Predicting the feasibility of direct phosphate rock application to crops

Scientists of the International Fertilizer Development Corporation (IFDC), in collaboration with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), have developed a Phosphate Rock Decision Support System (PRDSS) to predict the feasibility of phosphate rock (PR) for direct application to crops.

There is a renewed worldwide interest in PR for direct application because it is a natural raw material that is a nutrient-rich source for phosphorus, according to Dr. Upendra Singh, IFDC Senior Scientist—Systems Modeling (Soil Fertility). “Interest in PR as an organic fertilizer could open future markets to exports from developing countries,” Singh says. There are abundant PR deposits in Africa.

PRDSS results from 25 years of evaluation of PR applied to crops in Latin America, Asia, and Sub-Saharan Africa. The decision support tool functions with minimal input : soil pH, PR source, and crop species. PRDSS can also use farm gate prices to determine if water-soluble phosphate or PR is more economical.

The web-based PRDSS tool is user-friendly and easy to navigate, says Dr. Henk Breman, IFDC Principal Scientist and Adviser to the project Catalyzing Acceleration of Agricultural Intensification for Stability and Sustainability (CATALIST), based in Rwanda. “I have used PRDSS on the web site to compare rock from Burundi and Tanzania. Even as a layman, I was
able to obtain answers.”

A technical article about the tool, “Development of a Phosphate Rock Decision Support System for Direct Application,” by Suzette Smalberger, Upendra Singh, Sen H. Chien, Julio Henao, and Paul W. Wilkens, was published in the May-June 2006 issue of Agronomy Journal.

PRDSS is available on the FAO/IAEA web site http://www.iswam.iaea.org/dapr/srv/en/resources. It is identified as Direct Application of Phosphate Rock.

IFDC