At present, the use of chemical fertilizers has been increasing year by year, while many farmers have neglected the proper accumulation and application of farmyard manure. This has led to significant nutrient losses in organic fertilizers. According to research, if animal urine is not collected promptly, nitrogen loss can reach as high as 96% after just two weeks. Therefore, it is crucial for farmers to pay close attention to preventing nutrient loss in farmyard fertilizers.
First, reducing nutrient loss in livestock manure is essential. Improving the design of the manure pit is important—ensuring it is waterproof, leak-proof, and easy to clean. The ground should be properly lined, with a ratio of manure to soil around 1:3 to 1:4. It's recommended to turn or mix the pile daily or every other day. If manure is temporarily stored, it should be immediately piled up and sealed with mud on the outside to maintain its fertilizer value.
Second, reducing nutrient loss in human waste is equally important. Human urine is rich in nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium. Studies show that if left untreated, urine stored in a tank for 60 days can lose about 90% of its nitrogen. To minimize this loss, urine should be stored in covered tanks or containers, ideally for 7–10 days to reduce the time it’s exposed and preserve nutrients.
For human feces, there are several methods to reduce nutrient loss. First, renovating toilets and septic tanks to prevent leakage, seepage, and rainwater intrusion is essential. Second, changing the application method from dry to diluted is more effective. Diluted human waste should be applied to the soil after a decay period of about 6–7 days in summer and 15–20 days in other seasons. Third, promoting the separation of human waste is highly recommended.
Third, reducing nutrient loss in plant ash is also critical. Plant ash contains a lot of potassium carbonate and is the only alkaline potassium fertilizer among organic manures. Since both human waste and livestock manure are acidic, mixing them with plant ash leads to nutrient loss. Research shows that when plant ash is mixed with human waste and urine in a 1:1.5 ratio and stored for 10 days, nitrogen loss reaches about 27.4%, and during storage, nitrogen loss can be as high as 85.9%. Therefore, it is important to promote the separate use of plant ash. It should not be mixed with organic fertilizers and should be kept dry to avoid being washed away by rain, which can cause further nutrient loss.
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