How to feed cucumbers with urea?
Summer is a time for a good harvest, fresh vegetables and fruits.In order for the crop to be large and, most importantly, tasty, the plant must be properly fed throughout its maturation. It is worth talking about such a vegetable as a cucumber and how best to feed it with urea.
Features and composition
Urea is a chemical product that was subsequently obtained by mixing ammonia and carbon dioxide at high temperature. This composition is highly soluble in liquids. This fertilizer is used not only by gardeners who own large areas and large farms, but also ordinary gardeners with several hundred square meters of land and gardens. The popularity of urea is quite simple to explain - effective and inexpensive. Another name is carbamide, which has found its use also in chewing gum.
As a fertilizer, this drug is used when the plant starts to lack nitrogen, because the composition includes 46% nitrogen. In our country, urea is produced in two types “A” and “B”. The composition under the letter "A" is used in industry, respectively, "B" - in agriculture. In appearance, top dressing is represented by granules of yellow-white color, such storage can be short-lived. Recently, however, the drug began to produce tablets. This composition is coated, which significantly increases its shelf life, as well as ease of use.
Many are interested in the question of why urea is in such demand. An unequivocal advantage is the acceleration of growth, just like a person, a plant strengthens its immunity and increases protein content, especially in cereals. Urea is good because it dissolves without a trace, while carrying out a good prevention against diseases and injuries by pests. However, there are disadvantages. The drug will not be "friends" with fertilizers such as wood ash, lime, chalk, dolomite flour. As with all drugs, there is an overdose, and in this case, it threatens to kill the plant.
The fertilizer is quite high acid, which is why when adding a number of foreign elements to the soil, like in the plant, a lot of salts are introduced, which simply neutralize urea.
When is it necessary?
It is worth considering what period it is necessary to carry out urea fertilizer and how often. During the whole growth and ripening of the crop, it is necessary and possible to feed the cucumbers only 5 times, the main thing is to do it in a timely manner.
It is worthwhile to dwell on the main stages of fertilization for efficient growth and ripening of fruits.
- The first stage is direct tillage. It can be carried out in the fall or spring, when the soil is dug up. The principle of this procedure is as follows: for one square meter it is necessary to use 10 g of dry granules, which are buried about 8 cm into the soil. If desired, the procedure can be divided into two times: the first time is autumn, the second - in spring. There is also a second variant of the procedure - when sowing. When you plan to plant cucumbers, along with the seedlings you need to put urea granules in the well, but make sure that they do not touch each other. One such well requires only 4 g of fertilizer, after which they are poured with soil, and cucumber seeds are placed on top.
- The next phase to feed is the phase 2 of the true leaves. In this case, it is better to fertilize at the root of the vegetable. To do this, dilute 30 g of the granules in 10 liters of water and water the resulting solution, after which the plant begins to bear fruit. They should be fertilized as soon as the process starts. During this period, when cucumbers begin to fill, they need nitrogen and phosphorus more than ever, so it is important not to miss this period. To do this, as in the previous case, you need to take 30 g of urea and 10 liters of water, as well as add 20 g of potassium nitrate and 40 g of superphosphate. Watering is at the root, per 1 bush - 1 liter of solution.
- The extreme phase is mass fruiting.During this period, an increase in nutrient intake from the soil can be observed. With a lack of vitamins, it is possible to lose the harvest. To do this, take 10 liters of water, dilute 15 g of urea, and take 30 g of saltpeter as an additive. It is necessary to water the plant with this solution in order to get a good and beautiful crop. Understanding at what time it is necessary to carry out the procedure of feeding plants, you must boldly get to work and make sure that everything is done in a timely manner, and you should not overdo it with additives.
How to make a solution?
The next important question to consider is the principle of preparing the solution. The procedure is quite simple, you should read the instructions or use the advice below, and what is important - it does not require much effort. To do this, take 20-30 g of urea and dilute them in 10 liters of water. To make it easier to calculate grams, you should use the following advice: 10–15 g of the drug will fit in a tablespoon, and 13–15 g in a matchbox. From this, it is necessary to take 2 tbsp. spoon or 2 box and dilute in water. It should be thoroughly mixed, despite the fact that the drug is well dissolved in the liquid. When using these proportions and norms will result in an effective solution.
How to make?
According to the method of feeding the plant there are also several options. It is worth considering the most popular and effective, and you should start with fertilizing under the root system. The procedure for such a principle of feeding was considered in the previous section. It should be recalled that the first dressing is required during the preparation of the soil for planting cucumbers, when digging up the site. After that, urea should be added at the planting itself, while so that the granules do not come into contact with the seeds. The next application procedure is when leaflets appear on the plant. Then comes the period of the first fruit and the full-fledged fruiting of cucumbers, when they, more than ever, need useful components.
Important: It is recommended to carry out the procedure in the morning or evening, when the air temperature does not reach its peak and will be able to more actively influence the plant.
Another way to feed the fruit is foliar. It is used in cases when the plant has a disease. This type of fertilizer will help cucumbers to bear fruit longer, because the nutrients immediately enter the plant through the leaves. Thus, you can significantly save the drug, because the solution will not fall into the soil, where the useful components can absorb the weed. One of the main advantages is feeding, regardless of the time of day and the time of plant development.
Watering
It is possible to add fertilizer by means of watering at an open ground. To do this, take 10 liters of water and 5 tbsp. spoons of urea. Gardeners are not advised to increase the dosage, if the plant is still very young, as this can adversely affect its condition and lead to death. Watering during rain and at lunchtime is not recommended, as the sun is active at this time.
The best time will be morning or evening.
Spraying
Spraying is also one of the popular ways to fertilize cucumbers. It is used when grown in a greenhouse. Initially recommended to spray the flowering vegetable. When the process is normal, there is no need to repeat the procedure, only to treat the ground and the leaves, but if signs of nitrogen deficiency are noticed, then the procedure should be repeated. To do this, take 10 liters of water and already 50 g of the drug. Effective will be at the same time feeding both leaf and root. This is explained by the fact that regular feeding will need to be carried out at least every 14 days, which will entail a greater consumption of material and will not be as effective as with simultaneous fertilization.For the purity of the experiment, it is possible to process one bush in two at once, and the second one with just one additional feeding and observe the result.
Useful recommendations
Cucumber is the vegetable that is so popular in the summer. After all, there is nothing better than to pick a fresh vegetable from the garden and cook your favorite salad. Cucumbers can be consumed in any form, because 95% of this vegetable consists of water and it definitely does not harm the body. From feeding plants can not refuse. Without obtaining a certain amount of nutrients it is impossible to harvest. If cucumbers do not have enough nitrogen, then it is immediately noticeable due to slow growth, vegetable lethargy and yellowing leaves. If such symptoms occur, you should, without hesitation, acquire urea and begin to fertilize the next harvest.
Useful information will be about what you should not mix the drug, so as not to make the plant worse. These include pushonka, you should not use superphosphates, chalk and saltpeter. It is also worth following the rules of storage of this drug. Since it dissolves quickly and easily in moisture, it is worth keeping it only in a dry place. In the implementation of feeding you should not just pour it between the beds, as there is a risk of simply using a drug that does not benefit. After all, when carbamide reacts with the soil, carbon dioxide is formed, and after it is combined with oxygen, ammonia occurs, which quickly disappears.
It must be remembered that it is necessary to dig in fertilizer to a depth of 7–8 cm, and it is necessary to stop feeding when the cucumbers bloom.
Growing cucumbers is a very simple procedure, as it may seem at first glance. The main task is to feed the plant in time with vital forces and nutrients that are necessary for rapid growth and good harvest. Do not think that spraying and fertilizer harm the crop. It is necessary to understand that without fertilizers the vegetable will simply die. Top dressing will allow you to harvest more than one crop, while giving cucumbers a good presentation.
You will learn more about how to feed cucumbers with urea, from the following video.