User:Jbel2512/Agrogeology

Multi-nutrient rock fertilizers
Multi-nutrient rock fertilizers are slow releasing fertilizers that contain micro-nutrients, such as potassium, calcium, and magnesium, as well as smaller amounts of macro-nutrients like phosphorus. The idea is to mimic natural weathering that happens to parent material in the soil over long periods of time.

With industrial fertilizers becoming more of an issue, both for farmers as costs continue to increase and environmentalists with ecological concerns, many people have been searching for alternatives. While using multi-nutrient rock fertilizers can't replace industrial fertilizers, it does have other benefits. Where chemical fertilizers only introduce one or two nutrients, these rock fertilizers introduce a wide range of nutrients to the soil environment. This is important for nutrient deprived soils, such as after heavy agricultural production. Other benefits of these rock fertilizers include raising the pH of the soils and being able to locally source materials from mining waste. This method is not without downsides: it requires a high amount of application, the release rate of nutrients is slow, and as compared to industrial fertilizers, it's not as effective as other agronomic methods.