How to feed cabbage, types and timing of feeding
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In order for the cabbage to grow strong and tasty, you need to take care of it. In particular, it is necessary to take care of cabbage that grows in open space more carefully. You are not a fan of the greenhouse and think that special care is not required - you are right, and those who argue that the plant will be more comfortable to live in greenhouse conditions are also right. Cabbage grows well both there and there, but it is necessary to properly care for it in any place. We will tell you how to feed cabbage in this article.
How to feed cabbage after planting in the ground. Minerals
As an avid gardener, you must remember that cabbage grows in stages, like most other crops we harvest every year.
Stages of cabbage development: early (green); late (dry matter grows). These stages are very different from each other, therefore, you need to feed the cabbage with completely different fertilizers.
A competent selection of ingredients for fertilization decides what will be the size, taste and, in general, the life of the plant.
In the period of early development (the bushes are still rather weak and capricious, the head of cabbage has not begun its formation), it is urgently necessary to feed the cabbage with nitrogen. Here is a list of nitrogen fertilizers you can trust:
Ammonium nitrate (coarse sand in the form of crystals, gray, contains 34% nitrogen). This strong concentrate is widely distributed among gardeners. Strict adherence to the dosage rules is required, since it is easy and simple to overdo it with this fertilizer. And why? The cabbage plant, within its normal range, requires nitrates in order to grow fully. But if there is an excess of nitrates, then a chemical reaction will kick in. Elements accumulate, nitrates turn into nitrites, cabbage starts to hurt and eventually deteriorates. If an oversupply of nitrogen has already occurred, then a ready-made vegetable will harm even people.
Ammonium sulfate (in the form of white sand, in the form of a crystal, it contains 21% nitrogen). Sulfuric acid contains sulfur - remember that. This fertilizer oxidizes the soil, so before using it, remember if you have oxidized the soil before. After all, a vegetable may not "take out" excess acidity. Ammonium sulphate is safer than ammonium nitrate, only more sulphate will have to be added.
Urea (has a white color, resembles crystals, it contains 46% nitrogen). Ammonium salt of carbonic acid. A strong concentrate, because of this, it is not very popular, because a small number of gardeners know how to work with it. The main thing here is to observe the measure.
The most important early stage for a plant is considered passed if the feeding is correctly distributed, there is no deficiency or excess in nutrients.
Next, we will study what determines the yield - the period when the head of cabbage is formed. A head of cabbage is an important component of cabbage that can be eaten, so the plant needs to provide everything so that the cabbage is juicy and crispy, without bitterness and acid. Elements necessary for life are accumulated in the head of cabbage. You can help the cabbage by adding phosphorus and potassium. Potassium improves metabolic function, and phosphorus competently accumulates valuable elements.
Potassium chloride... White. It resembles coarse salt. It contains 60% of the elements easily assimilated by the plant. Potassium chloride slightly oxidizes the soil composition.
Potassium sulfate (fifty%). It looks almost identical to potassium chloride. Decrease concentration = increase the applied feed compared to potassium chloride.
Simple superphosphate... The least concentrated - no more than 14-19%.The most common fertilizer.
Double superphosphate - 45% concentration.
Phosphates are not very well combined with the increased acidity of the earth, and the plant does not tolerate this well. The most important thing is to monitor how all fertilizers affect acidity, monitor the excess. Failure is difficult to resolve.
How to properly feed cabbage with organic matter
Growing vegetables is not an easy task, but village people or summer residents will say that nowhere in the world is there such a strong relationship as in life on a plot of land. Some substances are in addition to others, waste from one household part is perfect for another, unnecessary weeds can turn out to be fodder fertilizer or compost. This is the case with the garden plot.
It has long been invented to use bird droppings for feeding crops. Farmers supply poultry waste for sale in tanks, consumers are always there. Demand does not arise just like that; instead of mineral fertilizers, organic, environmentally friendly fertilizers can be used. If there are birds in the yard, especially chickens, then you will be terribly happy: in your arsenal there is already a whole storehouse of the most useful nutrients for the growth and development of plants.
Ash. The simplest combustion product, but for some reason it is not used much for fertilization. It’s in vain. Ash contains boron and molybdenum. These two rare natural compounds are good enough to feed cabbage on open ground during almost all growth periods. How to get ash: burn charcoal (you can combine it with something) and pick up the remains. You don't need a lot.
Mullein. A plant that covers meadows, ravines, glades in large numbers. It looks like a common weed, but in fact, it is a very useful fertilizer. The mullein infusion is mixed with water and watered with cabbage bushes. The usefulness for the plant is 100%.
Recently, various natural fertilizers for feeding are gaining more and more popularity and widespread use. They take precedence over chemicals: the soil and plants feed on useful elements that are important for them, and no harmful nitrates arise in the leaves. Micro- and macroelements go through the assimilation process perfectly, and do not have the property of being washed out of the ground.
Varieties of cabbage feed
Manure cattle, bird droppings, nettle tincture give N, P, Ca, Mg, B, Fe. Plants rapidly grow green mass, a head of cabbage forms and begins to grow.
Take manure and water, 1:10. Mix, stand for 5-7 days. The first feeding should be carried out 14 days after planting. The second feeding is July, add 40 g of wood ash to the infusion. The third feeding - in August, strictly 21 days after the second feeding. Needed for late-ripening varieties.
Nettle (replacement of manure feed). Put nettles in half a bucket / tank, pour warm water. Withstand 2-5 days. Then we filter and dilute with water, 1:10. The use is similar to manure fertilization.
Bird droppings. Litter and water required, 1: 1. Mix, close tightly, leave for 3 days. Apply the solution throughout the season, diluted with water, 1:10. Feed at the root, apply 3 times per season.
Hop and nutritional yeast. Provide plants with proteins, minerals, amino acids, microelements (perfectly replace solutions of manure and droppings). Rooting is accelerated, the formation of a head of cabbage occurs.
Hop yeast. Dissolve 100 g of pressed / 10 g of dry yeast in 10 l of warm water. Seedlings: Dissolve 50 grams of pressed / 5 g dry yeast in 10 liters. Feed the cabbage with watering twice a season with a difference of 30 days, adding wood ash.
Baker's yeast. Dissolve 100 g of pressed / 10 g of dry yeast in 10 l of water, add 2 tbsp. l. Sahara. Withstand until they finish wandering. Feed no more than 3 p / season. The first feeding is when the earth warms up well and the air temperature is within + 20 °.
Egg shell. Shared by Ca. Removes acid from the soil, allows seedlings to develop favorably.
Grind. When planting, add to the wells.
Wood ash. Gives back to Ca, P, K.Why it is useful: together with yeast fungi, it prevents calcium leaching. Removes acid from soil layers.
Dissolve 1 glass in 10 liters of water. Root dressing. Apply dry with yeast.
Baking soda. Shared by Ca. Why it is useful: helps to preserve the head of cabbage.
1 tbsp. l. dilute in 10 liters of water. Watering in the last days of August.
Hydrogen peroxide. Gives atomic oxygen. Why it is useful: improves the condition of the roots and soil, relieves the soil from oxygen starvation.
Boric acid. Divides B. Helps grow parts of the plant above ground and underground. Helps to preserve the head of cabbage.
1 tsp. / 1 cup boiling water, stir, then mix with 10 liters of water. Foliar feeding in early July.
An alcoholic solution of iodine. Gives I. Accelerates the formation of fruits.
At the root: 32-36 drops / 10 liters of water. Spraying: 1/2 tsp. / 10 liters of water. Root feeding: at the time when heads of cabbage are formed, 1 liter per bush after watering.
Ammonia. Gives N. Benefit: stimulation of plant growth, active participation in photosynthesis. Fat plus - does not have the property of forming nitrates.
6 tbsp. l. dissolve in 10 liters of water. At first, just water. 1/2 l per bush 1 time / 8-10 days. Irrigate from a watering can as a method of foliar feeding.
Potassium permanganate. It gives off Mn and K. Benefit: stimulates the formation of heads of cabbage.
Dilute 3 g in 10 liters of water. Root or foliar feeding.
Banana peel. Gives up potassium. Improving the activity of the roots, helps to form heads of cabbage.
Chopped peel 1 banana / 1 liter of water. Withstand 2-5 days, then strain. Watering 3 p / season.
It is necessary to help the "green mass recruitment" after the beginning of the fruit set, it is at this time that they become denser.
How many times to feed cabbage
Ultra-early ripening varieties are fed 2p / season. You need to feed the early ripe cabbage - 3 times. Late ripening - 4-5 r.
After feeding, the cabbage is hilled.
You don't need to fertilize when you feel like it. Regularity and gradualness are important here. Begin to feed from the seedling period. Do not feed immediately after transplanting to a non-permanent location. We are waiting for 14 days. And we begin. Solution: 25 g of ammonium nitrate, 40 g of superphosphate, 10 liters of water. Watering this infusion for another 14 days, then change the fertilizer. New infusion: 15 g of saltpeter / 10 l of water. Solution 2-3 days before planting: 20 g of potassium chloride, 20 g of ammonium nitrate, 60 g of superphosphate, 10 liters of water.
Top dressing after planting - 3 times. The first two feedings are carried out with nitrogen.
First feeding. If the land is not ready for new tenants, then it must be fertilized immediately, when the first watering is done. If the soil is ready, then we wait 14 days after planting. For foliar feeding: 10 g of ammonium nitrate / 10 l of water. We use it when the soil is moist, watering is undesirable. Root feeding: 20 g of ammonium nitrate / 10 l of water.
Second feeding. We are waiting for 14 days after the first feeding. The same solution can be applied. But you can make it environmentally friendly. 1/2 l of mullein infusion or bird droppings / 10 l of water. Ash: 200 g / 10 l.
Third feeding (for mid- and late-ripening varieties of white cabbage). We are waiting for 14 days. Solution: 20 g ammonium nitrate, 30 g superphosphate / 10 l water. Or ? l infusion of mullein or bird droppings, 30 g of superphosphate / 10 l of water. Feed the cabbage at the root without using water if watering is not needed.
Fourth feeding (for late-ripening varieties). It is applied 21-25 days before harvesting. Long-term storage of cabbage depends on this top dressing. Fertilizers: 200 ash / 10 l of water. 40 g of potassium sulfate / 10 l of water.
These are generalized methods. If you want to know recipes or dosages specifically for your area, contact experienced gardeners, they will definitely help you with this issue. Thank you for your attention.