Many gardeners mistakenly believe: if you plant it correctly, everything will grow on its own. And strawberries, they say, are an unpretentious crop and will feed themselves. She will feed herself.
When a plant blooms, it spends enormous resources. If at this moment the bush does not have enough nutrition, it begins to save. The flowers drop, and the ovaries become very small. As a result, the berries grow sour, small and weak.
This is where help is needed. In order not to buy chemicals from the store, the author of the Zen channel “At Grandfather Egor’s Dacha” (12+) shared his folk recipe.
For ten liters of warm water (room temperature or slightly hotter) add the following.
- Whey. One liter per bucket. You can take yogurt or sour milk, diluted by half. The main thing is that it should be fermented milk. Lactic acid does real miracles to the soil: it awakens beneficial microflora, makes the soil looser and at the same time suppresses some pathogenic bacteria. Strawberries literally come to life after such watering.
- Natural honey. One small spoon. Not granulated sugar or syrup, but real honey. It attracts and feeds soil bacteria, launching a whole biological conveyor belt in the ground. It's like baking yeast. A drop in the ocean, but the effect is noticeable. Plus, honey is full of microelements that directly affect how good the ovaries turn out.
- Pharmacy iodine. Ten drops per bucket, no more. This is an antiseptic, a stimulant, and a supplier of microelements in one bottle. Iodine makes the plant stronger, reduces the risk of gray rot (and this is the worst enemy of strawberries in wet weather) and helps to form strong, healthy fruits. Exactly ten drops. Not twenty or fifty – an overdose will only do harm.
All this is mixed and allowed to stand in a warm place for a couple of hours. Let it “breathe.” Then they water it at the root, in the evening, when the sun is no longer shining.
Watering rules
They water it for the first time as soon as flowering begins – they saw the first opened buds, and immediately got to work. Not earlier and not later. Then repeat once every seven to ten days until flowering ends and the ovaries begin to grow.
Pour carefully, only at the root. The watering can is kept low so that drops do not fall on the flowers – this is critically important. If you wet the flower during pollination, there will be no berries.
In dry and hot weather, you can lightly spray the leaves early in the morning. But only the leaves themselves and only if there is no rain. Carefully. Approximate consumption is about half a liter per bush. Strawberries are not poured: they love water, but the swamp does not.
A nice addition for better effect
A week before flowering begins, while the bushes are just picking up buds, scatter them between the rows. dry crushed banana peel. It is collected all winter, dried and ground in a coffee grinder. A handful per bush, plant shallowly in the ground.
Read also, what fertilizing gives a rich harvest of pepper.
