Testimonials

Successfully taking the plunge

Beerwah grower, Leonard Smith, demonstrated his strong commitment to using EASY Liquids® fertiliser range on his property north of Brisbane when he recently installed nine liquid storage tanks.

Leonard has installed a total of nine liquid storage tanks on his farm at Beerwah, including one 23,000 L tank and three 13,500 L tanks for storing EASY N fertiliser, three 23,000 L tanks and one 13,500 L tank for storing EASY KS® fertiliser and one 13,500 L tank for storing EASY Cal® fertiliser.

Leonard said he had not looked back after successfully plunging into liquid fertilisers for his strawberry, pineapple and cucumber crops.

“Fertiliser products, such as EASY N, EASY KS and EASY Cal, definitely return far better results than granular fertilisers,” he said.

“Making the switch to liquid fertilisers was like making the transition to an automated fertiliser system distinguished by superior precision and accuracy.

“We simply adjust our liquid fertiliser applications based on the results of the soil and plant tissue sampling that we perform on a weekly basis,” he said.

Leonard said he was tempted to try liquid fertilisers on his fruit and vegetable crops after seeking advice from Coochin Creek Fruitgrowers Cooperative Association consultant Scott Pierantozzi and Noel Matthews from Incitec Pivot Fertilisers.

“Together we weighed up the benefits available from the EASY Liquids range, such as the ability to exactly meet the crop’s nutrient needs identified by analysis, rapid uptake by plants and reduced fertiliser application rates.

“In accordance with our cost-saving calculations, we found that 30 L of EASY N can deliver the same benefit to crops as 50 kg of granular urea,” he said.

Leonard said using liquid fertiliser had reaped rewards in all three of his fruit and vegetable crops.

“Applying EASY Liquids to our strawberry plants significantly enhanced the quality of the bushes and the size of the fruit they produced.”

He said the liquid fertiliser applied to his 40 hectare strawberry crop had also enabled production of firmer fruit.

“The strawberries were much firmer after applying EASY N because the urea traditionally used in past seasons supplied a lot of nitrogen, which we found can make the fruit go soft,” he said.

Leonard added that the EASY Liquids range maintained nutrient levels on an even keel throughout the strawberry crop’s six month life cycle, while more precisely regulating the release of nutrients for rapid uptake by plants.

“The strawberry crop responded much quicker to a liquid supply of nutrients that was trickle fed into the root system,” he said.

Leonard said liquid fertilisers had also helped his pineapple and Lebanese cucumber crops to flourish.

“Liquid fertiliser is ideal for growing pineapples because it permits us to use much less fertiliser and ultimately save money, which is a high priority for this low return crop that can take up to three years to harvest.”

He said EASY Liquids had promoted optimum performance in the Lebanese cucumber crop grown in a glasshouse on his family property.

“EASY Cal fertiliser was an ideal fit with the fertigation system required for supplying nutrients to the indoor cucumber crop.

“Using liquid fertilisers solved the problem of dripper blockages that often result when using granulated fertilisers in the system.” he said.

Following the success achieved in his strawberry, pineapple and cucumber crops, Leonard said he planned to treat his lychee crop with liquid fertiliser when the trees reach maturity.

Popular demand for liquid fertilisers

Coochin Creek Fruitgrowers Cooperative Association consultant, Scott Pierantozzi, said popular demand from the organisation’s 600 grower shareholders had inspired use of liquid fertilisers in the local area.

“There was significant demand from growers because liquid fertiliser products have proven to be more cost-effective compared with soluble fertilisers,” Scott said.

Growers were also attracted to the ease of handling and rapid nutrient uptake by plants when using liquid fertilisers.

“A lot of fruit growers in the area are middle-aged, so easy handling becomes important as they can find it difficult to handle granular fertiliser in bulk.”

Scott said liquid fertilisers, such as EASY N, EASY KS and EASY Cal, were ideally suited to the nutrient needs of the area’s two main fruit growing enterprises, strawberries and pineapples.

“Every local grower who has used EASY Liquids in their strawberry crops has noticed a huge difference in the size and quality of the fruit produced.

“Similarly, most local pineapple growers have reported definite improvements in the structure and health of their plants after applying Incitec Pivot Fertilisers’ liquid fertilisers,” he said.

Scott said the Cooperative will install a 13,000 litre tank for storing EASY Cal on-site to cater for the liquid requirements of its strawberry growing shareholders.

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