How to fertilize strawberries now. How to feed strawberries in spring? Feeding methods for a good harvest. Foliar top dressing of strawberries in spring

Much is known about the benefits and taste of strawberries. It contains a lot of vitamin C, folic acid, fructose. In order to get a good harvest of this delicious berry from your suburban area, you need to take care of top dressing. The land on which garden strawberry bushes grow is depleted over time. This happens within two years if no extra strawberry fertilizer is applied.

Types of fertilizers for strawberries

Differences in the feeding of new bushes and those transplanted a year or two ago are due to the need for nutrients ah: some more - others less. When transplanting new plants, it is necessary to ensure the growth of the root system and safe wintering. In the old bushes, in the autumn, the laying of buds and inflorescences begins, so they need a different composition of fertilizers, which will be aimed at the development of future fruits.

Fertilizer for strawberries can serve as mineral mixtures, in which the composition of substances is balanced - nitrogen, potassium and phosphorus, as well as organic solutions prepared at home.

mineral

During the period of growth of green mass - leaves and shoots, strawberries or strawberries need nitrogen. It stimulates rapid growth and allows further abundant fruiting. Urea for strawberries is the safest substance, but dosages cannot be exceeded, as sugar will leave the fruit.

This is how we sprinkle urea on a strawberry. The main thing is not to overdo it

Complex mineral fertilizers is the basis of plant life. For flowering and fruiting species, more nutrients are needed.

Before and during flowering, the berry bush consumes a large amount of potassium. Taste qualities depend on its presence in the soil. The source of potassium can be mineral supplements - potassium sulfate, potassium magnesia. Fertilizers for strawberries with sulfur are more preferable, as they also protect the bushes from diseases and pests.

Video: We feed strawberries during flowering. Author's recipe from Ekaterina Snytko, an experienced gardener

In autumn, after harvesting, plants need to recuperate before wintering. Potassium mixtures are applied before wintering along with organic matter.

Organic matter also contains potassium, so you should calculate required amount additives. It is better to save a little than to oversaturate the soil and damage the roots.

Phosphorus affects the growth of the root system, so you can’t do without superphosphates and ammophoska. Superphosphate for strawberries - autumn top dressing. It is not washed out of the soil during the winter months.

Many summer residents prefer ammophos for growing strawberries, as it contains nitrogen and phosphorus. At the same time, phosphorus is in an easy-to-digest form, it quickly dissolves in water. It can be used urgently for root and foliar top dressing - at the first sign of a lack of nutrition in plants. Ammonium phosphate is especially effective in combination with nitrogen nutrition, as it simultaneously stimulates the growth of green mass and roots. Ammofoska for strawberries and humans is harmless, but dosages must be observed.

Phosphorus-potassium fertilizers for strawberries acidify the soil, making it suitable for this plant.

As a result, such berries grow

When feeding berries, minerals should be used strictly according to the instructions so that they do not cause poisoning when eaten.

In addition to mineral fertilizers, it is necessary to apply a complex of microelements once during the fruiting season. The main trace elements are iodine, boron, copper. It is best to apply these elements foliarly, because the solutions protect the leaves from diseases and are absorbed faster. Strawberries love milk supplements, so gardeners sometimes use diluted milk. How to feed strawberries - milk, whey or kefir - is not difficult to decide. What is there can be used. The berry prefers slightly acidic soils, and dairy products maintain a pH level that is favorable for plant growth.

organic

The best fertilizer for fertilizing strawberries is organic - manure or chicken droppings. There are some rules for using mullein and manure so as not to damage the root system of plants.

1. Fresh manure should not be used in spring, as it has not been heat treated and may contain seeds weeds, insect larvae, bacteria.
2. Chicken manure is a very strong additive that can burn plant roots, so it must be diluted many times.
3. Fresh manure can be applied to the soil in autumn. During the winter, it will decompose by soil bacteria and will be available to the root system. In this case, manure performs the function of heating plants.
4. A fresh solution of organic matter should not get into the sockets and leaves. This is especially true for chicken manure.

Wood ash as a fertilizer for strawberries is used by almost all amateur gardeners. This top dressing is a source of potassium, phosphorus and nitrogen, which is used in the fall to restore soil fertility, in the spring for irrigation in the form of a solution. Feeding strawberries with ash also enriches the earth with microelements, but it must be applied in large quantities - up to 500 g per square meter.

Feeding with your own hands

At home, you can prepare top dressing with your own hands - an infusion of greens, compost, mulch.

For green fertilizer, you can use mowed grass. Nettle is the most useful, as it contains many vitamins and minerals. The grass is filled with water in a large barrel and infused for up to 10 days. Next, water the strawberries or spray the leaves. The remains of plants serve as additional top dressing.

Although it does not look very attractive, it is an excellent fertilizer for strawberries.

Hay or straw, as well as tree bark, are suitable for making mulch. Such a layer protects the bushes from freezing in winter, from overheating in summer and from the growth of weeds. Bark mulch has other useful qualities:

• creates conditions for the reproduction of earthworms that loosen the earth;
• serves additional source nutrition;
• bark phytoncides protect the soil from pests and fungal infections;
• maintains a slightly acidic soil pH.

And strawberries give a great harvest when mulched.

Mulching is carried out in spring in May or in autumn in September. Before this, fertilizing is introduced, and the plants are also watered.

The bark must be heated in the oven before use to remove the fungus.

At home, you can prepare the best fertilizer for strawberries - based on baker's yeast, which contains proteins, potassium, nitrogen, and trace elements - iron, copper, iodine, calcium, zinc.

Yeast is useful for young, newly transplanted bushes, as it stimulates root growth and accelerates survival. Feeding strawberries with natural fertilizers increases yields and improves the taste of berries.

To prepare a yeast solution, you need to take 1 liter of water and dissolve 50 g of yeast. Then dilute the concentrate in 5 liters of water. To bring under bushes on 0,5 liters. Yeast can also be added to green manure.

Foliar Supplements for Strawberries

Foliar feeding of berry bushes is best done in the morning or evening, when Sun rays do not burn the leaves and the solution can be absorbed completely.

With the help of spraying, microelements are introduced: manganese, iodine, calcium, copper, boron. Trace elements protect berry bushes from diseases and fungal infections. Use ready-made formulations or homemade solutions.

Foliar feeding is carried out in the intervals between the introduction of the main mineral or organic substances.

Signs of a Nutrient Deficiency

With a lack of nitrogen, the leaves are small, yellowish. Bushes grow poorly, antennae do not form. Nitrogen is important to introduce at the stage of growth of green mass - in the spring. During the fruiting period, nitrogen supplements are not applied, as this reduces the number of berries and their quality.

Potassium deficiency affects primarily fruiting. Plants are more often affected by rot and insect pests. The foliage dries up and turns yellow at the edges.

Phosphorus deficiency is more common in acidic soils. Small leaves of a purple hue are the main sign of phosphorus deficiency. Chalk or lime should be applied first, and then phosphate fertilizers. In this sequence, the nutrients will be better absorbed by strawberries.

It is difficult for a non-professional to determine the deficiency of microelements in plants, because it is in many ways similar to the lack of basic nutrients. Therefore, for prevention, it is best to use complex additives of microfertilizers in the form of sprays.

Nutrient application calendar

The main period for fertilizing for berry plants is autumn. If the question arises, what kind of fertilizer to feed the strawberries after fruiting, then in the presence of manure or litter, of course, organic. The soil after strawberries is depleted faster and needs to be recharged, and organic matter is an easily accessible form of nutrition.

Strawberries are grown by almost everyone who has at least some land. But for many gardeners, it does not give good yields. That area is overgrown so that it is almost impossible to find small berries on it. That dry plants cover almost the entire territory. And it happens that there are berries, but they are completely tasteless. How to care for strawberries so that they please with a high yield?

Spring strawberry care

Some gardeners cover strawberry plantings from frost for the winter. cover is removed. Throw away all excess. Then a layer of earth a few centimeters thick is removed from the site. Usually this is last year's mulch. Together with it, various pests and fungi are destroyed. If this is difficult to do, then you need to dig the area shallowly, trying not to damage the roots of the plants. Strawberry bushes are cleaned of dried leaves, dead plants are removed. If there are few of them, then new ones can be planted instead. But you need to do this as early as possible so that the strawberries take root before the onset of heat.

under the film

Some gardeners cover beds with strawberries with plastic wrap. Some make a semblance of a greenhouse and hide the entire area under one film. Others prepare shelter from arcs for each row separately. Strawberries under it develop and bloom much faster.

Plant nutrition

Strawberries are fed in early spring, immediately after the snow melts. The site is fertilized with nitroammofoska, infusion of chicken manure or mullein, ash. It is important that fertilizers contain a large amount of nitrogen, which is so needed by a plant weakened by cold weather. The presence of this element in sufficient quantities makes it possible to grow berries large and sweet. You can water strawberries in early spring with a solution of iodine (30 drops per bucket of water). A glass of ash is also added there, previously filled with boiling water and filtered.

Between gardeners there is a dispute about the timing of the introduction of organic fertilizers. Some bring manure in winter. Such top dressing of strawberries in early spring in the snow is useful in that by the period of vegetation and fruit ripening, the manure will pereperet. Phosphorus, potassium, and other beneficial substances contained in humus will affect plants. Others are against this, since manure, falling on a strawberry outlet, can burn it. But if you make it in the fall or during a period when there is no snow, then you can place it between the bushes.

Feeding strawberries in early spring with chicken manure will be more effective if it is applied in the snow. It is very concentrated and can do more harm than good if hit directly. But, brought on the snow, it decomposes and loses its aggressive properties. This makes it easier to care for strawberries in early spring.

Top dressing of young strawberries planted this year is not carried out. After all, it is planted in specially prepared soil, and it does not need extra loads during the rooting period. If you had to transplant older bushes, then they must be supported with fertilizers.

Feeding strawberries in early spring with small doses of fertilizer is difficult because it is difficult to evenly distribute it over the site. To do this, the substance must be mixed with sand or dust. It will be distributed evenly, individual particles will not stick together.

Recently, more and more often used for fertilizing plants, including strawberries, baker's yeast. More than half of their composition is proteins. Many amino acids, mineral elements, microelements. Feeding strawberries in early spring with yeast stimulates the growth of the ground part and root, strengthens the plants. There are many recipes for watering plants and for foliar feeding. The simplest: stir 200 grams of yeast in a small amount of warm water and bring to 10 liters.

Use them along with bread and grass. To do this, a bucket of chopped grass, a pound of dry bread and yeast are poured into a large barrel (70 liters). The composition infused for a couple of days is used for watering strawberries. Some gardeners, however, find that the use of yeast only has a short-term effect, and then the soil becomes rocky.

Feeding strawberries in early spring with urea (a tablespoon per bucket of water), half a glass of ash with the addition of potassium permanganate and (two grams each) gives a good result. It not only fertilizes the soil, but also disinfects the roots.

You can buy ready-made for example "Kemira". You need to make it strictly following the instructions. Otherwise, instead of large juicy berries, you will get small and tasteless ones.

In May, strawberries bloom, so during this period they do not fertilize them.

Foliar feeding

The first strawberries in early spring are held when three leaves appear.

Strawberries do not tolerate chemical fertilizers very well. You can take carbamide (urea). But be sure to double the dose.

The second time carbamide is treated before flowering. But keep in mind that the smell of the drug is unpleasant for bees. If it does not have time to weather, then insects will weakly pollinate plants. Some fungicide can be added to carbamide.

Fertilizer overdose

Often gardeners apply more fertilizer to get best harvest. But it is not necessary to exceed the norms specified in the instructions for the drug. By appearance strawberries, you can determine that she was overfed. If strawberry leaves turn from green to dark brown, then the soil has received too much fertilizer. If the leaves were covered with brown dots, then the bushes were sprayed with a too concentrated solution. To eliminate the consequences, the site is watered with clean water, the plants are sheltered from sunlight.

When using insecticides, they often do not pay attention to the fact that fertilizers are already included in their composition. So there is no need to add them.

Soil preparation for planting

Every four years the strawberries are moved to a different location. The site is freed from various infections and fungi for six years. Only after this time has passed, strawberries can be grown on it again.

Before planting strawberries, carefully prepare the soil. The beds on which it will grow are covered with a layer of peat or humus, dug up with the ground.

soil care

The soil is loosened in the spring to a depth of five centimeters. This activates the roots of the plants. If the site is not mulched, then you need to loosen the soil after each rain, watering, fertilizing. You can fill the area with moss or sawdust, preferably stale.

Mulching the area will save you from applying herbicides and make it easier to care for the plants.

Disease and pest control

To prevent infection of berries with gray rot, bushes are sprayed before flowering (a tablespoon of the drug in a bucket of water).

To fight powdery mildew apply (potassium permanganate) or a solution of sulfaride.

Bushes infected with a nematode are immediately visible in the garden. They have twisted leaves, thickened whiskers, deformed flowers. To get rid of this pest, use the drug "Nemabakt". From folk remedies- planting marigolds on the site. Their phytoncides prevent pests from multiplying.

Weevil is a small red bug with a long black nose. It lays eggs in a bud. As a result, it will not turn into a berry, since the worm that came out of the egg gnaws out the bud from the inside. Treat strawberries from the weevil "Fitoverm". It hibernates under strawberry bushes. Therefore, removing the top layer of soil in the spring, you remove part of the weevils from the site.

Strawberries are grown in different climatic zones.

In temperate climates, strawberries grow in open ground, and in cold areas the berry is grown in greenhouses.

How to fertilize strawberries. Types of fertilizers

Growing strawberries requires certain conditions to be met.

For many gardeners, the first harvest of strawberries is disappointing: the berries are small and watery.

For getting good harvest it is important to use the right fertilizers.

Fertilizers are divided into:

- organic;

- mineral.

Organic fertilizers include:

- humus;

- wood ash;

- milk serum;

- green manure (plants).

Mineral fertilizers:

- complex (ammophos, nitrophos, diammophos, nitroammophoska);

- potassium;

- nitrogen (amide, nitrate, ammonium nitrate);

- phosphorus (bone meal, vivianite, simple and double superphosphate, open-hearth slag, precipitate, phosphate rock).

What is the best way to fertilize strawberries also depends on the soil.

How to fertilize strawberries: organic fertilizers

Fresh manure is not used. It can be used as a fertilizer, scattered between the rows, just before the onset of frost. Until spring, the manure will turn into humus and will serve not only as a source of nutrients for plants, but also as a mulch that prevents the growth of weeds.

Humus is also used directly when planting berries. It is poured into prepared holes or scattered over the soil surface at the rate of 3 kg per 1 sq.m.

In autumn, beds with strawberries are mulched with sawdust, peat, covered with leaves or straw. In the spring, rotten organic matter passes into the soil, saturating it with nitrogen.

In the spring, liquid chicken manure fertilizer is also used. They are watered between rows (around each bush - no more than 500 ml), trying not to get into the area at the roots. Chicken manure is diluted as follows: for 10 liters of water - 1 liter of manure.

Nettle infusion can be used to saturate the soil with potassium and nitrogen. To prepare the infusion, the bushes of the plant are placed in a container and poured with water. Before use, the infusion is diluted with water in a ratio of 1:20.

Wood ash contains phosphorus and potassium. A glass of ash is required for a bucket of water. Before use, the solution is thoroughly mixed. For 1 sq. m requires a glass of solution. Fertilizer works for several years. Together with ash, nitrogen fertilizers should not be applied so that the release of ammonia, which is harmful in large quantities for berries, does not begin.

Whey contains many useful substances. It is recommended to use it together with manure, humus or ash.

How to fertilize strawberries: complex fertilizers

Nitrofos is produced in the form of granules. Fertilizer is used when the content of potassium in the soil is low and phosphorus is high. For 1 sq. m requires 80 g of fertilizer.

Nitroammofosk contains sulfur. Used to feed strawberries in the summer, after flowering. 1.5 is enough for 10 liters of water matchbox. Immediately after feeding, strawberries should be watered abundantly.

Ammophos contains nitrogen and phosphorus. Fertilizer provides the berries with all the necessary substances and enhances disease resistance.

Diammophos contains magnesium, calcium, phosphorus, potassium, nitrogen. Available in granules.

How to fertilize strawberries: potash fertilizers

Potassium chloride acidifies the soil, so on acidic soils it is recommended to apply after liming. Not recommended for strawberries due to the chlorine content, which is bad for the berries.

Potassium salt oxidizes the soil, in arid areas it creates signs of salinity. Contains chlorine.

Potassium sulfate can be used to feed strawberries, as it contains a small amount of chlorine. It is considered the best potash fertilizer.

How to fertilize strawberries: nitrogen fertilizers

A lot of nitrogen is contained in urea and saltpeter. Without nitrogen, the berries lose their taste, become small and inconspicuous. These fertilizers are well suited for any soil, have a positive effect on the growth and development of plants. It is necessary to apply nitrogen fertilizers carefully, since an excess of nitrogen negatively affects the taste of the berries.

Urea is used for incorporation into the soil and foliar top dressing. The soil is sprayed with a solution (for 10 liters of water - 50 g of urea). The solution is enough for 100 sq. m. It is forbidden to mix with superphosphate and ammonium nitrate.

Ammonium sulfate can serve as a basic fertilizer. Contains ammonia in a plant-available form. Acidifies the soil, 1.3 kg of chalk or lime should be added per 1 kg of fertilizer.

Ammonium chloride contains chlorine, which is not well tolerated by strawberries. It is permissible to use fertilizer only in autumn during deep plowing.

Ammonia fertilizers (ammonium sulphate, ammonium chloride) should be used with caution, as high ammonia content can cause plant poisoning.

Sodium nitrate alkalizes, the application of 1 kg of fertilizer has an effect identical to 0.3 kg of lime or chalk.

Calcium nitrate also alkalizes, but the effect is somewhat less - 1 kg of fertilizer is similar to 0.2 kg of chalk.

Sodium and calcium nitrate are the safest for plants. It is not recommended to apply nitrogen fertilizers to the soil in autumn.

How to fertilize strawberries: phosphate fertilizers

Simple superphosphate quickly binds in acidic soil, so its effectiveness increases after liming. They are applied to the soil to a depth of more than 10 cm. This fertilizer should not be mixed with urea and ammonium nitrate. For 1 sq. m - 20 g of fertilizer.

There is superphosphate simple in powder form and granular, double granular.

Bone meal turns into a form available to strawberries more slowly than superphosphate. Apply long before planting strawberries on acidic soils. For 1 sq. m - 30-40 g of fertilizer (twice as much as superphosphate).

Phosphorite flour is an alkaline fertilizer that turns into a form accessible to strawberries only on acidic soil. Used for ploughing. It works for about three years, so the dosage is twice as much as superphosphate.

Open-hearth slag reduces soil acidity. Contains phosphorus, magnesium, manganese, cobalt. It goes into a state accessible to strawberries, slower than superphosphate.

The first time fertilizers are applied during the preparation of plants for winter. They are applied directly to the soil.

At the second top dressing, after picking the berries, it is recommended to use mineral complex fertilizers. At this stage, the plants form roots and new buds. During flowering and fruiting, strawberries are not fertilized.

Nitrogen fertilizers are applied to light soil in spring, to clay soil in autumn.

The next top dressing is around mid-September. As a fertilizer, it is desirable to use wood ash with mullein - half a glass of ash per bucket of cow dung (fermented). After a couple of weeks, strawberries are fertilized with this solution: a glass of ash, 2 tbsp. l. nitrophos, 30 g of potash fertilizers.

When transplanting bushes to a new place, the soil is fertilized with 8 kg of organic fertilizers and 30 g of mineral fertilizers.

Not every gardener can boast of a rich chernozem soil in your area. Again, not every gardener, even if he decides to practice natural farming, is able to replace all his traditional beds with more fertile organic ones in one sitting. Especially when it comes to strawberries, which have been growing in one place for several years.

In order not to be left without real fragrant and sweet strawberries in the season, many summer residents have to rely on top dressing. Today we will talk about when and how to feed strawberries for optimal growth, lush flowering and appropriate fruiting.

During holiday season strawberries are usually fed three times: in spring, in summer after the main harvest, and in late summer or autumn before winter preparation. Remontant strawberries are especially responsive to feeding; they must be fed at weekly intervals.

For the first time, strawberry bushes are fed in the spring, at the very beginning of the summer season, as soon as the snow melts and more or less warm weather sets in. The first top dressing is aimed at stimulating the growth of fresh shoots and leaves, therefore it must contain nitrogen.

Strawberry Spring Feeding Recipes

Under each strawberry bush, it is necessary to pour 0.5-1 liter of liquid top dressing, depending on the size of the bush.

The second feeding of strawberries is carried out in the summer, towards the end of July, after the main harvest of berries. It would seem why? The fact is that at this time the formation of new roots begins and flower buds for the next season, so the plants will not interfere with additional potassium and trace elements.

Recipes for the second feeding of strawberries

Under each bush you need to pour about 0.5 liters of any of the above fertilizers. Alternatively, the ash can not be dissolved in water, but scattered directly under the bushes. After two weeks, it would be good to repeat the top dressing: after all, at this time the plants need food most of all.

The third dressing of strawberries in the fall

The last third dressing of strawberries is recommended to be carried out in mid-September in dry weather, when the harvest has long been harvested, and the bushes begin to prepare for the coming winter. As a rule, young (one-year-old) plants especially need a third top dressing in order to successfully winter.

Recipes for autumn feeding strawberries

Each bush will be enough from 250 to 500 ml. such a feed.

For those who do not like mineral fertilizers at all and grow strawberries according to the rules of organic farming with mandatory mulching, we recommend feeding strawberries with biohumus infusion four times per season. The first time in early spring, then before flowering, the third time during the berry set and the last time after fruiting.

We wish you success and great harvests!