Chemistry: fertilizers – Processes and products – Bacterial
Reexamination Certificate
2000-04-05
2002-05-07
Langel, Wayne A. (Department: 1754)
Chemistry: fertilizers
Processes and products
Bacterial
C071S011000, C071S027000, C071S031000, C071S064100, C071SDIG002
Reexamination Certificate
active
06383245
ABSTRACT:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The field of this invention is agriculture, particularly fertilizer compositions used therein.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Fertilizers are materials that are used to supply elements needed for plant nutrition. Fertilizer materials may be in the form of solids, semi-solids, slurry suspensions, pure liquids, aqueous solutions and gases. Fertilizing materials may be introduced into a plant's environment in a number of different ways, including through addition to the soil, through application directly to a plant's foliage, and the like. The use of fertilizers is critical to commercial agriculture as fertilizers are essential to correct natural deficiencies and/or replace components in soil. A number of different types of fertilizer compositions have been developed and employed in agriculture. However, there is continued interest in the development of new fertilizer compositions.
One type of element that is present in fertilizer composition is a plant nutrient mineral. Plant nutrient minerals of interest include: calcium, zinc, manganese, iron, etc. When plant nutrient minerals are administered in fertilizer compositions, they face a potential problem of “tie-up” on soil particles and/or plant tissue surfaces, e.g. foliage surfaces. Tie-up can result from electrostatic interactions, formation of insoluble precipitates, etc.
As it is desirable in many instances to employ a mineral containing fertilizer composition, of great interest is the identification of mineral compositions that do not suffer from tie-up. Of particular interest would be compositions which are made up of naturally occurring components.
Relevant Literature
U.S. Patents of interest include: U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,797,976; 5,696,094; 5,582,627; and 5,549,729.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
Aqueous mineral compositions and methods for their use are provided. The subject aqueous mineral compositions include a plant nutrient mineral component that is made up of at least one plant nutrient mineral, e.g. calcium, manganese, zinc, iron, and a source of a naturally occurring low molecular weight chelating agent, e.g. a citric acid cycle intermediate or derivative thereof. The subject compositions find use in a variety of different applications, and are particularly suited for use in increasing the mineral content of a plant.
DESCRIPTION OF THE SPECIFIC EMBODIMENTS
Aqueous mineral compositions and methods for their use are provided. The subject aqueous mineral compositions include a plant nutrient mineral component that is made up of at least one plant nutrient mineral, e.g. calcium, manganese, zinc, iron, and a source of a naturally occurring low molecular weight chelating agent, e.g. a citric acid cycle intermediate or a derivative thereof. The subject compositions find use in a variety of different applications, and are particularly suited for use in increasing the mineral content of a plant. In further describing the subject invention, the compositions will be described first in greater detail followed by a review of representative applications in which the compositions find use.
Before the subject invention is described further, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited to the particular embodiments of the invention described below, as variations of the particular embodiments may be made and still fall within the scope of the appended claims. It is also to be understood that the terminology employed is for the purpose of describing particular embodiments, and is not intended to be limiting. Instead, the scope of the present invention will be established by the appended claims.
In this specification and the appended claims, the singular forms “a,” “an” and “the” include plural reference unless the context clearly dictates otherwise. Unless defined otherwise, all technical and scientific terms used herein have the same meaning as commonly understood to one of ordinary skill in the art to which this invention belongs.
Compositions
As summarized above, aqueous mineral compositions are provided by the subject invention, where the aqueous mineral compositions include: (a) a plant nutrient mineral component that is made up of at least one plant nutrient mineral; and (b) a source of at least one naturally occurring chelating agent. Each of these components of the subject aqueous mineral compositions is now described separately in greater detail.
Plant Nutrient Mineral Component
The plant nutrient mineral component is a made up of one or more distinct plant nutrient minerals. Where the plant nutrient mineral component is made up of a plurality of (i.e. 2 or more) different plant nutrient minerals, the number of different minerals in the component typically ranges from about 2 to 15, usually from about 2-10 and more usually from about 2 to 5, wherein in certain embodiments the number of different minerals in the component ranges from about 2 to 4 and more usually from about 2 to 3. In many embodiments where a plurality of plant nutrient minerals make up the plant nutrient mineral component, the number of different plant nutrient minerals in the plant nutrient component is 3. In many other embodiments, the plant nutrient mineral component is made up of a single plant nutrient mineral.
The plant nutrient minerals that may be present in the plant nutrient mineral component are minerals that are beneficial to a plant. In many embodiments, the minerals are minerals that enhance the health of the plant, as measured in terms of growth rate, fruit production, fruit quality, disease resistance, tolerance to environmental stress and in general, the over improvement of the metabolic efficiency of the plant's physiology, and the like. Representative plant nutrient minerals include, but are not limited to: calcium, manganese, iron, zinc, etc. Additional plant nutrient minerals include, but are not limited to: molybdenum, cobalt, boron, copper, silicon, selenium, nickel, aluminum, chromium and the like. Yet additional nutrients of interest in certain embodiments include, but are not limited to: nitrogen, phosphorous, potassium, magnesium, chloride, sodium, sulfur, and the like. In one embodiment, the plant nutrient mineral component is made up solely of calcium. In a second embodiment, the plant nutrient mineral component is made up solely of manganese. In a third embodiment, the plant nutrient mineral component is made up solely of zinc. In a fourth embodiment, the plant nutrient mineral component is made up solely of iron. In a fifth embodiment, the plant nutrient mineral component is made up of a plurality of three different plant nutrient minerals selected from the group consisting of calcium, manganese, zinc and iron, where a preferred component is made up of zinc, manganese and iron.
The plant nutrient mineral component of the subject aqueous mineral compositions makes up a significant percentage of the subject compositions. As such, the plant nutrient mineral component makes up from about 2 to 36, usually from about 3 to 15 and more usually from about 5 to 10% by weight of the subject aqueous mineral compositions. Where the plant nutrient mineral component is made up of a single plant nutrient mineral, e.g. calcium, iron, zinc, manganese, etc., the mineral typically is present in amounts ranging from about 2 to 36, usually from about 3 to 15 and more usually from about 5 to 10% by weight of the aqueous mineral composition. Where the plant nutrient mineral composition is made up of a plurality of different minerals, each distinct mineral is generally present in amount from about 0.5 to 30, usually from about 0.5 to 12 and more usually from about 1 to 10% by weight, where the combined amount of minerals generally ranges from about 2 to 40%, usually from about 4 to 20% and more usually from about 5 to 15% by weight of the aqueous mineral composition.
Source of Naturally Occurring Chelating Agent
As summarized above, the subject aqueous mineral compositions also include a source of at least one naturally occurring chelating agent. By naturally occurring chelating agent is meant that the chelating
Bozicevic, Field & Francis
Field Bret E.
Langel Wayne A.
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