How to use chicken manure to fertilize cucumbers?
Chicken droppings are considered to be a proven folk remedy that improves the composition of the soil.The introduction of this effective organic fertilizer contributes to the full growth and development of plants, as well as increasing yields.
Composition
Chicken dung is one of the most popular and at the same time available fertilizers. You can collect it yourself (it’s enough to have 5-10 chickens), and you can buy from private owners or in stores for summer residents. Due to the possibility of application in various forms (under plowing or as an infusion), it is allowed to use for plants at all stages of development.
Chicken dung refers to organic matter that has a beneficial effect on vegetable and horticultural crops. With its proper application, it is easy to replace the most expensive complex fertilizers. Its composition is an optimal combination of micro- and macroelements needed for fertilizing plants: it contains nitrogen, magnesium, iron, and also potassium and phosphorus. The combination of these components optimizes the growth of seedlings and contributes to the growth of crop yields.
Very rare elements such as cobalt, sulfur, zinc, manganese and copper are also included in bird droppings - such a composition makes fertilizer indispensable for the cultivation of cucumbers.
Avian manure is the absolute leader among all types of manure in the concentration of phosphorus - its amount is 3 times higher than in the mullein.
In addition to trace elements, bird droppings are rich in organic acids, as well as useful vitamins and important biologically active substances, which are presented in easily digestible cucumber seedlings. The presence of these components improves flowering and the formation of the fruit ovary, and also contributes to the speedy ripening of fruits.
The peculiarity of the chicken manure is that the nutrients present in it are not released immediately, but gradually, so the effect of feeding is manifested for 2-3 years after adding the composition to the soil.
If you live in the city, or there are no chickens near the dacha, then you should use dry granulated bird droppings - they are sold in any specialty store. This is a concentrate, which is manure or peat compositions prepared on the basis of this fertilizer that is well dried under the influence of elevated temperatures.
The largest number of positive reviews won the drugs "Piksa", "Rossis" and many others. Ready manure, unlike natural, does not contain any harmful trace elements, larvae and worms eggs, as well as weed seeds. In addition, the finished manure does not smell, the scope of its use is much wider and more diverse. If the natural product is used only for making supplements in cucumber plants, then seeds can be soaked in the prepared solution.
Granulated litter does not need to insist - it is ready for use immediately after purchase.
An alternative to chicken can be other types of fertilizer of bird origin: pigeon, quail or goose. They are more effective in comparison with chicken, but it is impossible to get them in finished dried form, which is why the “palm tree” remains for chicken droppings.
Action on plants
When introducing chicken manure into the ground, all the nutrients contained in it very quickly reach the root system of cucumbers, therefore they are fairly well absorbed by them. Due to its organic nature, such dressing does not form a significant concentration of salts, and in addition, the fertilizers applied are washed out of the soil very slowly, so one dressing per season is enough for the plant to grow healthy and strong.
The use of chicken manure contributes to the growth of yield of cucumbers, it is noted that such dressings increase the number and weight of the collected fruits by 20-50%. In addition, the introduction of fertilizer stimulates the accelerated growth of the green part of the vegetable seedlings and contributes to the most rapid ripening of fruits of vegetables.
It is extremely important that chicken manure has disinfecting properties to a large extent, due to which it completely destroys any yeast and mold fungi in the ground, creates the microflora required for the growth of vegetables, and a good bonus is a good help in weed control.
How to cook?
It is advisable to carry out the feeding with the use of chicken litter after good watering or rain. A compost heap is formed from the raw material - for this purpose, the manure is spread onto the prepared substrate of mowed grass, leaves, pine needles, and also scraps of garden crops. All cooked ingredients are mixed with the soil and left to re-break. The temperature in the compost heap is quite high, so the processing is quite fast. As evidence, one can cite the fact that, for example, chicken coops are not heated in winter, and the temperature there is maintained at a level suitable for keeping birds. Chemical reactions with the release of methane take place in the cushion of waste products of birds - it is he who heats the room and forms a comfortable temperature in it.
If you lay a compost pile in the fall, by the spring the fertilizer will be completely ready.
However, there are alternative ways of making fertilizer based on chicken manure, which received the most laudable marks from Russian summer residents.
Infusion
Infusion of chicken manure is considered a real storehouse of nitrogen, therefore, the efficiency of its use is noticeable after 10-14 days after applying top dressing - the plant becomes stronger, its green mass increases, flowering becomes more abundant.
Preparing the infusion is quite simple. Natural or granulated manure is poured with water, thoroughly mixed and left in a warm place for a couple of days. A suitable composition should have a hint of slightly brewed tea, in case the color is darker, it should be diluted with water to the required concentration.
Fermentation
This method is used by owners of poultry farms or owners of greenhouses. It is based on the use of chemical catalysis of organic substances. The technology for producing fertilizer does not require much hassle - under the cage in which the birds are kept a special pan is installed in which the droppings accumulate. From time to time, chips or sawdust are added to it, treated with special chemical accelerators of the fermentation process.
During the cleaning of pallets, all these components are mixed with each other and spread in a common pile. As soon as it reaches a height of 1-1.5 meters, it is again treated with UV or EM accelerators, and then kept outdoors for one month (in summer), in winter it will take much more time for effective fermentation, since the reaction rate at low temperatures tends to slow down.
The resulting substrate does not contain eggs and larvae of garden pests and does not emit an unpleasant smell. It should be used immediately after drying.
Maceration
Many use a much simpler way - the litter is simply soaked. To do this, it is poured with plain water for a couple of days, then drained, and then this procedure is repeated many times.
Such manipulations remove excess uric acids that are hazardous to plant health, as well as toxins.
The resulting composition feeds the ground, fertilizer dug into the ground between the rows or in the grooves of the near-stem circle of garden trees. Make a composition under the plant root is not recommended.
How to apply?
For normal growth and development of cucumbers in the open field or in the greenhouse most of all nitrogen is required. Therefore, any additional feeding of this crop after planting, as well as at the stage of flowering and fruiting, must contain this trace element. It is necessary to prepare the soil before planting - in the fall, the site is dug up with chicken manure. Optimal use of fresh litter at the rate of 3-5 kg per square meter (if using granulated manure, then take it in the amount of 500 g per square meter.). On such a soil cucumbers can be planted in the spring without any additional feeding.
If in the autumn these works were not made, then you can still fertilize the land in spring. - for this, caked dung with compost is scattered on the ground and carefully dug up. If this has not been done, the litter can simply be dissolved in water and watered the wells prepared for growing cucumber seedlings. In this case, you will need to feed the plant two more times - at the time of flowering and immediately after it, when the ovary begins to form.
Many experienced gardeners argue that one-time introduction of chicken manure is enough to prevent cucumbers from experiencing a shortage of nutrients throughout the growing season. This is true, but only in part - in any case, it is worth looking out for a plant that does not miss the adverse symptoms.
If you see that the leaves begin to curl, yellowness appears on them, this can be a signal that there are still not enough micronutrients for cucumbers - in this case, you should repeat the feeding. Fertilizer is optimal to make not one time, but every 7-10 days in small batches.
Precautionary measures
Despite the numerous advantages of chicken manure, its use in the form of top dressing has a number of drawbacks, which often become the cause of diseases not only of plants, but also of people.
The main problem is usually associated with the introduction of clean manure into the land. Litter gets rid of uric acid for a very long time, so putting it in the ground can cause injury to the roots and burn the plants, which ultimately causes their death. The use of raw manure is justified only in the autumn digging, when he has at least 5 months in order to get rid of all hazardous substances in its composition. Immediately before planting or during cultivation, it is better to use infusions and solutions for irrigation.
The second problem is that wherever you buy dung, there is always the risk of problems. If you buy it on private farms, you can catch salmonellosis or E. coli. And if you acquire the waste products of poultry at poultry farms, you may encounter chickens with antibiotics and growth stimulants. In microdoses, they are absolutely harmless, but the abuse of such dressings can adversely affect the quality of the fruit.
Many put chicken manure for heating greenhouses and greenhouses - this should not be done in a non-ventilated space, because when the manure is overheated, ammonia is released from it, evaporation of which is dangerous to people and plants.
When breeding chicken manure, you must follow the rules of personal safety, namely: wear a respirator and tight protective gloves, a mask for the respiratory system can be made independently - for this fit gauze rolled up in 3-5 layers.
Close to the preparing composition should not eat food, as well as smoke and kindle a fire.
If there are cases of massive incidence of salmonellosis or chicken flu in the area of manure harvesting, the use of chicken manure on the farm is strictly prohibited.
For information on how to use chicken manure to fertilize cucumbers, see the following video.