Innovation

DCM STARTEC®: Starter fertiliser for maize, rich in phosphorus with organic nutrients

Soils are often still cold when sowing maize in spring. Under these circumstances the maize, which is a subtropical plant by nature, is often unable to properly absorb the phosphorus available in the soil. DCM STARTEC® is a starter fertiliser with a high content of easily uptakeable phosphorus (22% P2O5) showing a low risk of fixation. This way the maize plants get the best chances for a good initial growth and root development right from the start.

In addition to phosphorus, nitrogen (N) is also important for a good initial growth. DCM STARTEC® is composed of ammoniacal nitrogen and N-rich raw materials of vegetal origin. Applied to soils poor in organic matter, ammoniacal nitrogen is less susceptible to leaching than nitric nitrogen. The vegetal raw materials ensure a prolonged action.

DCM STARTEC® contains 1,5 % zinc Zn: partly fast-working and partly chelated for an extended release without risk of fixation. This will provide a sufficient amount of easily uptakeable zinc in the seed row, right from the start until leaf stage 0-8 in order to avoid yellowing of the leaves.

DCM STARTEC® also contains organic potassium, sulphur, iron and manganese for optimal growth and maize plants with a higher resistance to external stress factors like drought and deficiency symptoms.

The nutrients of the vegetable raw materials are decomposed by the soil life. As a consequence the soil near the MINIGRAN® granules has a lower pH-value, even in lime-rich soils. Consequently also other nutrients, especially phosphorus and trace elements, are and remain better uptakeable by the maize roots, resulting in a better root development, a uniform emergence and a good initial growth.

In comparison with applications in the open air or foliar applications, the application of DCM STARTEC® by means of a microgranule spreader enables you to combine sowing and fertilizing in 1 single operation.

Thanks to the application of DCM STARTEC® with a microgranule spreader, a lower fertiliser dosage per ha is required, which is a benefit for the environment as well as for your annual nutrient balance and phosphate count*.

Experiments have shown that DCM STARTEC®, compared to other starter phosphates, provides longer roots with more fine root hair. This difference is already visible a few weeks after sowing and is a continual advantage for the rest of the cultivation. A better uptake of water and other nutrients ensures a higher yield and good ripening.

MINIGRAN® TECHNOLOGY

DCM STARTEC® is a fertiliser in MINIGRAN® TECHNOLOGY, a unique microgranulation process. The small MINIGRAN® granules have a homogeneous composition and can be spread evenly and accurately in the seed row by means of a microgranule spreader, as a result of which they are immediately at the disposal of the young roots. This is very important to ensure uniform emergence, especially for the less mobile element phosphorus.

Improved initial development: growth and root development

Left: standard fertilization, Right: extra DCM STARTEC® (25 kg/ha in the seed row)

Left: extra DCM STARTEC® (25 kg/ha in the seed row), Right: standard fertilization

Higher yield of grain maize | Grain maize (MV277), Gramen, Martonvásár, Hungary

Higher yield of green maize | Green maize (ES Cluedo), Vieusart in collaboration with CIPF / Centre Pilote Maïs, Louvain-La-Neuve, Belgium

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