Zeolite in Garden Use

Zeolites are added to fertilizers to aid plants' ability to use the nutrients.

Zeolites have become a common and useful additive to garden and agricultural fertilizers. They are prized for their role in both releasing nutrients for plant use and absorbing free nutrient particles so that they do not leach out.

What They Are

Just like tiny sponges, zeolites absorb and re-release nutrients.

Zeolites are naturally occurring porous, alkaline materials. They have a high cation-exchange capacity (CEC). This means that they do not easily lose nutrients to leaching.

Benefits

Nutrients are not leached out or lost to runoff when zeolites are present in the soil.

Traditional water-soluble fertilizers can be rendered ineffective at best and toxic at worst if allowed to leach out into waterways. The addition of zeolites to fertilizers can help keep the nutrients where the plant needs them and reduce or eliminate the loss of free nutrients.

How They work

Zeolites are partularly effective in absorbing nitrogen in its ammonia form.

The porous nature of crystalline zeolites readily absorbs nitrogen in the form of ammonia as well as potassium. When introduced into the soil, these nutrients are released slowly at a pace that the plants can use efficiently. Once in the soil, the zeolites can continue to absorb and re-release nutrients that would have otherwise been lost to leaching.

References

• The Pennsylvania State University: IPSE; Using Zeolites as a Fertilizer; 2009
• Zeolite Australia PTY LTD; Zeolite in Agriculture: More Efficient Use of Nitrogen (N) and Potassium (K) Fertilisers; 2004
• University of California: eScholarship; Yield and Nitrogen Levels of Silage Corn Fertilized With Urea and Zeolite; Alberto C. de Campos Bernardi, et al.; July 3, 2009
• United States Department of the Interior: USGS; Controlled-Release Fertilizers Using Zeolites; Dennis D. Eberl; May 20, 2009
• University of Cambridge: Department of Earth Sciences; Science Programmes in Mineral Sciences; July 8, 2010