Iodine for strawberry: properties and application rules
Very often for the treatment, protection or feeding strawberries use improvised home remedies. One of them is iodine, which allows you to positively influence the plant. Only by creating the most favorable conditions you can get juicy sweet berries.
Properties of iodine in gardening
Alcohol pharmacy iodine is very often used for antiseptic and prophylactic treatment of garden plants in order to increase their resistance to fungal diseases and insects. It is believed that this tool helps to beneficially affect the growth and flowering of strawberries.
Iodine solution is an anthelmintic, antimicrobial and antiviral drug. It is composed of alcohol, so in large doses, it is able to release toxins. For the agrochemical industry, potassium iodide is usually used, which does not contain toxic substances, but does not eliminate the plant from the fungus.
This tool is able to enter into a chemical reaction with organic and inorganic compounds that are contained in the soil. At the same time, it releases oxygen, which has a detrimental effect on infections and allows the plant to grow faster.
According to some reports, iodine allows you to increase the viability of strawberries, as its components have a positive effect on enzymes. In this regard, the strawberry bush gives a great harvest. Years of research have shown that using a plant to feed and process a plant can accelerate its growth and enhance immunity.
Spraying strawberry with iodine cannot be said with complete confidence about the safety of such processing. For this reason, this method should be applied carefully. You can not dilute the concentrated product, as well as too often to spray strawberries. If this tool did not help the first time, then you should not resort to it again.
Due to the volatility of the iodine solution, it quickly evaporates from the surface of the bush. For this reason, it can be argued that toxic substances do not have time to be absorbed into the plant. But many gardeners believe that the more volatile a substance is, the less benefit it will have.
Iodine application
To process garden strawberries you need to follow a few important rules:
- It is possible to disinfect the soil in early spring or autumn, after the old tops are removed from the bush. To prepare the solution, it is necessary to mix 15 drops of iodine solution per 10 liters of water. This way you can disinfect the soil and get rid of pests.
- To prepare the ground for planting young rosettes need to use a weak solution consisting of only 3 drops of iodine and 10 liters of water. It is desirable to farm the land 3-4 days before transplanting.
- Spring root treatment involves watering the beds with a solution consisting of 10 liters of water, 30 drops of iodine, 100 g of wood ash, and 20 drops of boric acid. On one strawberry bush can spend only half a liter of the mixture.
- Before the plant blooms, it must be sprayed with a mixture that consists of 10 liters of water and 10 drops of iodine substance. This treatment helps prevent the formation of fungus and destroy possible pests.
- To get rid of insects need to dilute 30 drops of iodine and 20 g of soap in 10 liters of water. You can use this method no more than once a month.
Fertilizer strawberry bushes in early spring allows them to accelerate growth, and save the plant from various diseases. Spring dressing consists of spraying, in order not only to fertilize the soil, but also to feed the stems and roots of strawberries. It is necessary to reduce the amount of iodine in order not to damage the leaves.
It is necessary to spend spring top dressing only once. After removing the old tops, the ground should be poured abundantly and after that the iodine mixture should be used.
During flowering iodine is used for spraying the bushes in order to restore the balance of nutrients in the soil. From this depends directly on the yield of strawberries.During this period, it is desirable to resort to root and foliar feeding. Such irrigation is possible only once, otherwise you can burn the root system.
To carry out the processing of strawberries during fruiting is not worth it, because from such fertilizer it fades along with the berries. It is best to resort to spraying after harvesting.
Disease prevention
Most often, strawberries are sick during the rainy season or when the air temperature drops. In this case, the fungus affects not only the leaves, but also the roots and even berries. This plant is most susceptible to rot, powdery mildew, spotting and fusarium.
Strawberry rot is formed on the plant with a lack of light and heat. Infection is manifested in the form of extensive whitish spots formed on the leaves. If time does not get rid of the problem, the rot will begin to hit the fruit.
Mealy dew damages strawberry bushes and seriously reduces crop yield. Learn fungus can be on white spots, which gradually increase in size and lead to twisting of the leaves. The berries, affected by powdery mildew, begin to turn blue and rot.
Fusarium occurs during strong heat or with an excess of weeds next to strawberry beds. At the same time the leaves begin to dry rapidly. If the disease is not treated, it can lead to the death of the bush.
To protect strawberries from the disease of various fungi, you need to use fertilizer consisting of 10 liters of water, 1 liter of milk and 10 drops of iodine. This dressing is recommended for use in the spring after sunset.
Iodine treatment will not be beneficial if the site is dominated by stony poor soil. Bushes not enriched with mineral fertilizers cannot grow fully, iodine is unlikely to help them. To change the situation, it is worthwhile to preliminarily analyze the soil, and according to its results enrich the beds with special fertilizers.
Pest Control
With many years of experience, it has been proved that iodine can fight not only fungal diseases, but also various pests. It can not be argued that this tool is able to destroy all insects, but most of them are not able to survive after iodine treatment.
What insects helps iodine:
- Weevil Beetle - is the biggest enemy of strawberries. He can completely destroy the buds, which ultimately lead to loss of harvest. To get rid of this pest you need to treat the bushes in early spring with a solution consisting of 10 liters of water and 10 drops of iodine. First, the beds should be poured abundantly, and after that pour the iodine mixture.
- Aphid - covers the surface of plants and damages the stems, leaves and inflorescences. To get rid of it, you need to mix 120 ml of cow's milk, 30 ml of iodine and 1 liter of water. This means sprayed infected bushes.
- Transparent tick - has a small size, and therefore it is completely invisible. Despite the invisibility, it can cause great harm to strawberries. This insect sucks the plant sap from the plant, which causes curvature and wrinkling of the leaves, as well as a decrease in yield.
Some gardeners believe that adding a soap or milk to an iodine solution increases the effectiveness of the product. However, this is not proven by scientific methods. Lactic acid bacteria improve the absorption of strawberry iodine, but do not affect the fight against insects.
Iodine solution is not able to destroy slugs and snails, so to combat them you need to choose another tool.
Preparation of solution for watering
To prepare an iodine remedy that can be fed or cured strawberry bush, it is necessary to strictly follow the dosage. Each disease requires the use of a specific prescription so as not to harm the plant itself. Often, gardeners increase the concentration of iodine in order to quickly effect the drug on aphids or rot. But increasing the dosage, they risk damaging or completely destroying the bushes.
The preparation of formulations is not difficult, but it is worth remembering that it is impossible to prepare solutions in metal dishes. And also do not use iron tools for mixing the mixture, as this will lead to oxidation of the metal. It is best to resort to plastic utensils and wooden tools.
Store iodine funds is undesirable. But if necessary, for storage, you can use a glass jar with a tightly closed lid. The container should be in a dry and well ventilated place, in which the sun's rays do not fall. If you do not follow these recommendations, it will lead to decomposition of the composition.
Work with iodine need a special mask and gloves. This substance has good volatility and is capable of evaporating toxic substances. In addition, the ingress of iodine on the skin in large quantities can cause burns.
The technology of iodine to increase the yield of strawberries is given in the following video.