Top dressing of currants and gooseberries in spring

All fruit and berry crops in the garden need nutrition for good growth and fruiting. The content of elements necessary for plants in the soil may be insufficient due to the characteristics of different types of soil, or simply because the plants have used up the entire supply of nutrients. In this regard, the application of fertilizers is necessary. Gardeners who grow berry bushes on their plots will need information on how to feed currants and gooseberries in the spring, what fertilizers to use, when and in what volumes to apply them.

Nitrogen fertilizers

Nitrogen is used by plants for the synthesis of proteins, which are 1/5 composed of this component. It is also necessary for the creation of chlorophyll, therefore it has an effect on the passage of photosynthesis processes. Nitrogen is needed mainly for the growth of the green parts of the plant, especially in the early stages of their development. If there is a lack of this element, shrubs grow slowly, their shoots become thin, and the leaves are small and may fall off prematurely. This weakens the bushes, leads to shedding of the ovary and a decrease in yield. Especially high-yielding varieties of currants and gooseberries suffer from nitrogen deficiency.

Excess nitrogen also negatively affects plants. The green mass is growing rapidly, the fruits ripen later than the deadline, flower buds are almost not laid, which means that there will be few flowers next year. Also, excess nitrogen reduces the resistance of shrubs to fungal diseases.

The first spring feeding of currants and gooseberries carried out very early, as soon as the snow melts. Early application of fertilizers is due to the fact that their assimilation is hampered by the dense structure of the soil and its insufficient moisture already by mid-spring. Most often, a lack of nitrogen is noted on light sandy soils, but despite this, gooseberries and currants need to be fed on soils of any type.

As a nitrogen fertilizer, it is best to use ammonium nitrate. 40-60 g of this substance is scattered around the bush, distributing evenly around the projection of the crown. Then the soil is deeply loosened so that the granules fall into the soil.

Two-year-old currant and gooseberry bushes do not need spring fertilizing with nitrogen at all if the planting pits have been well fertilized.

In the event that, despite the work carried out, signs of nitrogen starvation are found in the plants, foliar top dressing of currants and gooseberries with urea can be carried out in the spring. To do this, 30-40 g of urea is dissolved in a bucket of warm water and the bushes are sprayed with this liquid. It is better to work in the morning or in the evening, but always in calm weather. It will also be possible to carry out such foliar top dressing if the ovary begins to crumble. This will help keep her on the bush.

Spring fertilizing of currants and gooseberries with mineral fertilizers can be replaced with organic fertilizing, and instead of ready-made mineral mixtures, humus or compost can be added to the ground. To do this, the ground around the bushes is covered with organic matter in such an amount that it covers it with a layer of 2-3 cm. For top dressing, you can also use a solution of mullein in a ratio of 1 to 5 or bird droppings in a ratio of 1 to 10. Mullein and droppings are pre-infused for 2-3 days. Application rate – 1 bucket for 3 or 4 bushes. You can also mulch the soil around the bushes with lupine, sweet clover, clover, or make an infusion from them and feed the bushes.

Phosphate fertilizers

Top dressing of currants and gooseberries in the spring should be carried out not only with nitrogen, but also with phosphate fertilizers. A balanced diet with a phosphorus content is necessary for enhanced growth of the root system, which begins to branch more strongly and penetrates deeper into the soil. Phosphorus accelerates the formation and maturation of berries, and enhances the winter hardiness of shrubs. It is contained in many elements and vitamins that are found in the leaves and fruits of berry bushes.

Most often, phosphorus deficiency is observed in acidic and least of all in humus-rich soils. The maximum concentration of this element is noted in the upper layer of the earth and decreases as it deepens. Phosphorus is absorbed only by the root system, so the spring application of phosphate fertilizers for currants and gooseberries can only be root. Foliar top dressings are ineffective.

The following phosphorus mixtures are used to feed shrubs:

• simple superphosphate;
• double;
• enriched;
• phosphate rock;
• precipitate.

Bring them in before the beginning of vegetationso that the plants have time to feed on this element before the start of bud break and develop normally throughout the current season. The dosage of fertilizers for top dressing is indicated in the instructions for them, which must be followed when preparing a working solution.

Potash fertilizers

Potassium is necessary for berry bushes for the normal course of photosynthesis, increases the sugar content of fruits and their keeping quality, enhances plant resistance to diseases and frost resistance of roots and aerial parts, has a positive effect on the general condition of plants, accelerates their recovery after damage by pests, diseases, frosts. Potassium helps freshly planted plants to take root normally.

With a lack of this element, unfriendly ripening of berries is observed, resistance to fungal diseases and the overall productivity of shrubs decrease. Potassium starvation can be determined primarily by the lower leaves, the edges of which first begin to turn yellow, and then turn brown and die. Fertilizing berry bushes with potassium is carried out on any type of soil, except clay, but it is especially necessary for plants growing on sandy soil. Shrubs growing on clays are fertilized with potassium in the fall, after the leaves have fallen.

Potash fertilizer for currant and gooseberry bushes, which is applied in spring, must not include chlorine: plants do not like this element. Potassium sulfate is suitable for top dressing, which, in addition to sulfur and potassium, also contains calcium and magnesium. These elements are also necessary for plants. You can also use potassium nitrate and potassium carbonate (potash).

Under adult bushes of gooseberries and currants, 40-50 g of fertilizer are applied, spreading them evenly around the bushes, and then loosening the ground in order to plant the granules into the soil. For young bushes that have not yet begun to bear fruit, it is enough to apply half the amount of fertilizer.

What else can you feed currants and gooseberries in spring? Wood ash is ideal for this. 2-3 handfuls of ash are poured under each bush or a solution for irrigation is prepared from it: a bucket is filled with 1/3 ash, poured with hot water and left to infuse for a week. Then 1 liter of this concentrate is diluted in 1 bucket of water and poured under each plant.

Fertilizers at planting

In spring, not only adult currant and gooseberry bushes need to be fed, but also young seedlings. In order for them to take root in a new place and begin to grow, you need to provide them with all the necessary substances. When planting, all 3 main batteries are used: N, P and K. Fertilizers, in which they are included, are poured into the bottom of the planting pits. For top dressing, you can use compost in the amount of 5 kg per bush in combination with 0,5 kg of wood ash. Instead of organics, mineral fertilizers can be used: a mixture of ammonium sulfate (40 g), potassium sulfate (60 g) and saltpeter or urea (40 g).

Top dressing with iodine

Iodine is used in horticulture for top dressing and as a fungicide that inhibits the development of numerous pathogens of various origins: fungi, viruses, bacteria. When iodine is introduced into the soil, it is disinfected.

Fertilizing currants and gooseberries with iodine in the spring is carried out according to the following rules:

1. Pharmaceutical iodine solution is used in microdoses: 2-1 drops are taken per 2 liters of water.
2. Shrub seedlings are watered with iodine solution only after they take root and get stronger. Adult bushes can be watered without restrictions.
3. Before spilling the solution on the ground, it must be moistened with plain water.
4. In order for the dressing solution to become more effective, ash is added to it at the rate of 1 to 10.
5. You can carry out foliar top dressing by spraying the solution on the leaves from the sprayer.

Iodine can also be used to destroy the larvae of the cockchafer and weevils. To do this, 15 drops of iodine are dissolved in 10 liters of water and the ground around the bushes is poured with a solution. The solution should not fall on the plants themselves. Time of work – before bud break.

Conclusion

Top dressing of currant and gooseberry bushes in spring is a necessary stage of agrotechnical work in the process of growing these crops. If it is carried out correctly, the result will be an abundant and high-quality harvest of berries.