Contents
Whatever plants gardeners grow on their plots, they need timely top dressing. They are carried out throughout the growing season. Grapes are no exception. But the most important top dressing for the vine must be carried out in the fall before sheltering the vine for the winter.
It is at this time that the wood ripens, the grapes accumulate nutrients for fruiting in the next season. And the soil was depleted by autumn, part of the nutrients went to the plant itself, part was washed out with precipitation. Therefore, you need to think about how to feed the grapes in the fall.
Nutrients needed by grapes
Grapes are fed with organic and mineral fertilizers. Moreover, this issue is decided by gardeners on an individual basis. The fact is that in recent years there has been a trend of growing environmentally friendly products. And in organic fertilizers there are many macronutrients that are contained in chemical products for top dressing.
Each of the macronutrients plays a specific role in the life of grapes during the growing season and in preparation for winter:
- fertilizers containing nitrogen are necessary for the growth and strengthening of shoots;
- grapes need to be fertilized with superphosphate containing phosphorus. It is applied when the berries ripen on the plants. The ripening process is accelerated, the grape bushes have enough time to prepare for winter.
- potash top dressing carried out in the fall contributes to the ripening of shoots. Moreover, the grapes become less susceptible to cold weather, overwinter better, next year’s harvest will be sweeter as sugar formation improves;
- copper-containing dressings enhance the immunity of the vine, accelerate the development of shoots.
Microelements such as iron, magnesium, sulfur, boron are introduced for planting grapes in autumn so that the plants can winter well.
Tips from experienced gardeners:
Fertilizers for autumn top dressing
Grape fertilizers are divided into organic and mineral. Each of them must be applied during autumn dressings. In addition to the main “work” – feeding the vine, they contribute to the formation of the future harvest and improve the taste of the finished product.
Let’s start with organics.
Group of organic fertilizers
These include:
- manure and bird droppings;
- humus and compote;
- peat and wood ash.
Fertilizing the vineyard with manure and chicken manure, gardeners not only enrich the soil with essential nutrients, but also improve its structure. Looseness, breathability appear in it, therefore, the root system receives enough oxygen.
With regards to peat, humus, compost or ash, they cannot be called independent fertilizer. Despite the fact that they contain various trace elements, they work more to improve the physical and chemical properties of the soil.
Mineral Fertilizers
Top dressing of grapes in the fall is carried out with both single-component and multi-component mineral fertilizers.
Among top dressings, one-component mineral fertilizers are more often used:
- superphosphate in granules;
- potassium salt, sulfate or potassium chloride, potassium magnesia;
- urea;
- ammonium nitrate.
Ammofoska and nitrophoska, as a variant of mineral fertilizers with many components, also need to be applied during the autumn feeding of grapes. These are potassium- and phosphorus-containing fertilizers.
fall dressing plan
You need to feed the grapes carefully. The fact is that an excess of nutrients can cause more harm than a deficiency. For fertilizing grapes, it is advisable to draw up a rough plan. Why exemplary? Just before feeding you need to pay attention to the condition of the plants. The choice of fertilizers applied in autumn under the grapes depends on the composition of the soil.
Any top dressing is carried out on well-spilled soil. It would be nice to loosen it further so that the fertilizer gets to its destination more quickly. At the first stage, the plants need to be fertilized with organic matter. Dry substances are introduced under the plants: chicken manure, compost, manure (choose one of the fertilizers) and ash. Such top dressing is necessary to enrich the soil with microelements and nutrients. Indeed, during the period of fruiting, the soil and grapes were depleted. Such top dressing is carried out in early September.
At the second stage, it is better to use mineral fertilizers for autumn feeding. It is usually carried out 10-14 days after the introduction of organic matter. And here you need to pay attention to the acidity of the soil. If it is normal, then potash and phosphorus fertilizers will be enough. You can use ammophoska or nitrophoska.
It is not necessary to enter them separately. It is best to prepare an effective fertilizer by combining superphosphate (20 grams) and potassium salt (10 grams). They are added to 10 liters of water and vines are shed.
With a good soil condition, you can get by with ash and peat. Both of these components are mixed in equal proportions and poured under the root, mixing with the soil.
In addition to root dressing, it is necessary to spray the grapes with the same fertilizer on the leaves. With foliar spraying, nutrients are absorbed better.
How to determine the acidity of the soil
The increased acidity of the soil is harmful to many plants, including grapes. Not every gardener can afford to make a professional soil analysis. But it is not necessary to turn to specialists. You can use the leaves of garden plants for this. Currant and cherry leaves work better than litmus paper.
Boiling water is poured into a liter jar with leaves. After the water has cooled, pour a little earth:
- if the water turns red, the soil is acidic;
- blue water indicates weak acidity;
- if the color turns blue, the soil is neutral.
Mulching
A fertilized vineyard is well shed. This is a mandatory procedure before wintering plants. To conserve water and top dressing, tree trunks are mulched before the onset of frost.
For this operation, you can use needles, mowed grass, humus. Such a surface cover also additionally fertilizes the grapes. Moreover, the intake of nutrients occurs gradually.
Autumn vineyard fertilizer:
Useful Tips
In autumn, the vineyard is fertilized without fail.
Mineral fertilizers can be applied in different ways: in dry form or with water. Liquid top dressing works more efficiently. If dry granules of mineral fertilizers are poured under the grapes, then they cannot be poured under the stem of the plant. It is best to dig a groove around the grapes, fill in top dressing and mix it with the soil.
Organics are also introduced at a distance. They retreat from the trunk by 0-5 m and dig a hole. It is necessary to deepen the fertilizer by half a meter.