How to feed tomatoes during flowering?
Top dressing with various fertilizers at all stages of growth is needed for tomatoes to ensure their full development, protect against diseases, and achieve successful fruiting. It is very important to properly feed the tomatoes during flowering, not only the harvest itself depends on this, but also the quality of the seeds - summer residents try to grow their favorite vegetable from their own planting material.
What nutrients do blooming tomatoes need?
The first flower cluster is formed when the tomato already has 3-4 pairs of developed leaves. The consumption of nitrogen leaves the foreground, it is added if the foliage is stunted, too light in color, the plant itself grows very slowly. This often happens with seedlings purchased from a random seller.
An indispensable element is phosphorus - without it, the root system will not be able to withstand the load from ripening fruits. Potassium is responsible for the formation of high-quality fruits, their timely ripening.
In addition to the main substances, greenhouse tomatoes at this time need various microelements, primarily calcium, boron, magnesium, sulfur.
Mineral fertilizers
Everything that plants need in this difficult period contains the usual mineral mixtures often used by summer residents:
- potassium sulfate - 15 g, superphosphate - 30 g per 10 liters of water;
- 60 g of superphosphate and 1 liter of boiling water are insisted for 14 hours, water is added to a total volume of 10 liters, tomatoes are fed on a leaf;
- nitrophoska (20 g) is mixed with potassium humate (15 ml), added to 10 l of water;
- an aqueous solution of potassium nitrate and magnesium sulfate (15 and 25 g, respectively, 10 l);
- potassium monophosphate - 10-15 g per 10 liters of water.
When root feeding, 1 liter of liquid is consumed per bush, pouring it directly under the root after watering.
It is undesirable to fertilize tomatoes with potassium chloride, since their root system of tomatoes suffers from the presence of this element in the soil.
If there are no signs of excess nitrogen in tomatoes, ready-made complexes are used. The manufacturer composes them so that the content of the main nutrients and their ratio are most favorable for the crop. In addition, the mixtures are supplemented with trace elements that plants need.
The following types of fertilizers are considered the best:
- "Kemira Lux", containing, in addition to N-P-K 16-20-27, trace elements - iron, zinc, copper, boron, molybdenum, manganese. It is worth adding wood ash, which enriches the composition with calcium.
- "Universal" - fertilizer with prolonged action (granular), not containing salts of perchloric acid, but enriched with humates. The content of N-P-K 7-7-8, there are magnesium, sulfur, iron and other micronutrient fertilizers, except for calcium.
- "Effecton" - organic mineral fertilizer, especially valuable for greenhouse conditions.
- "Senor Tomato" - narrowly targeted composition, containing N-P-K 1-4-2. It is enriched with humates and Azotbacter - microorganisms that improve the nutritional characteristics of the soil, feeding it with nitrogen.
When choosing other fertilizer complexes, take into account the following:
- phosphorus, potassium should be much more than nitrogen;
- the presence of primary trace elements is desirable;
- humates, humic acids are welcome;
- chlorine or its compounds are highly undesirable.
Commercial nutritional formulas are prepared in strict accordance with the manufacturer's recommendations.
Organics and folk remedies
You can get a high yield of tomatoes without the use of chemical fertilizers.Many years of experience of summer residents and technologies based on the use of new types of fertilizers not only ensure excellent fruiting of the crop, but also protect plantings from typical diseases, including late blight.
Humic fertilizers
A relatively new type of fertilizers managed to win the hearts of summer residents: they improve the structural composition of the soil and make it possible for beneficial bacteria to fully develop.
Suitable for flowering tomatoes:
- Gumi Kuznetsova;
- "Gumat-Universal";
- "Gumisol";
- "Lingogumat" and others.
Prepare nutrient solutions according to the instructions provided.
Yeast
Watering tomatoes with yeast gives a tremendous effect: even the "scruffy" catch up with their strong brothers, actively bloom and tie. It is not worth considering strictly as a top dressing yeast solution - rather, it is a good stimulant of long-term action. It works well on all soils, but on fertile soils it lasts longer - up to 4 weeks.
The feed solution is prepared according to the following procedure:
- 10 g of fresh yeast are taken for 1 liter of water;
- dissolve them in half a glass of warm water;
- insist 3-4 hours;
- bring the volume to 1 liter.
Flowering tomatoes are watered twice during flowering. Before flowering or at the very beginning, half a liter of nutrient solution is poured under each bush. Do this when the first flowers open. The second time, 1 l / bush is fed, when the flowering comes to an end, the first ovaries are formed.
At the same time, ash is added to the tomatoes, since the yeast "eats" the calcium present in the soil.
Ash use
To feed flowering tomatoes, ash is ideal - wood, straw, peat. This valuable organic matter is rich in essential nutrients (potassium and phosphorus) and contains important micro and macro elements. You can use it without fear of overfeeding in various ways.
- 1 tbsp. l. scattered on a bush under tomatoes twice a month.
- They are fed at the root with infusion of 100 g of ash in 10 liters of water. Each plant will need 2 glasses of liquid.
- Spray 300 g of sifted ash and 3 liters of water, diluted to 10 liters and infused for a day, boiled over the sheet for 30 minutes.
Ash treatment of tomatoes is quick and effective, accelerates flowering. Also, plants receive protection from insect pests and pathogens.
Iodine solutions
The available product increases the number of promising ovaries on the brushes, accelerates the ripening of fruits, disinfects the soil during root irrigation, and protects the green parts (stems, leaves) from late blight and other harmful fungi when sprinkled.
The simplest option is root feeding. For watering, a useful solution is prepared from a bucket of water and 3 drops of iodine.
For foliar feeding of tomatoes, a more complex solution is prepared:
- 30 drops of iodine are injected into 1 liter of whey or low-fat milk;
- add to the mixture 15 ml of hydrogen peroxide;
- add the mixture with water to a total volume of 10 liters.
Spraying with boric acid solution
Such dressing is especially relevant for greenhouse tomatoes: often the air temperature in greenhouses exceeds + 30 ° C. For nightshades, this is a critical temperature, since it leads to sterility of pollen - actively flowering tomatoes, fruits are not tied... Boric acid will help to cope with the problem, as well as make the fruits sweeter, protect the bushes from parasitic microorganisms, including the notorious phytophthora.
To spray tomatoes, the solution is prepared from 1 g of pharmacy powder and 1 liter of water. The process is carried out in stages:
- dissolve the specified amount of substance in 100 ml of heated water;
- add water to 1 liter.
Liquid pharmacy boric acid is diluted in a proportion of 1 tsp. 10 liters of water.
Often in greenhouses, flowering bushes are irrigated with a solution of 10 g of powdered boric acid, 2 tbsp. l. sifted ash and 10 liters of hot water. The mixture is allowed to brew for a day, poured at the root.
Weed infusion
The most popular way for summer residents to process tomato beds.There are many options = making healthy "tea", the best one includes several ingredients that allow you to feed tomatoes with the nutrients necessary for the formation of a healthy ovary and the ripening of tasty fruits.
For a 200-liter barrel, take:
- 5 buckets of fresh weeds (the more nettles the better);
- 1 bucket of mullein (or half a bucket of bird droppings)
- 1 kg of yeast;
- 1 kg of wood or straw ash;
- 3 liters of whey, preferably homemade or from a nearby farm.
The ingredients are put into the barrel without ramming, and top up with water. Insist "compote" for 1-2 weeks (the period depends on the weather, if it is stably warm, it will be ready in 5-7 days). The special value of top dressing - all important micro and macro elements have an easily digestible form. At the same time, the infusion repels most pests, has a detrimental effect on pathogens.
Another popular option is nettle infusion. For cooking, you will need chopped nettle leaves and water in a volume ratio of 1: 3. Insist 5 days, then water the tomatoes. A completely harmless agent is also used for spraying.
Timely supply of micronutrients and macronutrients during flowering is one of the most important elements of tomato care. At the same time, it is important not to direct all attention to root feeding, but to combine them with foliar feeding: this is a quick and effective way to deliver important nutrients to the plant tissues. Tomatoes, properly fed during flowering, will delight the caring summer resident with the beautiful appearance and taste of the fruits.
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