only as needed.

Understanding the Two Types

Organic fertilizers are made from naturally occurring substances, and include by-products or waste remains of the animals. Dead plants and animal remains are also often used as fertilizers in organic farming. They are naturally chemical-rich and contain high amounts of nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium (NPK).
The main difference between a chemical and an organic fertilizer is that the former comes out of a lab and the organic one comes from living beings. A chemical fertilizer is synthetically prepared to include the vital nutrients that are necessary for the plant's growth process.
All of them contain the normal NPK requirement and any other nutrients as required. Let us compare the two types of fertilizers in the following sections:

Benefits of Organic Fertilizers

Production

They are made by natural process. They take time to generate due to the nature of 'ingredients' but are better when you produce them at a constant rate. Also, you know what's going into it, so you can decide if to add or replace something.

Effect on Biological Activity

Chemical fertilizers kill the microorganisms in the soil. It is one of the advantages of organic fertilizers that they boost microbial activity in the soil. These microbes help in degenerating the complex compounds present in the organic fertilizers.

Effect on Soil

Overuse of fertilizers is often a problem as excess nutrients are neither good for the overall composition of soil nor are they good for the plant. Organic fertilizers may also have a problem of overuse, but it is a slow nutrient releasing material, so the nutrients will anyway take some time to get absorbed.

Effect on Environment

It is one of the greatest advantages of organic fertilizers that they are easily available in nature, in plenty and with almost no adverse effect on the environment. Chemical fertilizers, on the other hand, might have the problem of nitrogen components seeping into groundwater streams or otherwise into the nearest lake or river, causing pollution.

Price

Organic fertilizers are cheaper compared to their chemical counterparts as they are easily available in nature and only require packaging. Chemical fertilizers need extensive research and production work, making them much more expensive.

Benefits of Chemical Fertilizers

Composition

It is custom-made for your requirement. Now if your soil is rich in nitrogen and potassium, what you need is a fertilizer that will take care of the phosphorus deficiency. Chemical fertilizers will give you the option of using phosphorus-rich fertilizers.

Fertility

While organic fertilizers have low NPK ratio, the chemical ones have a very high ratio. So for a very unproductive soil, you need chemical fertilizers as they have an NPK ratio of nearly 60%, while the most fertile organic fertilizers can give only 14%.

Release time

Organic fertilizers may take more time to release nutrients as they need some microbial activity to get them working. Chemical fertilizers get cracking instantly and release essential nutrients into the soil.
It's obvious that using chemical fertilizers in excess will harm your plants, and also the soil and underground water reservoir. They can give optimum results if used moderately. Organic fertilizers, however, prove better in the long run, if your land isn't desperately low on one or more compounds.