A Valuable Product for Agricultural, Horticultural, and Floricultural Fertilization

Calcium Nitrate [Ca(NO3)2] is a product of immense value to the Agricultural and Horticultural Industries. In addition to providing nutrition for plants, calcium nitrate has a restorative effect on the soil. It aids in transforming the minerals in clay soil into forms more easily used by plants. It also forces separation of clay layers that tend to become compact, so that the soil is more porous and can provide greater availability of water and oxygen for the plants’ use.

Among the many benefits of calcium nitrate, the industry recognizes that

It provides greater yield and quality
It helps develop plant resistance to disease and pests
It allows crops to be transported with less damage
It extends the storage life of fruits
It provides for the rapid absorption of both calcium and nitrate
It doesn’t steam, wash or burn
It doesn’t create alkaline or saline soil conditions

Calcium Nitrate as a Commercial Fertilizer

Calcium nitrate is a commercial fertilizer that is considered to be a double growth energy fertilizer because both the calcium and the nitrates act to spur growth in plants. Nitrogen, in the form of nitrate, has long been recognized as a key nutrient for plant growth. More recent research has found that calcium has a number of positive effects on plants. For example:

Fruits and vegetables store for longer periods of time with less rot when there are high levels of calcium in the plant. There is less instance of bitter pit in apples, erwinia soft rot in potatoes and bulb rot in onions. Also longer shelf life in table grapes and flowers.
Calcium has also been found to provide improved skin presentation in potatoes, tomatoes, melons and citrus.
Because calcium strengthens plant cells, it helps provide greater resistance to disease invasion. Examples include botrytis in roses, lettuce, and stone fruit.
Plants with higher levels of calcium also display less stress from heat, cold or windy conditions. Examples of this are tip burn in lettuce, cabbages and cauliflower.

Calcium nitrate is useful in growing many kinds of high-value crops. In greenhouse environments, the solution grade formulation can be used to supply nutrients by combining it with water in hydroponic gardens. It is also suitable for foliar fertilization and fertigation. The field grade formula is designed to be spread dry, then watered into the soil. In dry climates, calcium nitrate pulls moisture from the air into the soil where the plants can absorb it through their root systems.

Recommended Application Guide for Calcium Nitrate

Because the calcium in calcium nitrate is immobile in the plant, and will not move out to new leaves, developing fruits, tubers or roots, a number of applications of this fertilizer are needed throughout the growing season. Here are the recommended number of applications, depending upon the type of application used:

Foliar Application: Up to 10 applications per season, depending upon crop. Ground Application: Up to 3 applications per season, depending upon the crop. Hydroponic Solutions: 1 gram per litre of water flowing through the system.

Calcium Nitrate for High-Yield, High-Value Crops

Calcium nitrate has been proven effective in increasing growth and yield for the following crops:

Tomatoes
Potatoes
Turf, pasture grasses, ryegrass
Peaches
Apples
Citrus Fruit
Carrots
Berryfruit
Pears
Cherries
Nut Trees
Tobacco
Onions
Cotton
Lettuce and other leafy vegetables
Flowers

In some crops it is also effective in producing better color, stronger cellular composition, and healthier, more pest-resistant plants.

Calcium Nitrate Direct, Denver: Serving Colorado – Wyoming – Idaho – Montana – New Mexico – Texas – Oklahoma – Kansas – Nebraska – North Dakota – South Dakota