|
|
Sulfur (S)
Function:
- Synthesis in plansts of protein and vitamins.
- Effective utilization of nitrogen and potassium.
- Deficiency produces:
- Plants which are small and spindly with short, slender stalks.
- Growth retarded and maturity often delayed.
- On most plants, young leaves light green to yellowish, with even lighter-colored veins. (Young leaves because Sulphur, like Calcium, moves little within plant tissue.) Growth is slow and leaves tend to get brittle and stay narrower than normal.
- Fruits often not fully maturing, remaining light green. and the first signs of a deficiency are
- Timing:
- some needed all the time
- highest demand durinq the stage of rapid growth when the demand for Nitroqen is at its peak.
- also more during the latter stage of development "filling" when proteins are produced
- reducing pH (for alkaline soils)
Recommended Product: Gypsum
- Necessity? The North Carolina Cooperative Extension Service says "Sulfur deficiencies are less frequent in high-organic-matter soils because the sulfur mineralizes from the organic matter."
- Application: This site, which sells a non-organic sulfur product says, "For many crops the Nitrogen to Sulphur ratio should be in the 10: 1 range, however. there are many crops for which the demand for sulphur is higher and therefore the Nitrogen to Sulphur ratio should be nearer to 7:1 or even 5, 1." This is mainly referring to farm crops, which take a lot out of the soil.
For more information, see the North Carolina Extension Service's page Sulfur as a Plant Nutrient.
|