It’s time to jump into the February part of my fertilization schedule, and if you regularly follow the plan, you are no doubt seeing significant price increases for many of the products I recommend – both synthetic and organic.
While you may not think it’s worth paying up to 50% more than you did last year, you should understand that this won’t be a permanent price increase. Most experts I have talked with believe the higher costs will likely be around for only a 12- to 18-month period.
So, if I happen to find my favorite fertilizer only 10-20% more expensive than last year, I’ll stock up on several bags and keep the extras in sealed storage containers until next year.
Now, if you discover a product is marked at double last year’s price, don’t assume price gouging is going on. The fertilizer industry is dealing with all sorts of significantly increased costs, and they are driving up retail prices:
- Distribution chain issues: You’ve heard the news, and you’ve seen the videos of cargo ships waiting at anchor offshore
- The price of urea: Fertilizer blenders such as Nitro-Phos, Nelson Plant Food, Fertilome, EZ-Gro, Vigoro and others typically pay no more than $200 a ton for urea, the ingredient that helps green things up. Today they are paying $700-$900.
- The cost of fuel: Fuel prices for transportation and plant operation have risen from an average $2 a gallon to nearly $3 in just the last two months.
- Inflation in general: Hyperinflation is widespread, period. You can bounce that about politically however you wish.
- The cost of shipping in general: In addition to urea, nitrates, phosphorous, potassium and other fertilizer ingredients are shipped in from other countries, and the cost of those bulk materials has also nearly doubled. In the past, a local blender that might have paid $12,000 for a container is now paying $20,000.
- Countries are hoarding: Nations like China and Russia that make some fertilizer elements are hoarding for crop-feeding purposes much of what they normally export. That’s way more geo-political than I have the brains to write about further.
And there are probably a half-dozen other things contributing to the price increases.
Of course, I will use the GardenLine radio show and Facebook in the coming weeks to help you find the lowest fertilizer prices. So, tune in this weekend and follow us on Facebook. Let’s work together on finding the best deals for the coming year!