How to feed the beets in the open field?
Beets have long been popular with domestic gardeners.It is considered a rather unpretentious culture, planting and caring for which are carried out according to long-established rules. An important part of this process is fertilizing both in the fall and spring.
In general, this root is a fairly loose soil with a neutral reaction, but fertilizer application, of course, improves the quality and quantity of the crop.
Why do you need to fertilize the culture?
In most cases, when the beets are planned to be grown in open ground, the plot has to be fertilized. The soil lacks either one or several mineral elements, and this deficiency is easily eliminated by applying fertilizer. If this is not done, then you should not wonder why beets grow poorly.
It should also be mentioned that the root vegetable prefers loose soil. When it is planted in dense or clay soil, it is encountered with some difficulties. In this case, you need to help her develop in a difficult situation. Fertilizers are either directly applied to the ground, or scattered around the bed, and then the bed is dug up.
What fertilizers to use?
It is worth starting with the fact that for root beetroot and root means are used. Foliar dressing is selected in those situations when you need to strengthen the shoots and leaves - usually it happens at the very first stage. The application of such fertilizers is not necessary and cannot be equivalent to replace the root top dressing, but for an additional effect it will be just right. Usually the treatment takes place in a certain way: the bush itself is sprayed with a solution of nutrients. Substances are on the leaves, which quickly consume them.
The main advantages of this method is that the vitamins are quickly and completely absorbed by the plant, and that such feeding can be done without fear of damaging the beets themselves.
Root top dressing is mainly used for the development of root crops. Despite the name, fertilizers are not applied near the root, but into individual wells. Their depth is approximately 4 centimeters, and they are dug between the rows of beets. When the fertilizer is in the ground, the beds are abundantly irrigated.
In addition, there are fertilizing and for the normalization of the soil. For example, in order to keep the acidity level normal, to make the soil more nutritious or to somehow influence the development and growth of the root crop, it will be necessary to introduce certain combinations of elements. What exactly is missing beets, you can determine by looking at its appearance. For example, brightened leaves talk about a lack of sodium, on the contrary, too dark - that it is time to add phosphorus. Sudden yellowness signals a lack of iron, and redness - magnesium and potassium. If the fertilizer is chosen correctly, the color of the beet will return to normal.
Organic and mineral fertilizers are used to feed this crop. In the first case, we are talking about substances such as litter (containing nitrogen), wood ash (rich in potassium) and rock salt that can saturate with sodium. It is important to remember that, despite all the benefits and environmental friendliness, excessive use of organic fertilizers leads to the fact that the fruits cease to develop, and instead the green mass increases.
Avian droppings are considered one of the best organic supplements. It contains phosphorus, nitrogen and potassium - that is, all that is necessary for the root. In addition, these substances remain in the soil for three years, so the following cultures, which came to be in the garden, can also feed on them.
The fertilizer is prepared from 10 liters of water that has been left on the street for more than a week, and 1.5 kilograms of organic matter itself. The beds are treated with this mixture once, when the third or fourth leaf appears. It is necessary to pour fertilizer not on the plant itself, but in between the rows, as hitting the leaves can cause burns. Wood ash is rich in potassium. Before irrigation, a glass of ash is sprinkled on about one square meter of bed.
Finally, the third organic fertilizer is saline. He divorces in those situations when you need to improve the taste of the fruit or to protect the planting from pests. Usually take one tablespoon of salt, which is stirred in 10 liters of water, and all this is used on one square meter of the bed.
Salt liquid can be used three times: when the sixth leaf appears, when the beets look out 3 centimeters from the soil and two weeks after the second watering.
Mineral fertilizers are most often purchased in specialized stores. The first recharge occurs approximately as soon as the thinning is completed, and unnecessary sprouts will be eliminated. 5 liters of water are taken, in which 15 grams of superphosphate are then diluted, the same amount of potassium sulfate and the same amount of ammonium nitrate. During the second feeding you can add phosphate-potassium combinations. It should be borne in mind that an excess of minerals in the soil can also be harmful.
For the harmonious growth and development of culture, it is necessary to fertilize the soil not only in spring, but also on the eve of autumn. In the autumn months, compost, settled manure and humus work well. With fresh manure is better not to risk, because this substance leads to the fact that the tubers change shape to less accurate and accumulate harmful elements.
It is better to take chicken manure and embed it in the ground so as to avoid nitrogen evaporation.
At the same time, phosphoric solutions are also used - they are not washed out of the soil, therefore, before the planting begins, the ground will just be able to soak. Usually, 20 grams of ammonium nitrate, 30 grams of superphosphate and 14 grams of potassium chloride are taken per square meter.
In general, fertilizers can be used absolutely any and in any combination - it all depends on the goals. If there are experiences that the beets will contain nitrates, it makes sense to give preference only to organic substances. Using any variety, it is important to keep in mind that getting solutions on the leaves leads to the appearance of burns. It is also impossible to pour liquid under the root, preferably next to the ground. After this, it is a good idea to pour ordinary water over the beets.
Folk methods
In addition to the above, amateur gardeners constantly use unusual means to improve the soil. Usually it is completely natural substances that do not have any chemistry. For example, the treatment of soil with a solution of yeast, which can enhance the effect of useful elements, is popular. In the first case, fresh yeast is stirred in warm water, which should be five times more. Immediately before feeding additional water is added.
In the second case, 10 grams of dry yeast, 60 grams of granulated sugar and 10 liters of water are taken. Dry ingredients are stirred in liquid and left for a couple of hours in a warm room. Before the procedure, you will have to dilute the resulting solution in 50 liters of water.
Such fertilizer can be applied at the stage of growth of seedlings, and then another two or three times during the growing season.
If the beets are not sweet enough, then periodically each plant can be irrigated with a solution of half a liter of water and a teaspoon of table salt. An excellent, and most importantly, available remedy will be a herbal solution. All those young weeds without small inflorescences that remained after weeding the plot are filled with water, and one part of the water is taken into two parts of the grass.
The solution is aged for fourteen days, and then filtered and diluted in water before watering so that one part of the grass has ten parts of water. Weed can be applied twice a month. When the fourth leaf appears, the culture can be irrigated with 5 grams of boric acid diluted in 10 liters of water.
Feeding scheme
Although the beet beds can be fed in completely different ways, in principle, you can create an approximate fertilization scheme that takes into account all aspects.For example, the fact that nitrogen is first introduced from mineral substances, and then potassium, the dose of which is gradually increased. Phosphorus should be applied throughout the growing season.
In early May, the seeds are digging and fertilized with a solution containing 25 grams of ammonium sulfate, 15 grams of potassium, 20 grams of ammonium nitrate and 20 grams of double superphosphate. In the case of an overly poor soil, the amount of ingredients doubled.
When digging in the beet grooves, it is recommended to put rotted chicken manure with straw in each well.
After sprouting (when the third and fourth leaves are formed) in June, the first feeding occurs - usually it is bird droppings or humus cow manure. In the first case, the proportions are 1 to 12, and in the second - 1 to 8. Grooves are formed, which are separated from the sprouts by a gap of 5 centimeters.
In the recesses of each meter is poured a little more than a liter of nutrient solution. Another solution would be to add urea or sodium nitrate. In addition, after germination, the introduction of superphosphate and potassium is possible. In turn, superphosphate in an amount of 5 grams per meter and potassium chloride in an amount of 10 grams per meter are added. Everything is covered with earth and watered with quality.
The second feeding takes place with the use of wood ash in the formation of root crops. As a rule, one glass of fertilizer is used somewhere per square meter of bed. At the same time, you can again make the finished phosphorus-potassium remedy. Throughout the period, the beets can be watered with a solution of lime.
It is especially important to do this when the level of acidity in the soil is elevated, or yellow specks appear on it. Liming is carried out before the fall, so that when planting, the condition of the beds was normal.
Do not forget that high-quality care is not possible without fertilizer, so fertilizing should be an integral part of the cultivation of beets.
See the following video for tips on growing beets.