How to fertilize your garden in summer
Content
Summer fertilizers for the garden
A garden requires care throughout the growing season. Particular attention should be paid to fertilizing. This provides the strength for good fruiting and recovery after harvest. Proper fertilizing promotes root development, increases foliage, and improves the flavor of the fruit. How should you fertilize your garden in summer to ensure a good harvest?
What fertilizers are used for summer tree feeding?
Young seedlings don't require additional feeding for two or three years, as they received sufficient fertilizer at planting. If the soil is very poor, fertilizing can be started as early as the second year.
Nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium are essential nutrients for plant growth. They also require trace elements (zinc, calcium, manganese, and iron).
At the beginning of summer, most plants cannot survive without nitrogen. When this nutrient is added, the root system actively develops, green mass increases, metabolic processes in plants are stimulated, and nutrients are absorbed.
Nitrogen deficiency is determined by the foliage being too small, the leaves turning pale and yellow, and the formation of short and thin shoots.
In the second half of summer, crops require potassium. This essential element can increase yields, improve fruit flavor, and enhance disease resistance.
Potassium deficiency manifests itself as curling of leaves and subsequent chlorosis. Leaves turn yellow and brown. Fruit ripens slowly.
During fruiting, trees and shrubs require phosphorus-potassium fertilizers. Phosphorus actively participates in metabolic processes and increases the winter hardiness of garden plants.
Phosphorus deficiency manifests itself starting from the lower part of the tree canopy. Leaves become small and turn black when dry. Fruits have a sour taste.
Methods of applying fertilizers
The absorptive roots of mature fruit trees are located along the edge of the crown at a depth of approximately 20 cm. To quickly deliver nutrients to the roots, the following methods are used:
- introduced into the holes around the tree;
- placed in grooves according to the diameter of the crown;
- scatter around the tree before watering;
- watered with liquid fertilizers, mulch spread on top.
For young trees, fertilizer is applied to holes dug to a depth of 10 cm. The holes are covered with soil and the plant is watered.
Organic matter (humus, compost) is applied randomly, followed by incorporation, watering, and mulching. Manure and bird droppings are pre-infused and watered with the infusion solution.
Fertilizer dosages for the garden in summer
During flowering, trees and shrubs need nitrogen. How to feed a blooming garden? Apply nitrogen fertilizer at a rate of 1 tablespoon per square meter. Nitrogen deficiency can be replenished with foliar feeding with urea. To do this, prepare a solution: dilute 1 tablespoon of urea in a bucket of water.
After flowering, apply a complete mineral fertilizer to fruit trees. Suitable fertilizers include nitrophoska (2 tablespoons per square meter) or superphosphate (1.5 tablespoons per square meter) and potassium sulfate (1 tablespoon per square meter). You can also add 1 teaspoon of urea.
During this period, trees require micronutrients. These are supplied through foliar feeding. Add 10 g of boric acid, 5 g of potassium permanganate, 3 g of copper sulfate, and 5 g of zinc sulfate to a bucket of water. Spray this mixture onto the foliage of the tree.
To improve the commercial quality of fruits after flowering, trees are sprayed with a solution of copper sulfate (1 g per bucket of water).
During fruiting, apply superphosphate and potassium sulfate under fruit trees at a rate of 1 tablespoon per 1 square meter and 1 glass of ash.
When applying fertilizer, it's important not to harm the plants. If in doubt about the correct dosage, it's best to apply less, as too much can cause serious damage. Young trees require half the dosage of mature plants.
Top dressing by month
During the summer months, garden plants need various types of fertilizers.
June
The first month of summer is characterized by active shoot formation and the beginning of fruit set. Trees' nutritional needs increase. What should you feed your garden in June to ensure future fruit formation?
In early June, plants are fed with ammonium nitrate. The next feeding is done with organic matter, using an infusion of manure or bird droppings.
To combat pests, prepare an infusion of ash with added soap. This kills aphids and enriches the trees with potassium.
In June, plants need micronutrients: manganese, copper sulfate, and boric acid. A solution of these is applied to the foliage.
The listed microelements should not be applied in hot weather to avoid leaf burn.
From mid-June, nitrogen fertilization should be stopped and replaced with potassium-phosphorus fertilization.
July
How to feed the garden in July to ensure successful development of ovaries and fruit growth?
During active fruit formation, complex micronutrients are essential to improve crop quality. Potassium, zinc sulfate, copper sulfate, and boric acid are used as foliar fertilizers. The amount of these elements depends on the tree's age and species.
A good option is an ash infusion. It is used for spraying.
Foliar spraying should be done in dry weather, otherwise rain will wash away the beneficial substances and they will not have time to be absorbed.
At the end of the month, double superphosphate, potassium sulfate and ash are added to the soil.
August
A bountiful harvest is a joy, but it also requires careful care of the plants. They need additional feeding to ensure the following year's fruit production is just as abundant. How should you feed your garden in August to preserve the harvest and lay the foundation for future fruiting?
In August, the importance of potassium fertilizers increases to improve the flavor of the fruit. A solution of superphosphate and potassium sulfate is applied to grooves around the crown. Before applying the fertilizer, the plants are watered generously. This allows the nutrients to reach the roots more quickly. Fertilizers are applied two weeks before harvest.
Supplemental nutrition in August is important for the future harvest, as this is the period when vegetative buds are formed. Furthermore, adequate nutrition promotes frost resistance in plants.
