Fertilizing & Mulching

Dry fertilizer, manure, granular and pelletized chemicals, lime, or fiber mulches are sometimes used to enhance plant establishment in revegetation projects. Equipment to distribute these products is listed in this section. Application equipment for liquid fertilizer and aerially applied products is listed in the chapter on Controlling Plants Chemically. Fertilizer provides increased nutrients for plant growth, and should be applied based on a soil test. Manure also provides soil nutrients. Granular and pelletized herbicides and insecticides control weeds and harmful insects. Lime is applied to reduce soil acidity. Mulches are used to retain soil moisture for seed germination and to provide protection for seedlings. They are also helpful in reducing soil erosion.

Fertilizer spreaders dispense dry materials over an area. They use a moving conveyor belt at the base of a large hopper to move product out the rear of the hopper and onto one or two spinners or a boom. The belt and spinners are powered hydraulically on self-propelled units and ground driven or tractor PTO driven on pull-type units. An adjustable gate at the rear of the hopper controls the amount of product flowing to the spinners or boom. Self-propelled spreaders are either mounted on truck chassis or large, three or four wheel floaters. These units carry 250 to 350 cubic foot hoppers and are powered by 275 to 400 horsepower engines. Pull-type spreaders have 50 to 250 cubic foot hoppers. Swath width will vary between 25 and 100 feet. Small, drill-type, drop spreaders are available in widths of 6 to 12 feet. Individual row dispensers are available for planters. Many of the self-propelled spreaders can be adapted to distribute manure or biosolids.

Dry material spreaders are widely used to apply fertilizer or lime. A wide range of application rates are possible. Changes in the gate opening, conveyor belt speed, and vehicle speed influence the rate. Controllers and GPS guidance units are available to monitor application rates and location on self-propelled units. Fertilizer spreaders are not suited to brushy, rough, or steep landscapes.

Self-propelled boom spreader (left) and dual spinner spreader (right).
Photo courtesy of Lor*Al Products Inc.

Pull-type spreader.
Photo courtesy of AGCO’s Willmar.

The manufacturers' websites list information on equipment sizes, accessories, dealers, and their email addresses.

Adams Fertilizer Equipment
P.O. Box 628
DeWitt, AR
Phone: 800-643-4266
Fax: 870-946-4396
Website: www.adamsfertequip.com

Ag-gressor 1
A King Company
24915 Page Street
Kewanee, IL 61443
Phone: 800-247-3767
Phone: 309-853-1644
Fax: 309-854-0816
Website: www.ag-gressorone.com

Case IH
700 State Street
Racine, WI 53404
Phone: 262-636-6011
Fax: 262-636-6078
Website: www.caseih.com

Gandy Company
528 Gandrud Road
Owatonna, MN 55060-0528
Phone: 800-443-2476
Phone: 507-451-2476
Fax: 507-451-2857
Website: www.gandy.net

Lor*Al Products Inc.
202 Industrial Park
Jackson, MN 56143
Phone: 800-320-0609
Website: www.lor-al.com

Stahly
P.O. Box 1425
Bloomington, IL 61702
Phone: 800-678-2459
Fax: 309-662-5409
Website: www.stahly.com
Website: www.4qte.com

Terra-Gator Systems
AGCO Application Division
202 Industrial Park
Jackson, MN 56143
Phone: 507-847-2690
Fax: 507-847-7482
Website: www.agchem.com

Manure spreaders are open trailers with a conveyor belt in the bed that moves heavy solids to the rear of the trailer. Beaters, paddles, or flails at the rear of the trailer spread the solids in swaths up to 10-feet wide. Capacities of these units vary from 15 to 480 cubic feet. Commercial units with side delivery systems can dispense up to 50-foot wide swaths, and have capacities of 150 to 425 cubic feet or more on special order. Units are powered by the tractor PTO or hydraulically while some very small units are ground driven. Self-propelled units are listed with fertilizer units and dispense manure or biosolids.

Manure spreaders are designed to effectively spread manure, manure-straw mix, or biosolids over selected areas. These materials will increase the amount of organic matter in the soil. This can be very useful in reclaiming disturbed land from mining or other operations. Manure spreading is limited to level or moderately sloping land. In some situations it is helpful to turn under the manure by disking to reduce odors and trap more of the nutrients in the soil.

The manufacturers' websites list information on equipment sizes, accessories, dealers, and their email addresses.

Deere & Company
John Deere World Headquarters
One John Deere Place
Moline, IL 61265
Phone: 309-765-8000
Fax: 309-765-4225
Website: www.deere.com

Gehl Company
P.O. Box 179
West Bend, WI 53095
Phone: 262-334-9461
Fax: 262-338-7517
Website: www.gehl.com

Meyer Mfg. Corp.
P.O. Box 405
Dorchester, WI 54425
Phone: 800-325-9103
Phone: 715-654-5132
Fax: 715-654-5513
Website: www.meyermfg.com

New Idea Products
AGCO Corporation
4205 River Green Parkway
Duluth, GA 30096
Phone: 770-813-9200
Fax: 770-813-6158
Website: www.agcocorp.com
Website: www.newidea.agcocorp.com

Power mulchers, often called straw blowers, blow straw or hay onto seeded areas to increase soil water holding capacity for enhanced seed germination and growth, and to reduce erosion. Straw crimpers force straw fibers into the soil to prevent wind and rainfall from removing the mulch from the treated area. Most blowers are designed to handle standard square bales, however, some large-capacity units will accept large, square bales or round bales. Bales are manually placed on a loading chute and then conveyed into the beater chamber. A chain flail or other device breaks-up the compressed bales and a blower forces the straw out of a nozzle that directs the straw to the target area. Straw fibers can be blown 50 to 100 feet. Small mulchers spread 2 to 3 bales/minute using 18 to 20 horsepower engines. Trailer or truck units spread 7 to 30 tons/hour using engines up to 185 horsepower. A nozzle attachment is available to apply an adhesive to the straw during application. Crimpers are 6 to 8 feet wide and use 20-inch, notched, coulter blades on 8-inch spacing.

Power mulchers are used to place straw on sensitive areas such as disturbed soil on slopes, roadsides, or urban landscapes where users desire a high probability of success in revegetation. An adhesive can be added to the straw as it is blown to the target area to aid in holding the straw fibers to the soil and to each other. Crimpers are used to tack the straw fibers into the soil to hold the straw in place and protect the seedlings. Crimping is very effective in windy areas and the method is very economical. As the crimper’s coulter blades roll over the straw they form a small trench and force straw fibers into the trench. They are effective on level to moderately sloping areas and should be operated on the contour. A rotary spreader can be attached to a power mulcher for seeding (see chapter on Seeding). Sawdust, wood chips, or bark does not work well in power mulchers. Long-fiber, dry mulches work best.

The manufacturers' websites list information on equipment sizes, accessories, dealers, and their email addresses.

Big Bale Mulcher
Material Innovations Inc.
96 Mt. Laurel Trail
Sugarloaf, PA 18249
Phone: 570-384-2491
Fax: 570-788-6041
Website: www.bigbalemulcher.com

Bowie Industries
P.O. Box 931
Bowie, TX 76230
Phone: 800-433-0934
Phone: 940-872-1106
Fax: 940-872-1447
Website: www.bowieindustries.com

Finn Corporation
9281 LeSaint Drive
Fairfield, OH 45014
Phone: 800-543-7166
Phone: 513-874-2818
Fax: 513-874-2914
Website: www.finncorp.com

Kincaid Equipment Manufacturing
P.O. Box 400
Haven, KS 67543
Phone: 800-854-7287
Website: www.kincaidequipment.com

Reinco
P.O. Box 512
Plainfield, NJ 07061-0512
Phone: 800-526-7687
Phone: 908-755-0921
Fax: 908-755-6379
Website: www.reinco.com

TGMI, Inc.
11074 Ashburn Ave.
Cincinnati, OH 45240
Phone: 800-241-8464
Phone: 513-825-5444
Fax: 513-825-3393
Website: www.mulchers.com

Turbo Technologies, Inc.
1500 First Ave.
Beaver Falls, PA 15010
Phone: 800-822-3437
Phone: 724-846-0670
Fax: 724-846-3470
Website: www.strawblowers.com

Vermeer Manufacturing Co.
1210 Vermeer Road East
Pella, IA 50219
Phone: 888-837-6337
Phone: 641-628-3141
Fax: 641-621-7734
Website: www.vermeer.com