<![CDATA[Excessive and inefficient use of nitrogen (N), phosphorus (P), and potassium (K) fertilizers remains a major issue in agricultural systems, often leading to low nutrient use efficiency and environmental losses. Slow-release fertilizers in different forms, such as tablets and granules, combined with coating technology, represent a potential strategy to regulate nutrient availability and improve release efficiency. This study aimed to evaluate the release patterns of N (including NH4+, NO3-, and total N), P, and K from coated and uncoated slow-release fertilizers in tablet and granule forms. The experiment, conducted at the Laboratory of Soil Chemistry and Plant Nutrition, Universitas Padjadjaran, used a Completely Randomized Design (CRD) with four treatments and five replications. The treatments included coated tablet fertilizer (A), uncoated tablet fertilizer (B), coated granule fertilizer (C), and uncoated granule fertilizer (D), incubated for 10 weeks under laboratory conditions. The key implication of these results is that uncoated tablet fertilizer (B) delivered the most balanced nutrient release, with total N, P, and K releases of 80.07%, 70.87%, and 88.22%, respectively, suggesting it may offer a practical solution for improving nutrient efficiency while minimizing losses. In contrast, coated tablet fertilizer (A) showed the slowest release, while uncoated granule fertilizer (D) had the fastest. These findings highlight that manipulating fertilizer form and coating application play a decisive role in optimizing nutrient release kinetics and improving synchronization in slow-release fertilizer systems, offering a targeted approach to address agricultural nutrient management challenges. Keywords: granule fertilizer, macronutrients, nutrient release, slow-release fertilizer, tablet fertilizer]]>
