What is the purpose of biofertilizers?

Biofertilizers are organic fertilizers that provide plants with the nutrients necessary for their development, at the same time improving soil quality and helping to achieve a more optimal and natural microbiological environment.

Benefits of biofertilizers

Biofertilizers are essential for organic farming, as they help to improve agricultural production and achieve great harvests without harming the environment at any time and following guidelines that are totally respectful of the soil, nature and sustainable development.

How do biofertilizers work?

Biofertilizers are made from bacteria or fungi whose characteristics allow plants to acquire nutrients to improve their performance. They do this in a natural way, providing them with beneficial elements, mainly nitrogen and phosphorus.

The microorganisms that make up biofertilizers transform atmospheric nitrogen into organic nitrogen and deliver it to the plants. The process is natural, since elements are extracted from the soil itself and after mass production are returned to the plants and the soil itself. This closes a cycle in which no artificial or harmful products are involved.

Types of biofertilizers

Plant extracts

Those obtained from plant macerates contain natural nutrients that are released quickly.

Fermentation leachates

They are obtained after the fermentation processes of some organic fertilizers (compost and worm humus).

Mycorrhiza

It is a natural fertilization system. Fungi of the mycorrhizal genus or mycorrhizae are mutually beneficial associations between them and the plants. On the one hand, the mycorrhizal fungi envelop the plant roots and receive sugars from them, and on the other hand, this fungus metabolizes nitrogen from the atmosphere to give it to the plant as food.

Trichoderma

The Trichoderma fungus is very beneficial, versatile and multifaceted and is abundant in soils. It is used in foliar applications (nutrition through the leaves), seed and soil treatment for the control of various fungal diseases, for the manufacture of enzymes and as a fungicide. It is found naturally in a significant number of agricultural soils.

It is very commonly used as a fungicide as it is environmentally friendly because it has little or no beneficial effect on humans, wildlife, pollinators and many other insects. Trichoderma acts as a natural soil inhabitant (respecting the most natural taste of edible crops). It colonizes plant roots, attacks, parasitizes and/or feeds on other fungi while enhancing plant root growth.

Advantages of using biofertilizers

They allow the use of organic residues.

Biofertilizers improve crop productivity.

They consume less energy for their production, thus helping sustainable resource management.

Biofertilizers improve the environment where they are used, since they recover soil organic matter and allow carbon fixation in the soil, improving its capacity to absorb water.

Their use has an impact not only on the environment, but also in economic terms, since the cost of biofertilizers is lower than that of chemical fertilizers; on average they are worth 10% of the cost of the latter.

They improve soil texture, increase its useful life and maintain it in optimal growing conditions.

Biofertilizers replace chemical fertilizers, so they do not harm the environment.