Building fertilisers for the future - a practical look at smarter turf nutrition

Turf managers today are being asked to do more with less. Regulations are tightening, scrutiny is growing, and expectations around sustainability are rising fast.

At the same time, there’s no let-up in the pressure to deliver consistent, high-quality playing surfaces. That’s the challenge and fertilisers are right at the centre of it.

The future of turf nutrition is being shaped by two simple but vital priorities: efficient use of nitrogen and responsibly sourced ingredients. These aren’t marketing buzzwords; they’re now essential design principles for products that must deliver performance while aligning with new environmental realities.

Getting more from every unit of nitrogen

Nitrogen remains the key driver of turf response. But it’s also the nutrient under the most scrutiny from both environmental regulators and turf professionals looking to minimise waste.

The priority now is to apply less but get more from it. That means:

• Improved nutrient use efficiency through advanced release technologies
• Greater control of nitrogen behaviour, reducing volatility and leaching
• Tailored release profiles that match plant uptake, not calendar dates

Recent trial work shows just how different fertilisers can behave, even when applying the same rate of nitrogen. In side-by-side comparisons, identical nitrogen inputs delivered very different turf responses from fast, sharp green-up to slower, sustained release over several weeks.

This underlines an important point: it’s not just about how much nitrogen is applied, but how it’s formulated and delivered. The form of nitrogen, whether urea, ammonium, methylene urea or organic, plays a major role in turf performance and environmental outcome.

As an industry, we need to keep moving away from blanket applications and instead focus on fertilisers that deliver more with less, using forms of nitrogen that are better retained in the system and available when the plant needs them most.

Responsible inputs matter more than ever

Alongside efficiency, the spotlight is now firmly on where ingredients come from, how they’re processed and what impact they have downstream.

The move towards more responsible sourcing is being driven by both regulation and professional values. Turf managers are increasingly asking for products that:

• Use recycled or renewable nutrients
• Avoid animal by-products where possible
• Support soil health, not just plant growth
• Reduce embodied carbon and resource use

One example of this approach is the development of organo-mineral fertilisers that blend reliable mineral nutrition with responsibly sourced organic components. These products aim to balance short-term performance with longer-term soil resilience, without compromising on quality.

Gronamic 6-2-4, for instance, combines mineral nitrogen for a dependable plant response with organic materials derived from plant sources. It includes struvite, a recycled phosphorus source, and polyhalite, a naturally low-carbon mineral supplying potassium, calcium and magnesium. The inclusion of a seaweed biostimulant, SMX, adds an extra dimension to plant resilience and rooting.

This kind of formulation reflects where fertilisers are heading: fewer inputs, cleaner sourcing, smarter blends.

Designing fertilisers for what comes next

Fertiliser development is no longer just about nutrient content. It’s about building products that support turf managers under pressure, delivering consistency and performance, while also aligning with stricter environmental standards.

That’s why the future is being built on:

• Formulations that reduce nitrogen loss and improve efficiency
• Inputs that are recycled, renewable, or lower impact
• Transparency around what’s in the bag, and why it’s there

There’s no single solution for every turf surface, but the direction is clear. Products that deliver strong results, support soil function and carry a lighter environmental footprint will set the standard in the years ahead.

For those managing turf at a high level, the fertilisers of the future will help meet the twin goals of performance and responsibility, not by choosing one over the other but by designing smarter, more sustainable tools that do both.