An organic fertilizer may contain necessary nutrients besides N, P, and K. Bonemeal, for example, is high in calcium as well as phosphorus. Liquid seaweed contains many micronutrients. Read the label carefully for information on other materials the fertilizer contains, what it's made from, and what effect the material has on plants and soil organisms. Solid fertilizers, which you apply dry, may be fine powders, large granules, or something in between. Fertilizers you apply wet may come as powders that you dissolve in water or as concentrates that you dilute with water.
Dry fertilizers work more slowly but last longer.
You can spread a dry fertilizer evenly over a large area, a method called broadcasting. Or you can sprinkle dry fertilizer next to a plant, or beside a row of plants, which is called sidedressing. To get the nutrients to the roots faster when you sidedress, lightly scratch the fertilizer into the soil, being careful not to nick the roots or stem. To apply a liquid fertilizer, first dissolve or dilute it according to label instructions. Because plants close down their leaf pores when it's sunny or hot, apply foliar fertilizers early or late in the day, or during a cloudy spell.