A water-storing granule is a granule that takes up water, swells into a gel and releases it to the plant root again in dry periods. In agriculture it is worked into the root zone. PowerGelee by GeleeVital combines the granule with high-quality active soil conditioners and is blended to the farm’s soil analysis.
What is a water-storing granule?
Dry, it looks like coarse salt. When water is added, each grain swells into a gel. The pure water store in PowerGelee absorbs up to 380 times its own weight in water, measured in pure water. In soil it is less, because dissolved salts slow the swelling.
It is needed because rainfall is becoming more uneven: nothing for weeks, then a lot in a short time. Yet many crops need their water exactly in the dry weeks. Corn, for example, has its highest demand around flowering, usually in July and August. A soil that stores little then loses twice: in the dry period water is missing at the root, and in heavy rain it drains away and takes dissolved nutrients with it.
What a water-storing granule does in the soil
The granule sits right in the root zone. When it rains or you irrigate, it fills up. When it turns dry, the root draws the water from the gel. Dissolved nutrients stay in the root zone along with the water, so less is leached.
PowerGelee also contains high-quality active soil conditioners. They follow your soil analysis and add what the soil lacks. They improve soil structure and rebuild depleted soils over several years.
PowerGelee has a half-life of about 5 years. So you do not apply it anew every year. The benefit is spread over several crops and rotations.
Which crops are water-storing granules suitable for?
PowerGelee is suitable in principle for all conventional crops. Our customers use it in these areas:
- Arable farming: corn, sugar beet
- Vegetables: pumpkin, zucchini
- Specialty crops: asparagus, strawberries, including in polytunnels
- Orchards: cherries, apples
- Vineyards: vines and vine nurseries. For newly planted or replanted young vines there is VitalYouth.
For horticulture, ornamentals and green spaces there is VitalFlower. View the products
Application and amount
The granule only works where the root gets to. That is why it belongs in the root zone and is not spread on the surface. Depending on crop and machinery, it is done like this:
- with the seed drill as a row application at sowing
- with a rotary harrow and seeding unit while sowing
- with the mulch film layer when planting, straight under the film
- with a spreader followed by ploughing or cultivating it in
On the amount: on average it is about 150 kg of PowerGelee per hectare. What your field needs depends on the soil analysis, soil type, crop and application method. The amount is stated in the quote we prepare based on your lab report.
Field comparison: with and without PowerGelee
Corn: both fields are right next to each other. Left: 75 kg PowerGelee applied in the row; right: without. The photo comes from the field and is unedited. Drag the slider.
with 75 kg PowerGeleewithout
In strawberries there was about 30 % more fruit set on average, including in polytunnels. All field comparisons: pumpkin, sugar beet, strawberries, corn · Testimonials
What a water-storing granule cannot do
- It replaces neither rain nor irrigation. It only stores what arrives.
- It is not a fertiliser. Fertilisation stays. But as long as PowerGelee is working in the soil, you can fertilise about 30 % less than before. That is optional: you can also keep fertilising as usual. Liming is still needed.
- It does not fix compaction. A plough pan has to be broken up first.
- We do not give a yield guarantee.
If you have a lab report of your soil sample, you can upload it to us. We tell you without obligation whether PowerGelee suits your soil, and in which blend.
We deliver to Germany, France, Austria and Switzerland, and to other countries on request.
Frequently asked questions about water-storing granules
How much water-storing granule is needed per hectare?
With PowerGelee it is about 150 kg per hectare on average. The exact amount depends on the soil analysis, soil type, crop and application method and is stated in the quote. In our field comparison in corn it was 75 kg applied in the row.
How long does a water-storing granule last in the soil?
PowerGelee has a half-life of about 5 years. So around 5 years after it is worked in, about half of it is still active in the soil. It breaks down gradually and does not need to be applied again every year.
Which crops are water-storing granules suitable for?
PowerGelee is suitable in principle for all conventional crops: arable farming, vegetables, specialty crops, orchards and vineyards. Our customers use it for corn, sugar beet, pumpkin, zucchini, asparagus, strawberries, cherries and apples, among others, including in polytunnels.
On which soils do water-storing granules help most?
On light, free-draining soils with little humus. Sand and sandy loam hold little water by themselves. On compacted soils the compaction has to go first, otherwise the root does not reach the store.
Can water-storing granules be used in organic farming?
Due to EU regulations, PowerGelee is designed exclusively for conventional agriculture. This may be different in your country, so feel free to ask us.
Current soil moisture data
Two public services show how dry the soil currently is in Germany:
- German Drought Monitor, Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research (UFZ): drought status of topsoil and total soil, updated daily
- Soil moisture viewer, German Meteorological Service (DWD): soil moisture by crop, soil type and depth (in German)