Nettle infusion is an effective and budget-friendly fertilizer for the garden. In the article we will tell you in detail what is fed with nettle infusion and give the best recipes according to which you can easily prepare an excellent fertilizer for various crops yourself.
The use of green fertilizers in the garden not only increases the yield of crops grown, but also saves money. After all, to prepare most infusions you only need nettle, water and some other natural ingredients (yeast, weeds) that increase the effectiveness of feeding.
Useful properties of nettle
The composition of this burning plant includes such chemical elements as potassium (34%), calcium (37%), magnesium (6%), vitamins A, B, E, K, organic acids, tannins, phytoncides, etc. What exactly Is nettle useful for garden crops?
Potassium, calcium and magnesium are necessary for all types of plants for their full development. Moreover, these elements coming from nettles are easily absorbed by green pets. Vitamin K, which is contained in nettle leaves, is involved in such an important process as photosynthesis, and also improves plant immunity.
The remaining elements perfectly nourish garden crops, accelerate their growth and fruit ripening. In addition, feeding nettles has a positive effect on the development of ornamental plants and improves their flowering.
Nettle is an excellent medicine for both people and plants.
Thus, green fertilizer from nettle is suitable for almost all garden crops. It is not recommended to feed only legumes, onions and garlic with it, as nettle inhibits the growth of these plants.
Nettle as a fertilizer is most often used in the form of infusions, or rather fermented plant mass. Additional ingredients are often added to such fertilizers, which enhance the effect of fertilizing.
Nettle mulch
After filtering the nettle fertilizer, crushed nettle greens remain. It can also be put into action. Nettle tops make excellent mulch for garden beds.
Finely chopped nettles should be dried for 2-3 days, and then added to the holes in small portions (no more than a handful). Such mulch will be useful for seedlings, annuals during the growing season, and perennials at any time - fermented nettle greens contain a large amount of vitamins and minerals necessary for plants.
! It is important not to overdo it with mulch, since high nutrient content can lead to an overabundance of greenery to the detriment of flowering and fruiting.
*** Why buy fertilizers if you can make them yourself? Use nettle fertilizer and be sure that your green pets will definitely thank you with luxurious flowering and excellent harvests!
Nettle infusion recipe
There are many recipes for nettle infusion. And there are even more technologies for its preparation. Here we present the most popular, simple and time-tested classic version.
The branches and leaves of nettle, on which seeds have not yet appeared, are crushed and poured into a plastic container or oak barrel so that the green mass fills more than half the volume of the container. It is not recommended to use an iron container, since the nettle may react with the metal and many useful elements will be destroyed.
Then warm water (or boiling water) is poured into the container, covered with a lid and allowed to brew for about 14 days. In this case, the infusion is stirred daily.
As nettle ferments, the volume of the infusion increases, so water should not be poured to the very top.
If the nettle is exposed to the sun for a long time, the fermentation process will take less time. You can also add some yeast or liquid Baikal fertilizer to the infusion to speed up the reaction.
Fermented nettles give off an unpleasant odor. To get rid of it, you need to add valerian officinalis root to the infusion.
When fermentation ends (the infusion darkens and stops foaming), the fertilizer must be diluted with water in a ratio of 1:10.
You can also use foliar feeding. To do this, the concentrated nettle infusion is filtered, diluted with water 1:20 and sprayed on the plants.
Advantages and disadvantages of nettle feeding
Unlike mineral and organic fertilizers, nettle infusion has a number of significant advantages:
- It’s easy to collect raw materials for feeding: burning grass grows everywhere;
- the infusion consists of natural ingredients;
- the solution does not cause burns to roots and foliage;
- excess fertilizer does not accumulate in the soil;
- nettle is rich in vitamins, organic acids and phytoncides;
- useful substances are contained in an easily accessible form;
- the product does not contain harmful spores;
- the solution inhibits the development of pathogenic microorganisms.
On a note! Nettle infusion attracts earthworms, which loosen the soil and enrich it with humus.
The disadvantages of nettle fertilizer include the following:
- The infusion has an unpleasant odor.
- The use of fertilizing does not improve the soil structure.
How to feed tomatoes with nettles
Many experienced gardeners note that fermented nettles alone often make tomatoes fattening. Therefore, other weeds are added to the nettle infusion. Thus, a plant such as comfrey has proven itself well as a top dressing for tomatoes.
The infusion is prepared according to the above recipe and the resulting liquid is poured over the tomatoes at the root level at the rate of 1 liter per adult plant (0.5 liter is enough for recently planted seedlings).
You can also add 1 cup of wood ash to a bucket (10 liters) of green fertilizer to feed tomatoes.
To quickly ripen the crop, tomato leaves are sprayed with nettle infusion every month. Thanks to this, tomatoes grow large and get sick less often.
Nettle tops are also useful for tomatoes as mulch. It retains moisture in the soil and prevents slugs from entering the plants.
Dandelion fertilizer
The healthiest dandelions are FLOWERING dandelions! Before the transformation of yellow dandelions, “like the Sun,” into white, “like the Moon,” all summer residents are fighting with it. So we go to the dacha and pull out all the dandelions by the roots from the beds, from the lawns, from the paths, from the flower beds, etc.. But then we don’t throw out the dandelions. We cut off the roots (to compost them), and chop the green part with yellow flowers for vitamin spring fertilizer.
At the same time, useful fertilizer can be made either purely from dandelions, or by mixing dandelions in half with nettles.
Pure dandelion infusion is prepared according to the standard procedure and diluted 1 to 10 before watering.
Attention! It is not recommended to water beets with dandelion infusion.
For green vitamin solutions, use containers with a volume of 20-30 liters.
Infusion for early spring spraying of plants (before flowering) from instant dandelions
Pour 2 cups of dandelions into a bucket of hot water, leave for a couple of hours until cool and add a third of a piece of ordinary laundry soap. Spray!
How to feed strawberries with nettles
This tasty berry is also not averse to tasting green fertilizer. Fertilizing with nettles and bread has a particularly beneficial effect on strawberries. The potassium it contains increases the sweetness of the berries, nitrogen and yeast nourish the plants and help them form healthy shoots.
It is not difficult to prepare such fertilizer. The container is filled ¾ full with fresh stems and leaves of young nettles, and the remains of bread, rolls, crackers, as well as kvass and yeast (preferably fresh) are added there. All this is poured with warm water (also not to the very brim, so that the infusion does not “run away” during fermentation), cover with a lid and infuse in a warm place for 3-5 days. Before use, the infusion is diluted with water in a ratio of 1:10 and watered on the strawberry bushes at the root.
How long can you store?
It is recommended not to store the nettle infusion, but to use it as soon as it is ready and prepare a new one.
This is especially true for products that contain yeast and bread. Infusions easily turn sour, soured ones are not suitable for use. The maximum permissible storage period for nettle fertilizers is 1 week in a cool place. Nettle fertilizers can be used all summer long, as long as there are raw materials for preparation. You can water vegetables, flowers, seedlings, shrubs, tree seedlings, flowers. These are excellent organic fertilizers that supply plants with basic and additional nutrients. Nettle improves the development of young and fruit-bearing crops, stimulates flowering and the formation of ovaries, their preservation, and increases the quality and volume of the harvest.
Other recipes for nettle infusions
We have already said that green fertilizer can be made not only from nettles, but also with the addition of other weeds. Along with the previously mentioned comfrey, nettle infusion is perfectly enriched with burdock, dandelion (the plant is used before the seeds form), wormwood, yarrow, wheatgrass, coltsfoot, chamomile, etc.
Different plants complement each other well and create a multivitamin supplement containing all the elements necessary for garden crops. And if you add wood ash to the plant infusion, then it will be difficult to find a worthy replacement for such a universal and exclusively natural fertilizer.
Other plants are infused using the same recipe as nettle.
Any plants are suitable for preparing green fertilizers, except poisonous ones (in particular, field bindweed cannot be used). It is also not recommended to use cereals: when decomposed, they can form alcohol-containing compounds.
What plants are needed for?
Nettle fertilizers can be used to feed any type of cultivated plants in the garden, from young trees to flowers, especially in the early stages of their development, because they contain a lot of nitrogen.
Plants respond well to such feeding, which only benefits them and does not harm them in any way. There are no contraindications for the use of nettle fertilizers.
How often can you water plants with nettle infusion?
Root feeding of any crops is carried out 1-2 times a week, on cloudy days, after rain or during watering. Nettle infusion is used to water the soil around the plants at the rate of 0.5-1 liters for each bush.
Foliar feeding (spraying on leaves) is carried out, as a rule, once a month.
It should be noted that green fertilizers are best used during active growth (spring and early summer), since weed infusions contribute to the growth of green mass. And during fruiting, you should not get carried away with such fertilizing. Otherwise, the crops will grow wildly but bear little fruit.
We hope we have convinced you that nettle is not just a weed in the garden, but a noble plant, thanks to which you can grow an unprecedented harvest of vegetables and berries.
The benefits of organics for garden plants
Cattle or bird manure is used as organic fertilizer, but not every summer resident can afford such a pleasure. Many people come to their dachas with the onset of summer and do not breed livestock, so they have to buy litter or manure, which is very expensive.
You can use alternative methods of feeding plants with organic matter, for example, preparing fertilizer from green manure or weeds. It takes less time, but the quality is no different from manure.
Organic fertilizers have an advantage over mineral ones, as they are better absorbed by the root system. All microelements are in chelated form, which immediately enter the plants and are used for the construction of tissues. The organic shell is a kind of pass for the roots.
On the other hand, organic residues serve as food for soil microorganisms. Thanks to this, colonies of bacteria multiply and produce humus - the main element of fertility.
Humic acids are components of vitamins, so vegetables and fruits grown organically have high nutritional value, do not contain chemicals, and are absolutely harmless to the human body. Organic matter must be added every 2 to 3 years to maintain soil fertility.
If you use only mineral fertilizers, the soil dries out, does not retain moisture well, and the color changes to lighter. Sandy and clay soils especially need organic matter.
Pest control with nettle tincture
Even if the soil on the site fully complies with fertility parameters, nettle is used against pests. Phytoncides repel insects that lay eggs on the leaves of vegetable crops. Of course, if you use chemicals before this, then the nettle solution will no longer help, since it is a weaker substance.
In order for the liquid to linger on the leaves, add grated laundry soap. Spraying is carried out if rain is not expected. Better evening.
Chemical composition and benefits
To understand the benefits of this weed, you need to study the chemical composition of the plant. The main microelements that nettle fertilizer for tomatoes is rich in:
- Ca (calcium) - 37%. It promotes photosynthesis and metabolism. From a lack of calcium, growth stops, shoots and leaves wither.
- K (potassium) - 34%. It activates the work of enzymes, promotes the movement of beneficial microelements, and is responsible for maintaining moisture levels. From a lack of potassium, the plant loses strength and elasticity, then dies.
- Mg (magnesium) - 6%. Just like calcium, it is necessary for photosynthesis. The lack of magnesium is determined by the external appearance of the foliage: it loses color and becomes dull.
In terms of the amount of nitrogen, this weed significantly exceeds its content in bird, cow, and horse manure. All elements are well absorbed by vegetable crops, but are especially useful for tomatoes.
There are methods of fertilizing the nightshade family such as watering, mulching and spraying. When watered with nettle infusion, tomatoes tend to increase their vegetative mass and produce high-quality fruits. Mulching helps the plant develop and performs a protective function against attack by slugs and snails. Spraying eliminates harmful microorganisms and late blight.
Bonus – additional ways to use nettle
Green manure
The weed is used as green manure: freshly cut nettles are placed tightly on the soil in a layer of about 30 cm, and peat is sprinkled on top. After some time, the area is dug up.
Mulch
Mulching allows you to get rid of slugs forever.
Compost
Weeds from the first cutting are used as compost.
The following manipulations are carried out:
- Nettle is mixed with soil in a ratio of 10:1.
- The resulting mass is moistened and covered.
- A month later, Baikal EM-1 is added.
- Ferment in layers.
- At the beginning of autumn the mixture is ready for use.
Fertilizer for seeds
A fertilizer for seeds is made from nettle to increase germination and stimulate growth.
Perform the following actions:
- 1 tsp. dry herbs pour a glass of boiling water.
- The liquid is infused for 2 hours.
- Place the seeds in the solution. Leave for two hours.
Before planting the seeds, it is recommended to put nettles in each hole. Seed material is laid out on it and sprinkled with earth.
Germination will be about 100%, because the grass provides the necessary moisture to the future plant, a strong root system is formed, and the seedlings quickly grow.
Nitrogen fertilizer
Nitrogen fertilizer is prepared as follows:
- 1 kg of fresh herb is mixed with 2 tbsp. l. talc or fuller's earth
- The mixture is poured into 10 liters of water.
- Stir the resulting mass.
- They insist for 10 days.
- For root feeding, the concentrate is diluted in a ratio of 1:10 with water (for spraying 1:20).
Nettle for tomatoes: benefits
Nettle fertilizer for tomatoes: photo
Nettle has long been widely known for its many beneficial qualities and stood out among many weeds that were considered unwelcome guests in garden beds. Recipes for soups and porridges based on nettles, for example, spring cabbage soup, as well as healing nettle infusions, have been known for a long time.
Nettle has a hemostatic and diuretic effect, and also generally strengthens the human body, promotes wound healing and activation of metabolism. Bath brooms were made from nettle, and nettle burn was considered beneficial.
The rich vitamin composition of nettle benefits not only humans, but also vegetables. In particular, tomatoes. Nettle as a fertilizer is rich in all the macroelements necessary for the normal growth and development of tomato bushes.
The nitrogen contained in it promotes the growth of green mass of the young plant. Calcium is involved in the formation of a powerful root system. Potassium is essential for the fruiting process. Nettle also contains magnesium, carbon, and iron.
Feeding prepared from young nettles is especially beneficial. Nettle as a fertilizer for tomatoes nourishes not only the plants, but also the soil in which they grow, enriching its chemical composition.
Many gardeners prefer not to remove nettles from the site. Since its presence guarantees optimal conditions for the growth of other plants and also protects them from pests. It is recommended to plant vegetables in the place where there were previously thickets of nettles. There, the soil retains the beneficial substances inherent in this plant.
Mown or torn nettles are often used to mulch the soil in garden beds. A layer of mulch protects the soil from moisture loss, overheating and freezing. Allows you to reduce the number of weeding and loosening. In addition, mulching with nettles will help get rid of snails and slugs.
After several irrigation procedures, nettle mulch turns into a useful and nutritious top dressing. The undoubted advantage of nettle is its availability due to its wide distribution. You can find this useful weed in any garden plot or wasteland.
Preparation of nettles as fertilizer for agricultural needs does not require much effort. However, there are a number of recommendations that will allow you to achieve maximum effect when using it:
- Nettle collected before the formation of seeds is suitable as a raw material for feeding.
- Only strong plants that are free from damage and signs of disease are suitable for fertilizers.
- During the preparation of the infusion, it is necessary to thoroughly stir it every 2-3 days.
- It is best to store prepared nettle infusion in the sun.
- In order to speed up the fermentation process of the nettle mass, it is recommended to add regular yeast to the infusion.
- The remaining starter does not have to be poured out - it can be placed in a plastic container and stored until next season in the basement.
- After adding nettle to tomatoes, they need to be shed with plenty of water.
