Md. Code Regs. 15.18.01.02 - Definitions
A. The following
terms have the meanings indicated.
B. Terms Defined.
(1) "Acid-forming fertilizer" means a
fertilizer capable of increasing the residual acidity of soil.
(2) "Chelate" means the type of compound or
chemical union in which a central metal (cation or anion) is joined to a
chelating agent in the same molecule by two or more bonds. These linkages
result in the formation of one or more heterocyclic rings in which the metal is
part of the ring.
(3) "Chelated
plant nutrients" means compounds of metallic secondary and micro plant
nutrients with organic chelating agents which have the property of being
available under pH conditions in which the nutrients normally form insoluble
compounds.
(4) "Chelating agent
(sequestering agent)" means a compound having two or more sites of attachment
to a metal (cation or anion) to form a chelate. Examples are EDTA
(ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid), NTA (nitrilotriacetic acid), polyphosphoric
acid, proteins and polyflavanoids.
(5) "Coated slow release fertilizer" means a
fertilizer containing sources of water soluble nutrients, whose release is
controlled by a coating applied to the fertilizer.
(6) "Filler" means a substance added to
fertilizer materials to provide bulk, prevent caking, or serve some purpose
other than providing essential plant nutrients.
(7) "Granular fertilizer" means a fertilizer
in which 95 percent or more of the product is retained on a series of sieves
within the range of 8 mesh (2.38 mm. opening) to 20 mesh (0.841 mm. opening),
and in which the largest particle passes through a sieve having an opening not
larger than four times that of the sieve which would retain 95 percent or more
of the product.
Examples
Sieve opening retaining 95 percent or more of the product. | Sieve opening passing the largest particle in the product. | Maximum range of particle size. | |||||
Opening | Opening | ||||||
Mesh | U.S.No. | mm | Mesh | U.S.No. | mm | Mesh | |
20 | 20 | 0.841 | 6 | 6 | 3.36 | -6 | +20 |
16 | 18 | 1.00 | 5 | 5 | 4.00 | -5 | +16 |
14 | 16 | 1.19 | 4 | 4 | 4.76 | -4 | +14 |
12 | 14 | 1.41 | 3.5 | 3.5 | 5.66 | -3.5 | +12 |
10 | 12 | 1.68 | 3 | 0.265 inch | 6.73 | -3 | +10 |
8 | 8 | 2.38 | 3/8 inch | 3/8 inch | 9.51 | -3/8 inch | + 8 |
(8)
"Liquid fertilizer" means a fluid in which plant nutrients are in a true
solution.
(9) "Lot" means, for
purposes of obtaining an official sample, an identifiable quantity of
commercial fertilizer that can be sampled, up to and including a freight car
load or 50 tons maximum, or that amount contained in a single vehicle, or that
amount delivered under a single invoice.
(10) "Manipulation" means the processing or
treating of a substance in any manner, including drying to a moisture content
of less than 30 percent.
(11)
"Natural organic fertilizer" means a fertilizer derived from either plant or
animal products containing one or more elements (other than carbon, hydrogen,
and oxygen) which are essential for plant growth. These materials may be
subjected to biological degradation processes under normal conditions of aging,
rainfall, sun-curing, air drying, composting, rotting, enzymatic, or anaerobic
or aerobic bacterial action, or any combination of these. These materials may
not be mixed with synthetic materials, or changed in any physical or chemical
manner from their initial state except by physical manipulation such as drying,
cooking, chopping, grinding, shredding or pelleting.
(12) "Nitrophosphate" means a product
obtained by acidulation of phosphate rock with nitric acid. The complex mixture
of nitrates and phosphate thus obtained does not contain nitrate nitrogen and
phosphorus in the same molecule. The process is subject to modification
designed to remove the hygroscopic calcium nitrate formed. These modifications
include ammoniation, physical separation, co-acidulation with sulfuric or
phosphoric acids, or subsequent treatment with carbon dioxide.
(13) "Nonacid-forming fertilizer" means a
fertilizer not capable of increasing the residual acidity of the
soil.
(14) "Organic fertilizer"
means a material containing carbon and one or more elements other than hydrogen
and oxygen essential for plant growth.
(15) "Overall index value" means the value
obtained from the calculation: (Commercial Value Found) 100/(Commercial Value
Guaranteed) using assigned values for N, APA, and soluble
K2O, such as $3, $2, and $1 per unit.
(16) "Pelletized fertilizer" means a product,
uniform in size and usually of globular shape, containing one or more nutrients
produced by one of several methods including:
(a) Solidification of a melt while falling
through a counter-current stream of air;
(b) Dried layers of slurry applied to
recycling particles;
(c)
Compaction;
(d)
Extrusion;
(e)
Granulation.
(17)
"Primary nutrients" means nutrients that include the following plant food:
(a) Nitrogen (N);
(b) Available phosphoric acid
(P2O5); and
(c) Potash
(K2O).
(18) "Secondary and micro plant nutrients"
means nutrients other than the primary nutrients that are essential for the
normal growth of plants and that may need to be added to the growth medium.
Secondary plant nutrients shall include boron, chlorine, cobalt, copper, iron,
manganese, molybdenum, sodium, and zinc.
(19) "Slurry fertilizer" means a fluid
mixture containing dissolved and undissolved plant nutrient materials which
requires continuous mechanical agitation to assure homogeneity.
(20) "Suspension fertilizer" means a fluid
containing dissolved and undissolved plant nutrients. The suspension of the
undissolved plant nutrients may be inherent with the materials or produced with
the aid of a suspending agent of non-fertilizer properties. Mechanical
agitation may be necessary in some cases to facilitate uniform suspension of
undissolved plant nutrients.
(21)
"Synthetic" means any substance generated from another material or materials by
means of a chemical reaction.
(22)
"Unit" means 20 pounds of plant food or 1 percent of a ton.
C. Manganese Products.(Mn).
(1) "Manganese sulfate" means, when applied
to an ingredient of a mixed fertilizer, anhydrous manganese sulfate
(MnSO4).
D. Nitrogen Products (N).
(1) "Acidulated fish tankage, acidulated fish
scrap" means the rendered product derived from fish and treated with sulfuric
acid.
(2) "Activated sewage
products" means those products made from sewage freed from grit and coarse
solids and aerated after being inoculated with microorganisms. The resulting
flocculated organic matter is withdrawn from the tanks, filtered with or
without the aid of coagulants, dried, ground, and screened.
(3) "Ammoniated superphosphate" means a
product obtained when superphosphate is treated with ammonia or with solutions
which contain ammonia or other compounds of nitrogen. The guaranteed
percentages of nitrogen and of available phosphoric acid shall be stated as
part of the name.
(4) "Ammonium
nitrate" means a substance, chiefly the ammonium salt of nitric acid. It shall
contain not less than 33 percent of nitrogen, 1/2 of which is in the ammonium
form and 1/2 in the nitrate form.
(5) "Ammonium sulfate nitrate" means a double
salt of ammonium sulfate and ammonium nitrate which are present in equal
molecular proportions. It shall contain not less than 26 percent nitrogen, 1/4
of which is in nitrate form and 3/4 in the ammonium form.
(6) "Bat guano" means partially decomposed
bat manure.
(7) "Calcium nitrate"
means a substance, chiefly the calcium salt of nitric acid. It shall contain
not less than 15 percent nitrate nitrogen.
(8) "Crude, inert, or slow-acting nitrogenous
materials" means unprocessed organic substances relatively high in nitrogen but
having a very low value as plant food and showing a low activity by both the
alkaline and neutral permanganate methods, below 50 percent and 80 percent
respectively.
(9) "Cyanamid" means
a commercial product consisting principally of calcium cyanamid (CaNCN) and
carbon and it shall contain not less than 19.5 percent nitrogen.
(10) "Dried blood" means collected blood of
slaughtered animals, dried and ground, and containing not less than 12 percent
nitrogen.
(11) "Dried, pulverized,
shredded, composted, or otherwise processed, manipulated, or treated animal
manures" means a manure containing no more organic bedding materials, or other
materials, than is necessary to follow good dairy barn, poultry house, etc.,
practice in order to maintain proper sanitary conditions, to conserve plant
food elements in excreta, and to absorb adequately the liquid
portion.
(12) "Fish tankage, fish
scrap, dry ground fish, fish meal fertilizer grade" means the dried ground
product derived from rendered or unrendered fish.
(13) "Garbage tankage" means the rendered,
dried, and ground product from waste household food products.
(14) "Hoof and horn meal" means processed
dried, ground hoofs and horns.
(15)
"Isobutylene Diurea (IBDU)" means a condensation product of isobutyraldehyde
and urea having a minimum total nitrogen content of 31 percent. It is a source
of slowly available nitrogen by virtue of particle size, solubility decreasing
with increase in partical size. Material conforming to the description of a
"granular fertilizer" will have 90 percent of its nitrogen content in the
water-insoluble form before grinding.
(16) "Nitrate of potash (potassium nitrate)"
means a substance, chiefly the potassium salt of nitric acid. It shall contain
not less than 12 percent of nitrogen and 44 percent of potash.
(17) "Nitrate of soda (sodium nitrate)" means
a substance, chiefly the sodium salt of nitric acid. It shall contain not less
than 16 percent nitrate nitrogen and 26 percent sodium.
(18) "Nitrate of soda and potash (sodium and
potassium nitrate)" means a substance, chiefly the sodium and potassium salts
of nitric acid. It shall contain not less that 15 percent of nitrate nitrogen,
1 percent of potash, and 18 percent of sodium.
(19) "Peat" means partly decayed vegetable
matter of natural occurrence. It is chiefly composed of organic matter that
contains some nitrogen of low activity.
(20) "Process tankage" means a product made
under steam pressure from crude inert nitrogenous materials, with or without
the use of acids, for the purpose of increasing the activity of nitrogen. These
products shall be called process tankage with or without further qualification.
The water-insoluble nitrogen in these products shall test at least 50 percent
active by the alkaline, or 80 percent by the neutral permanganate
method.
(21) "Sheep manure-wool
waste" means the by-product from wool-carding establishments consisting chiefly
of sheep manure, seeds, and wool fiber.
(22) "Sulfur Coated Urea (SCU)" means a
coated slow release fertilizer consisting of urea particles coated with sulfur.
The product is usually further coated with a sealant (2 percent to 3 percent of
total weight) and a conditioner (2 percent to 3 percent of total weight). It
typically contains about 30 percent to 40 percent nitrogen and about 10 percent
to 30 percent sulfur.
(23) "Sulfate
of ammonia (ammonium sulfate)" means a substance, chiefly the ammonium salt of
sulfuric acid. It shall contain not less than 20.5 percent of
nitrogen.
(24) "Tankage (without
qualification)" means the rendered, dried, ground by-product, largely meat and
bone from animals (slaughtered or that have died otherwise).
(25) "Urea" means the commercial synthetic
acid amide of carbonic acid which contains not less than 45 percent
nitrogen.
(26) "Urea-form
fertilizer materials" means reaction products of urea and formaldehyde
containing at least 35 percent nitrogen largely in insoluble but slowly
available form. The water-insoluble content shall be at least 60 percent of the
total nitrogen. The water-insoluble nitrogen in these products shall have an
activity of not less than 40 percent.
(27) "Urea-formaldehyde products" means a
product containing not less than 35 percent total nitrogen.
E. Phosphorus Products (P).
(1) "Acidulated bone" means a ground bone or
bone meal that has been treated with sulfuric acid.
(2) "Ammoniated superphosphate" means a
product obtained when superphosphate is treated with ammonia or with solutions
which contain ammonia and other compounds of nitrogen. The guaranteed
percentages of nitrogen and of available phosphoric acid shall be stated as
part of the name.
(3) "Ammonium
phosphate (fertilizer grade)" means a product obtained when phosphoric acid is
treated with ammonia, and consists principally of monoammonium phosphate or a
mixture of these two salts. The guaranteed percentage of nitrogen and of
available phosphoric acid shall be stated as part of the name.
(4) "Ammonium phosphate-sulfate" (fertilizer
grade) means a product obtained when a mixture of phosphoric acid and sulfuric
acid is treated with ammonia. It consists principally of a mixture of ammonium
phosphate and ammonium sulfate. The guaranteed percentages of nitrogen and of
available phosphoric acid shall be stated as a part of the name.
(5) "Available phosphoric acid" means the sum
of the water-soluble and the citrate-soluble phosphoric acid.
(6) "Basic lime phosphate (lime-based
superphosphate)" means a superphosphate to which liming materials have been
added in a quantity at least 6 percent calcium carbonate equivalent in excess
of the quantity required to convert all water-insoluble phosphate to the
citrate-soluble form.
(7) "Basic
phosphate slag" means a by-product obtained in the manufacture of steel from
phosphatic iron ores. The product shall contain no admixture of materials other
than those resulting from the original process of manufacture. It shall contain
not less than 12 percent of total phosphoric acid, of which at least 80 percent
shall be available phosphoric acid. It shall be ground so that not less than 70
percent of the material passes through a U.S. Standard No. 100 sieve and 90
percent passes through a U.S. Standard No. 50 sieve. Any basic phosphoric slag
not conforming to this definition shall be designated low phosphate.
(8) "Calcined phosphate" means a phosphate
rock which has been heated, with or without one or more catalysts or reagents,
sufficient to volatize and remove most or all organic, carbonate, fluoride, and
other impurities, or thermally altered to more available phosphate compounds,
or both, depending on the process. A significant portion of the phosphorus is
citrate soluble and the percentage shall be stated as part of the brand name.
Include are products known as fused tricalcium phosphate, defluorinated
phosphate, rhenania phosphate, and various trade names.
(9) "Calcium metaphosphate" means a vitreous
product substantially free from crystalline phosphates, resulting from the
treatment of phosphate rock with gaseous phosphorus pentoxide at high
temperatures. The guaranteed percentage of available phosphoric acid shall be
stated as part of the name.
(10)
"Citrate-soluble phosphoric acid" means that part of the total phosphoric acid
in a fertilizer that is insoluble in water but soluble in a solution of citrate
of ammonia.
(11) "Dicalcium
phosphate" means a manufactured product consisting chiefly of dicalcic salt of
phosphoric acid.
(12) "Ground raw
bone" means ground animal bones that have not previously been steamed under
pressure.
(13) "Ground steamed
bone" means ground animal bones that have been previously steamed under
pressure.
(14) "Phosphate rock"
means a natural rock containing one or more calcium phosphate minerals of
sufficient purity and quantity to permit its use, either directly or after
concentration, in the manufacture of commercial products.
(15) "Phosphoric acid" means phosphorus
pentoxide (P2O5).
(16) "Polyphosphates" means a general term
pertaining to salts of any of a series of polyphosphoric acids, whose molecular
structure contain two or more phosphorus atoms linked by oxygen. Solutions may
contain several species such as orthophosphates, pyrophosphates, and
polyphosphates containing three or more phosphorus atoms, commonly known as
tripolyphosphates or tetrapolyphosphates and water.
(17) "Precipitated phosphate" means a product
consisting mainly of dicalcium phosphate obtained by neutralizing with calcium
hydroxide the acid solution of either phosphate rock or processed
bone.
(18) "Soft phosphate with
colloidal clay" means a very finely divided low-analysis by-product from mining
Florida rock phosphate by a hydraulic process in which the colloidal materials
settle at points in artificial ponds and basins farthest from the washer, and
are later removed after the natural evaporation of the water.
(19) "Superphosphate" means a product
obtained when rock phosphate is treated with either sulfuric acid, phosphoric
acid, or a mixture of those acids. The guaranteed percentage of available
phosphoric acid shall be stated as a part of the name.
(20) "Superphosphoric acid" means the acid
form of polyphosphates, consisting of a mixture of orthophosphoric and
polyphosphoric acids. Species distribution varies with concentration, typically
68 percent to 83 percent
P2O5.
F. Potassium Products (K).
(1) "Double sulfate of potash and magnesia
(Langbeinite)" means a commercial product containing not less than 21 percent
of soluble potash (K2O), or less than 53 percent of
sulfate of magnesia and not more than 2.5 percent of chlorine.
(2) "Kainit" means a potash salt containing
potassium and sodium chlorides and sometimes sulfate of magnesia with not less
than 12 percent of soluble potash (K2O).
(3) "Mine run potash salts" means potash
salts containing a high percentage of chloride and from 20 percent to 30
percent of soluble potash (K2O).
(4) "Muriate of potash (commercial potassium
chloride)" means a potash salt containing 48 percent to 62 percent of soluble
potash (K2O) chiefly as chloride.
(5) "Nitrate of potash (potassium nitrate)"
means a substance, chiefly the potassium salt of nitric acid. It shall contain
not less than 12 percent of nitrogen and 44 percent of soluble
potash.
(6) "Nitrate of soda and
potash (sodium and potassium nitrate)" means a substance, chiefly the sodium
and potassium salts of nitric acid. It shall contain not less than 15 percent
of nitrate nitrogen, 10 percent of soluble potash, and 18 percent of
sodium.
(7) "Potash" means
potassium oxide (K2O).
(8) "Soluble potash" means that portion of
the potash contained in fertilizer or fertilizer materials which is soluble in
an aqueous ammoniacal solution of 0.8 percent ammonium oxalate, after boiling
in a 1.14 percent solution of ammonium oxalate.
(9) "Sulfate of potash (commercial potassium
sulfate)" means a potash salt containing not less than 48 percent of soluble
potash (K2O) chiefly as sulfate, and not more than 2.5
percent of chlorine.
(10) "Sulfate
of potash-magnesia" means a potash salt containing not less than 25 percent
soluble potash (K2O), or less than 25 percent of sulfate
of magnesia, and not more than 2.5 percent of chlorine.
Notes
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