Improving Raspberries with ICL Agromaster and Polysulphate

ICL Agronomist Diana Wieczorek explains some of the key benefits of ICL’s Agromaster controlled release fertilizer and the natural mineral fertilizer, Polysulphate.

In the middle of a raspberry field in Poland, ICL Agronomist Diana Wieczorek describes two trials designed to compare two different ICL fertilizer strategies to the standard growers’ practice. The two fertilizers in the spotlight are ICL’s natural mineral Polysulphate fertilizer and ICL’s Agromaster controlled release fertilizer.

Agromaster is such an excellent product you can actually reduce nitrogen application by 20%.

Agromaster and Raspberries

Agromaster’s controlled release of nitrogen (over 2-3 months in this trial) changes according to the soil temperature to match the needs of the growing crop, so more of the applied nitrogen is taken up by the crops, and less is lost to the environment. In fact, Diana explains, trials have shown that Agromaster reduces the nitrogen loss from volatilization by about 50% and from denitrification by about 20%. With more of the applied nitrogen taken up by the plants, it is possible to reduce the application rate by 20% compared to conventional fertilizers.

Agromaster is an excellent product to use as part of a regenerative agriculture strategy thanks to the reduced nitrogen rate.

In this trial, we compare a single application of Agromaster to the farmer’s usual practice, recording any changes to the yield and quality parameters of the raspberry crop.

Polysulphate and Raspberries

The second trial explores the use of ICL’s natural mineral fertilizer, Polysulphate. With a natural, prolonged release rate, this 4-in-1 fertilizer contains magnesium, calcium, sulfur, and potassium and is suitable for conventional and organic farming systems.

Polysulphate is made from the natural mineral polyhalite, which is simply mined, crushed, and packed ready for farms to use.

This trial aims to explore the benefits of the four nutrients, all in sulfate form, to see how they affect the raspberry fruit quality parameters, in particular the calcium and sulfur, which are expected to result in better storage and improved palatability.