Nutrients in the liquid portion are water soluble and highly available for crop use. Nutrient content varies between livestock and poultry. See Table 2 below . This happens to manure lying on top of the soil, particularly in dry, warm windy weather. Therefore, in wet soils, nitrate may be leached away with excess soil water or become volatile as a result of denitrification.
Crops generally have higher requirements for N than for other major elements.
Phosphates, unlike nitrates, are virtually immobile in soils because, if not used by plants, they form insoluble compounds in combination with calcium, iron or aluminum. A small proportion of the soil P is normally available to plants. Soils generally have large stores of K, up to 10 times as much as N or P. Much is unavailable at any time, however, some release brings this element into the soil solution from which it can leach or be used by the plants. Most manure K is readily available, and during the first season, is either used by the crop or adsorbed on the soil to become available later. The moisture content of manure has an important effect on its consistency and on the selection of handling equipment and facilities.