Top dressing currant: tips on choosing and making useful substances

Currant is one of the most popular berry crops in our dachas, its fruits not only have good taste, but can also be used for medicinal purposes in case of catarrhal diseases and beriberi. The plant is distinguished by unpretentiousness, however, in order to achieve high yield, it is required to “feed” the bushes.

Not every summer resident thinks about the need for feeding currant bushes. However, only those gardeners who grow berries for sale, are engaged in fertilizer application throughout the year, and this is the right approach.

The fact is that over time the plant weakens, and the soil near the bush is exhausted. At first glance, this can be overlooked - the bushes continue to grow, new shoots appear, flowers form on them, berries ripen. However, fruiting is no longer so abundant, berries are smaller, and their taste is slightly worse. All of these are signs that your cultures need support.

Understand what elements are not enough currants, you can by their appearance. If there is a shortage of potassium, a yellow border is formed on the leaf plates. If the plant needs phosphorus, the berries become small, and with a nitrogen deficiency, you can notice a rather slow opening of the fruit buds.

Another unpleasant symptom is the lack of annual growth of green mass.

That is why every gardener must necessarily feed the currant bushes.

Regular fertilization gives the plant a lot, namely:

• active growth;
• fast development;
• exceptional flavoring properties of berries and their high nutritional value;
• rich vitamin composition of fruits;
• high yield;
• rapid maturity;
• stable harvest year on year.

Of course, if you need a currant only to eat berries in the summer, you can not waste time and effort on making additional dressings, but if you plan to harvest the fruits of currant for future use or sell it - you should pay attention to making additional dressings in spring, summer and autumn.

Black currants should be fed 5 times during the season, and 4 supplements with red enough. The first fertilization is carried out in early spring immediately after the snow has descended at the moment of active growth of the bushes. The second feeding is done in May during flowering, the next - immediately after it next month, namely: in June - when the formation of the ovaries begins. The fourth time mineral and organic preparations are used at the stage of fruit loading and the last time the plants are fertilized after harvesting. The last feeding should be carried out 3-4 weeks before the onset of cold weather.

Fertilization is aimed at increasing soil fertility and increasing yields. Thanks to additional feedings, the earth receives the necessary amount of nutrients and minerals. However, before proceeding with the main business, you should understand the varieties of fertilizers, as well as how to bring them into the ground, so as not to harm the plant.

Consider a few basic rules for dressing.

When spring root dressing fertilizers localized near the bush, while the radius of coverage should slightly exceed the size of the crown.

During the first two years after planting the seedling, the plant can do without supplements, but only if the correct amount of organic fertilizer was applied during planting.

Mineral components, unlike organic ones, are not particularly active, and therefore cannot independently reach the lowest roots.To help nutrients to penetrate deep into, at a distance of 40 cm from the main trunk in a circle should make small holes or grooves to a depth of 25-35 cm - fertilizer should be placed in them.

Nitrogen-containing dressings go well into the ground, but when applying such fertilizers under a currant bush, they should be mixed with the ground.

All types of organics spread on the ground around the plant.

To achieve maximum efficiency, it is better to alternate root and foliar dressing.

When conducting foliar fertilizing use lower concentrations of the active substance, otherwise there is a great risk to get burned sheet plate. In addition, when purchasing a composition, the choice should be stopped on the one that is completely dissolved in water.

Any spraying should be carried out only in the dark when the sun does not fall on the green parts - in this case, the probability of burn will be minimal, and the time of exposure of the drug increases, which increases the feeding efficiency. If you notice that the leaves have become light and pale - you can use ready-made preparations for spraying or ash infusion.

Mineral elements supply currants with iodine, potassium, nitrogen, phosphorus. They should be entered together with organic compounds in a year or two, depending on the general condition of the soil.

Most often they are added in the fall, but in spring and summer they can also be of benefit to the plant.

Keep in mind that if you purchase potassium preparations, then you should give preference to those that do not contain chlorine. It is best to enrich the earth with potassium will help ordinary wood ash. Spring dressing with ashes is required for plants growing in light and sandy soils.

Nitrogen is very important for plants. However, with its use it is necessary to be extremely cautious, since with an excess of the component, the risk of the development of garden culture diseases increases. The source of this element is humus and manure. The use of such dressings has its own characteristics.

If rotted manure is used, it must be diluted 4-55 times with water before being applied to the ground. If the manure is used fresh, then it should be mixed with water in a ratio of 1 to 1 and kept for 4-6 days, then re-diluted 10 times with water.

Bird droppings are a good alternative to manure, however this fertilizer is too active, therefore it is diluted 12-15 times with water.

Organic substitutes or supplements mineral supplements, the maximum effect can be achieved with the joint addition of fertilizers of both types.

Organic matter includes compost, manure and humus - these substances must be introduced into the ground before planting - in this case you will not need to fertilize the plants for the next couple of years.

In matters of efficiency of fertilizing the main factor is the correct choice of fertilizer. It should be noted that at each stage of the growing season the plant requires different substances and fertilizers. Consider the features of dressings at different times.

Spring is a period of active development of the plant, increasing green mass, the formation of shoulder straps, the appearance of flowers and even more branching of the roots.

At this point, the plants have a strong need for nitrogen, it is this element that should be the main component of any fertilizing used this season, and regardless of whether you make mineral or organic compounds.

At this moment, the addition of urea is very effective, it is scattered in a dry form around the bush and raked up into the ground. For young plants whose age does not exceed four years, 50 g of the drug at a time will be required, and for older bushes the dose is reduced by half - 25 g is enough for them.This is due to the fact that as the plant grows and develops, it consumes less nitrogen - by 4-5 years the plant reaches its maximum size and, accordingly, spends much less energy on further development.

If you do not like to make dry fertilizers, then you can prepare a solution at the rate of 1 tbsp. l drug on a bucket of water, while it is very important to make sure that the substance is completely dissolved in water, and only then use for irrigation. This amount is enough to fertilize one plant.

At this time, the currant responds well to the introduction of ammonium nitrate - it is dissolved in water in a ratio of 1.5 matchboxes per 10 liters of liquid and mixed vigorously. Before use, it is necessary to strain the solution or use a watering can with a strainer. It is important to treat the whole bush, and not just the ground.

Many experienced gardeners prefer organic fertilizers instead of ready-made mineral fertilizers. High concentrations of nitrogen are contained in wood ash — for fertilizer, take 1 cup of the substance for each plant and disperse it on the ground near the bush, then mix it with the ground with a sapka.

The infusion of potato peels has a very good efficiency - to prepare the nutrient composition, they are poured with boiling water (one liter can of purification per 2 liters of boiling water) and insist for three hours under the lid. After the infusion has cooled, it should be poured under a bush. Each plant will require 3 liters of this solution.

Of the ready-made store-bought products, such products as Berry, as well as Kemira Lux, Azofoska, Kornevin and Kristionon, are popular among gardeners.

In the summer, the plant spends all its energy on the formation of the ovary and the ripening of the berries. If the plant is deficient in nutrients, the taste of the berries will be quite low - most often they grow bitter or too acidic. At this time, plants need potassium and phosphorus. Nitrogen, too, should not be excluded, but it requires much less than in spring time.

At this time, a mullein can help the plant - a liter jar is diluted in a bucket of water and fertilized around the bushes so that the resulting solution is enough for one square meter of soil.

In order to saturate the soil with potassium, you can use a composition tested by experienced gardeners: potatoes are ground together with banana peel and dropped near the stem.

In the autumn at the end of fruiting, the plant is very weakened, therefore the main task of the dacha is to help the currants to regain their strength before the onset of winter, otherwise the bush may not survive the prolonged cold weather. During this period, the plant has a special need for phosphorus, potassium and nitrogen.

Very well established such a composition:

• 4 kg of compost;
• 20 g of potassium sulfate;
• 10 g of superphosphate.

All ingredients should be mixed in a large container with a small amount of water, then put under each bush.

In addition, this mixture can be applied to the ground throughout the plot when digging - however, this should be done very carefully so as not to damage the roots of the plant.

Instead of compost, you can make chicken manure or humus, in this case, the amount of organic matter should be reduced by half.

Shortly before the onset of cold weather, currant bushes should be mulched; for this, a “pillow” of peat, humus and compost is placed under each plant. The same mixture can be made under digging.

Special attention should be paid to foliar application. It is best to carry it out at the beginning of summer, with optimal use of mineral components - boron, zinc and selenium.

The modern market offers a large number of finished products, most often they are produced in the form of powder or tablets. “Uniflor-micro” uses the best reviews - it is diluted at the rate of 2 tbsp. l powder on a bucket of water and sprayed the bushes at the very beginning of flowering and repeat the treatment after the formation of ovaries.

In addition, a good result is given by spraying with a composition of 5 g of copper sulfate, 4 g of potassium permanganate and 2 g of boric acid. All components are diluted in a bucket of water and spray the leaves, especially from the inside of the plate, where the structure is more porous, and the absorption capacity is higher. It is noticed that as a result of this treatment, the yield increases by 1.5 times.

When fertilizing under a currant bush, so-called folk remedies demonstrate great efficiency, which for many decades have been used by our compatriots and invariably contribute to intensive fruiting and active growth and development of the plant.

Many summer residents prefer bread marh. To make it, take 0.5 liters of brewer's yeast and dissolve in a bucket of water, for better fermentation, add 50 g of sugar. The composition should be put in a warm place for a few days. The specified amount is enough to water one adult bush.

Instead of yeast, you can use hard crust of black bread, they will need much more - up to one third of the bucket.

Many use old jam instead of sugar - fermentation is more active.

Potato peelings, which we have already mentioned, can save the plant in the winter. In order to make an effective top dressing, they are thoroughly dried and then milled into powder - this composition is sprayed onto currant bushes during heavy snowfall. The plant will certainly thank its owners in the spring, because due to the high content of potassium fertilizer increases the number of ovaries and, accordingly, significantly increases the overall yield.

Well proven ordinary starch. For this fertilizer, 200 g of the powder is dissolved in 5 liters of water, brought to a boil with constant stirring, and then cooled. The resulting mixture is again filled with water, bringing the total volume to a bucket. Fertilize the mixture should be from the flow of two liters of solution - this amount should be watered three currant bushes during flowering.

Fish waste can be an ideal fertilizer because it contains a lot of phosphorus: Fresh bones are passed in a meat grinder and dried, and then poured into the soil near the plant. This method can achieve a significant increase in yield and fruiting.

Fertilization can be called a real science. If fertilizing is carried out incorrectly, the likelihood of such adverse effects as a burn of the root or the green part of the plant is high. In addition, non-compliance with the processing time often causes scaring of currant pollinating insects or can harm the fruits themselves and the people who eat them.

Here are some recommendations experienced gardeners who grow currants for many years.

Before you do feeding plants, you should carefully examine the entire bush and make sure that he does not have any diseases and garden pests. Sometimes the bush languishes, and gardeners rush to actively fertilize it, but this has no effect, because the reason is not a deficiency of minerals, but in the defeat of fungal, bacterial or viral infections.

Shortly before fertilization should be plentifully watered the area under the bush - nutrients should be introduced only in moist soil - this will reduce the concentration of the drug, as well as protect young roots from burns.

Fertilizers simply fall out in a circle and powdered with dry earth.

Fertilizers that are used for digging (fresh manure) should not be applied directly under the stem, since the presence of highly concentrated substances can injure the plant if it reaches the root in pure undiluted form. When digging the site should not be closer to the base of the bush a distance closer than 15 cm.

On how to care for black currants, so that it was the size of a cherry, see the following video.