Compost is a natural and affordable fertilizer for vegetable crops. In terms of nutrient content, it is equated to humus. Organic fertilizer is applied to garden or vegetable crops. It replenishes the lack of micro- and macroelements and improves the structure of the soil.
Experienced agronomists recommend using fertilizer for growing tomatoes to get strong bushes and tasty, large fruits. High-quality compost, even in small doses, doubles the yield. How to prepare such fertilizer at your dacha?
How to feed tomatoes now?
The best option for tomatoes is ash or potassium sulfate. It is better not to take potassium chloride - chlorine has a depressing effect on tomatoes. Of the microfertilizers that tomatoes need most, they are boron and magnesium. Boron is necessary during flowering so that flowers and ovaries do not fall off.
Interesting materials:
How to enable system sounds in Windows 7? How to enable Skype on Windows 10? How to enable the scanner on Windows 10? How to enable WLAN AutoConfig service in Windows XP? How to enable Bluetooth service in Windows 7? How to enable Windows 10 media streaming service? How to enable Windows Defender service? How to enable SMB on Windows 10? How to enable stereo sound in Windows 10? How to enable the touchpad on a Lenovo Windows 7 laptop?
What fertilizers can be placed in the hole when planting tomatoes?
Now let's look at fertilizing in more detail. Let's start with organic fertilizers .
Many summer residents believe that the optimal fertilizer to put in the hole when planting is ash. The fertilizer consumption rate is 100 g per hole.
Another very effective and popular remedy is rotten manure. You need even less of it. Only 50 grams per well. Keep two things in mind. You cannot use fresh manure, and be sure to cover it with soil.
You can use compost instead of manure. The consumption rate is the same.
Bird droppings will do just fine. First, a week before planting the tomatoes, we prepare the concentrate. Pour 1.5 kg of product into a bucket of water, cover and leave to ferment. Next, when planting, dilute the concentrate: a glass of droppings in a bucket of water. A quarter liter mug is enough for one well.
The advantage of mineral fertilizers is that much less is needed. A regular package is enough to plant an entire tomato plantation.
Ammonium nitrate or urea is added to make the tomato bush grow faster. Both of these products need 30 grams per bucket of water.
If your seedlings are elongated, it is better to add superphosphate when planting. The norm for 1 well is a tablespoon.
ON A NOTE. If you are adding superphosphate, then ammonium nitrate cannot be added.
And finally, the most effective mineral remedy is nitrophoska. For liquid fertilizer you need a matchbox for a bucket. If you apply dry fertilizer with further watering, then a pinch is enough for each planting hole.
For seedlings
To grow high-quality seedlings, you need to choose the right soil composition for sowing seeds. The best option would be to make your own soil mixture, which will include:
- 1 kg of ordinary soil;
- 1 kg of humus;
- 2 kg of peat;
- 0.5 kg of sand.
A week after picking the seedlings, in order to give them strength for active growth, they are fertilized with organic fertilizer. To prepare it, 1 liter of organic matter is diluted with a bucket of water. After a week of fermentation, 200 ml of the resulting infusion is dissolved in 10 liters of water and 100 ml is added to each plant.
Features of care
When growing tomato seedlings without soil, care for young seedlings is reduced to a minimum: only warmth and sun, no watering. At the initial stage, plants do not need soil. The need to plant tomatoes in the ground arises at the picking stage, when the cotyledon leaves develop, and the need for fertilizer occurs before the first shoots appear.
Top dressing
Initially, seedlings grown without soil can be fed by adding humic acid to the water in containers with sprouts. A second feeding will be required when the first leaf appears.
When and how to plant seedlings in containers with soil?
Seedlings are not removed from containers with damp paper until the first leaves appear . Next, it is transplanted into the ground.
- After removing the sprouts from the paper, they are selected: those that have developed a root system are further replanted, and the less strong ones are discarded.
- A sprouted root that has begun to branch must be reduced to the size of a seedling.
- Young plants are planted in soil that is half filled with containers with drainage holes.
- After deepening, each plant is moistened with water at room temperature.
- The containers with seedlings are covered with film and sent to a warm place overnight.
- In the morning, containers with seedlings can be placed on the window.
- As the tomatoes grow, soil is added to each container.
In all other respects, the procedure for caring for seedlings without using land does not differ from the classical one.
How to prepare seeds?
Caring for seeds involves their preliminary preparation . Landless methods of growing seedlings also require this procedure. These actions consist of:
- seed treatment in potassium permanganate;
- warming up;
- hardening;
- soaking.
It is advisable to prepare a larger number of seeds so that when replanting it is possible to select the best of them.
You can read about the general preparation of tomato seeds for sowing from this article.
Soil acidity for tomatoes
Tomatoes do not grow well in acidic soil and prefer neutral or slightly acidic soil. Therefore, it is necessary to determine the acidity of the soil for tomatoes using litmus paper. If the litmus test results in an acidic reaction, the acidity must be tested in the laboratory.
By the way, if you are interested in landscape design, we recommend using the online calculator https://konturland.ru/services/project! And here are examples of landscaped gardens.
You can also roughly estimate the acidity of the soil using 9% vinegar: pour a little vinegar on the ground - if the soil is alkaline, foam will form; if the soil is acidic, there will be no reaction.
The maximum permissible acidity level should be no more than 7, or even better – 5.5-6.
If necessary, soil acidity can be reduced by liming the soil. The work is carried out in the fall, the soil is evenly sprinkled with quicklime in an amount of one to one and a half kg per m², and dug up onto the bayonet of a shovel (20-25 cm).
Liming can be carried out in early spring, but it is still preferable to perform this operation before winter. In spring, it is better to use slaked lime, chalk, ash, dolomite or limestone flour.
Types of manure
The product, consisting of waste from large and small livestock, birds and horses, is classified as organic fertilizer. Optimal for tomatoes is the use of manure that has been rotted (at least 12 months) and does not contain aggressive substances, heavy metals or plant seeds.
The composition of waste from farm animals includes 3 main elements:
- water;
- nitrogen;
- organic substances (macro- and microelements).
Thanks to the constant process of decomposition of substances contained in humus, carbon dioxide is released, which has a positive effect on the process of growth and development of tomatoes. This property of fresh manure is used to warm up high ridges and soil in a greenhouse.
It acts slowly, so you can fertilize the soil under the plants and holes with humus directly before planting, without diluting it in water.
Residues of organic elements contribute to the activation of soil microflora, which has a positive effect on its performance. There is a decrease in soil acidity and the negative impact of excess salts on plant roots.
Bovine
The use of cow dung is common and has centuries of experience. Its use requires compliance with certain rules and knowledge. The composition contains a large amount of nitrates, so it is important to monitor the dosage.
Nitrogen content is about 35% of the total microelements. It is rich in potassium, calcium and phosphorus. It is recommended to use up to 10 kg of cow manure per 1 m.
Horse
Horse waste, together with used bedding, is the most valuable type of organic fertilizer. Unlike others, horse manure has a lighter structure. It is not susceptible to the influence of pathogenic microflora and protects the soil from acidification, which is important when growing tomatoes.
Such manure contains 10-12% more nitrogen and other minerals than cow manure, which contributes to more complete saturation of plants. Due to the more concentrated composition of horse manure, tomatoes require less feeding.
There is also rabbit and pig manure. Rabbit manure is not inferior in nutritional value to horse manure, and pork manure is the worst of organic fertilizers. It is liquid, may contain helminths, and is almost never used in agriculture.
Quarry or construction sand
Quarry and construction types of sand are completely unsuitable for seedling soil. They are not fertile and contain a lot of clay, which conducts water and air very poorly, and thus has a detrimental effect on young seedlings. In addition, such sand contains practically no nutrients. Therefore, to create soil mixtures, it is best to use sand extracted from a river bed. It is much lighter and cleaner, there is practically no clay or other impurities in it.
Advantages and disadvantages of such a landing
Anyone can grow tomatoes from seeds using the landless method, but before doing so, you need to learn both the pros and cons of this method.
pros
Obviously, in conditions of germinating seedlings in an apartment, refusing to use soil greatly simplifies the life of a gardener . Significant space is saved for using planting containers with plants, there is no risk of soil spilling, and the procedure for planting seeds does not require much effort. Other advantages of soilless seedling germination compared to classical ones include the following.
- Allows you to check the survival rate of seeds of questionable quality. When using this method, the summer resident does not incur losses at all in the absence of germination of defective seeds.
- Saves money for preparing seedlings. There is no need to purchase expensive means and devices for germinating seedlings, and the materials used (film) can be used for several seasons.
- Reduces the adaptation time of seedlings after transplanting into the ground by 10-14 days. The roots of sprouted seeds are not damaged when transplanted into the soil, which allows the plant to take root in a new place in a shorter time.
- Makes maintenance easier. It is enough to place the container for growing seedlings in a warm place and regularly moisten the crops.
- Allows you to plant seedlings not simultaneously, but in stages, as the tomatoes grow.
- Eliminates contamination of seeds by dangerous infections living in the soil. Seedlings sprout healthier and stronger.
Minuses
When evaluating landless methods of sowing tomato seeds for seedlings, you need to know not only the advantages, but also other possible disadvantages.
- Seeds are planted relatively later . When sown early, seedlings may turn out elongated with faded and yellowish leaves.
- You can't miss the time to pick a plant . Transplantation into the ground is necessary immediately after the first leaves appear.
