Tomatoes are the most popular vegetables grown by gardeners. This plant has a very high popularity due to its unsurpassed taste and versatility of use. tomatoes are heat and light-loving plants than in our climate they can only be provided in the southern regions.
In colder climate zones, in order to obtain good yields, it is necessary not only to use seedling cultivation of tomatoes, but also to constantly supply them with additional nutrition, that is, to feed them. And if at the stage seedlings this does not present any particular problems, then after transplanting the plants, the issue of top dressing will be quite acute.
The article discusses the features of top dressing of tomatoes at various stages of their life cycle - from seedlings to transplanting into a greenhouse or open ground, flowering and ripening.
Content:
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How to fertilize
top dressing
There are several global concepts for feeding tomatoes. They all use roughly the same “feed base” in the form of fertilizers used, but differ in the timing of their introduction and the number of top dressings during cultivation.
The most popular versions are as follows:
Ultimately, the choice depends on the desire of the gardener or his ability to appear on the site. From the point of view of agricultural technology, all of the above schemes have the right to exist and are quite successfully applied.
Attention should be paid to that the first two options operate with higher concentrations of fertilizers than the third, and for their successful implementation, certain rules must be observed.
Usually, top dressing is combined with watering plants.
These rules are to comply with the maximum allowable rates of fertilizer application, as well as the compatibility of various types of dressings.
One of the basic rules when using mineral fertilizers is not to apply only one component. Any mineral fertilizer should be applied together with a substance that neutralizes or weakens its negative impact.
For example, during the spring, to stimulate the growth of green mass, it is not necessary to apply only urea, since ammonia is released during its decomposition. Neutralization of the harmful effects of ammonia can be done if urea is applied along with potash fertilizers.
There are complex fertilizers that do not have such a drawback (superphosphate, nitrophos, potassium salt, etc.), however, it is often necessary to use monocomponent fertilizers, and this circumstance must be remembered.
Technically, top dressing of tomatoes can be done under the root, or in the foliar way - by spraying the leaves.
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Root feeding seedlings
This stage is not of particular interest, because if the tomato seedlings are in order, then they do not need fertilizers at all. Get healthy seedlings tomato very simple: it is necessary to use soils with a high content (more than 50%) peat or compost and provide plants with timely watering and lighting.
If the need for fertilizer seedlings still remains, specialized fertilizers should be used, for example, Biohumus, Effekton, Athlete, and so on.
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Top dressing of adult plants
Wood ash is one of the "favorite" tomato fertilizers. It is used most often, since it contains most of the elements useful for this culture.
After the plants are planted in open ground or in a greenhouse, it is necessary to refrain from fertilizing at first in order to give the plant time to adapt after transplantation. A damaged root system will not be able to fully assimilate top dressing, in addition, the likelihood of a plant getting a chemical burn in the first few weeks after transplantation is very high.
A further strategy for fertilizing depends on what the gardener ultimately wants to get.
In fact, there are only three options for action that you can take:
In addition, regardless of the chosen scheme for feeding tomatoes after transplantation, it is necessary to attend to the introduction of microelements, necessary for the normal formation of flowers in plants.
If pre-prepared feed mixtures are used, they will already have the necessary components, otherwise they will need to be added by yourself.
Tomatoes need magnesium and boron for the normal formation of ovaries. These components are needed during the flowering period, they prevent wilting and falling of the ovaries. In addition, boron is necessary for the correct accumulation of sugar in fruits.
To fully provide the plant with these components, one (maximum two) foliar top dressing is sufficient, carried out two weeks after transplantation. In this case, a solution of boric acid is used at a concentration of 0.1% (1 g per 1 l).
BOR + MAGNESIUM fertilizer
The lack of magnesium will be visible even at the stage of seedling cultivation - these are small yellow spots on the leaves of the plant, which, if no action is taken, will spread to the entire leaf area.
In case of detection of such symptoms, it is necessary to add magnesium in the form of:
- foliar (1.5 g per 1 liter of water)
or
- basal (3 g per 1 liter of water) top dressing
Magnesium sulfate or magnesium nitrate in combination with colloidal sulfur can be used as a fertilizer.
In the case of an acute lack of magnesium, you can go to extreme measures: use magnesium nitrate in combination with sulfur. This dressing is very active and is applied exclusively under the root of the plant. It combines very well with the previously mentioned boric acid, however, the methods of application remain different: magnesium - under the root, boron - on the leaves.
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Top dressing during flowering is important
Top dressing of flowering plants plays an important role in the formation of ovaries, both when grown in a greenhouse and in open ground. And the more flowers will be tied, the more fruits will subsequently be formed.
At the same time, one should not forget that exceeding the norms for applying fertilizers can have even more negative consequences than their lack.
As with all other stages, both organic and mineral top dressings can be used during flowering. At this stage, the use of foliar dressings is still acceptable.
As soon as fruit ovaries begin to form in the plant, it is recommended to stop the process of foliar top dressing, and use only basal ones.
Minerals
The following substances or compositions can be recommended as mineral fertilizers:
- potassium sulfate
- potassium salt
- superphosphate (single or double)
In principle, the rules for applying all these fertilizers are approximately the same., and the norms generally repeat the instructions of different drugs one to one.
The standard concentration of all these substances is 15 g of fertilizer per 10 liters of water, which is poured over 1 sq. m landings.
An alternative to the listed substances can be complex fertilizers created specifically for flowering tomatoes:
- Kemira
- station wagon
- Effecton
- and etc.
organic
Fertilizing with yeast solution
Fertilizing plants with organic matter at the flowering stage is carried out using humate or yeast. In the first case, special concentrates are used that are soluble in sufficiently large volumes of water (1 g per 20 liters).
When using yeast, the following fertilizer mix is recommended:
- 100 g fresh yeast diluted in 1 liter of warm water
- the solution is brought to a volume of 10 l and waiting for the appearance of yeast foam
- 15 bushes are watered with the resulting composition
An alternative method is to use dry yeast. In this case, it is necessary to dilute 10 g of yeast in 10 liters of water and let the solution brew for about 2 days. Then it is diluted in a concentration of 1 to 10 and watered at the rate of 10 liters under one bush.
Together with yeast subcortex, wood ash is often added in an amount of up to 200 g per 1 sq. m.
Ash can also be used as an independent fertilizer - once a week, 1 spoon of ash is added under each bush. Or twice a month, plants are watered with a suspension of ash in water (100 g of ash is dissolved in 10 liters of water).
The easiest way to prepare organic top dressing during the flowering stage is to use herbal infusion.
In order to make an infusion, use a plastic container (barrel) of 200 liters. It is filled with the following components:
- 5 buckets of weed (nettle)
- 10 l of mullein or 5 kg of bird droppings
- 1 kg of yeast
- 1 kg wood ash
- 3 liters of milk, "sour" or whey
The resulting "cocktail" is filled with water to its full volume and left to infuse for 2 weeks. Naturally, this must be done in advance, so that by the time the top dressing is applied during flowering, the material is already ready.
Irrigation rate - 1 liter for each bush. Re-watering - not earlier than a week later.
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Fertilizing for crop maturation
Barrel with herbal infusion
After the fruits are tied in top dressing, adjustments must be made. During this period, it is not recommended to give the plant shock doses of superphosphates or potash fertilizers. All this had to be done at the flowering stage.
The role of top dressing during ripening is reduced not so much to filling the fruit with nutrients, but to stimulating the plant to produce these substances itself.
At this stage, you can use humates, or a natural source of calcium, magnesium and phosphorus in the form of ordinary wood ash.
It is recommended to use ash top dressing at this time, made according to the following recipe:
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Fertilizing tomatoes with yeast
When applying dressings for tomatoes, it is recommended to use folk remedies and natural fertilizers more often than products of the chemical industry. The use of the latter is justified only in the case of poor soils in growing areas.
Another option for the mandatory use of "chemistry" is the use of fertilizers to combat some kind of tomato disease. On the other hand, the rational use of certain fertilizers will always have a positive effect on the crop and will greatly facilitate its cultivation.
The main thing in this matter is to follow the fertilizer application schedule, the norms for their use and not to combine incompatible components.
Thematic video:
FEEDING OF TOMATOES. HOW TO FEED TOMATO SEEDLINGS
What should I feed the tomatoes after planting in the greenhouse, in the ground so that they are plump and tasty (Photo & Video) + Reviews
Part of the "gardening" community is of the opinion that the question of how to feed the tomatoes in the greenhouse immediately after planting is not worth it at all. Such gardeners believe that the first procedure should be carried out no earlier than two weeks after transplanting to a permanent place.