Revolutionizing Crop Nutrition: Exploring Nano Fertilizers in Agriculture
Bajjurla Jithendar
Department of Agronomy, SOA, Lovely Professional University, Phagwara-144411, Punjab, India.
Rajesh Kumar *
Department of Agronomy, SOA, Lovely Professional University, Phagwara-144411, Punjab, India.
Navjot Rana
Department of Agronomy, SOA, Lovely Professional University, Phagwara-144411, Punjab, India.
*Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Abstract
Nutrients that have been coated or encapsulated in nanomaterials to allow for regulated release and gradual soil dispersion are known as nano fertilizers. These compounds release nutrients more slowly than the commonly used bulk fertilizers, these release nutrients that are required by plants in slow process to prevent the leaching of the nutrients. The macro elements like Nitrogen, Phosphorus and Potassium are very important to plant for growth and development. Secondary nutrients like Sulphur, Calcium and Magnesium play an important role in plants like enzyme production, plant internal development, and to get good yield. Micronutrients play an important role in maintaining plants internally. The bulk application of fertilizers leads to soil, water, and environmental pollution. The application of nano fertilizers as a foliar spray increases the absorption of nutrients and decreases environmental pollution. Nano fertilizers reduce the use of conventional bulk fertilizers, therefore reduces the production cost to growers. These are very slow release in nature so maximum nutrients are absorbed by plants. These are very highly reactive in nature so sometimes causes phytotoxicity when excess amount is applied to plant than the recommended amount. The application of nano fertilizers presents a promising avenue for sustainable agriculture, offering benefits such as controlled nutrient release, improved crop yield, and reduced environmental impact. While challenges such as phytotoxicity and dosage control must be addressed, nano fertilizers hold great potential as a transformative solution to enhance agricultural productivity while mitigating environmental degradation.
Keywords: Nanofertilizer, soil, nutrients, agriculture, conventional fertilizers, nano particles, phytotoxicity