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When growing tomatoes, it is difficult to do without the use of various types of dressings, because this culture is quite demanding on the presence of nutrients in the soil. In recent years, gardeners have often begun to recall recipes that have come down from the "grandmother's" times, when the modern variety of fertilizers did not yet exist and used reliable, time-tested formulations. One of these substances is boric acid, which is used not only in medicine, but also in horticulture, and its field of application is quite wide.
At least, feeding tomatoes with boric acid was actively used in the last century and gave excellent results, especially in the southern regions, where high temperatures during flowering tomatoes are far from uncommon. Also, this substance was widely used against insects and against various fungal diseases.
Boron and its role in plant life
The importance of such a trace element as boron in the life of plants can hardly be overestimated. After all, he is a direct participant in the process of cell formation and the synthesis of nucleic acids. In addition, boron accelerates some vital processes in plant organs.
Boron deficiency signs
Lack of boron usually leads to the accumulation of toxic substances in tomato plant tissues, which cause plant poisoning. In this case, the following symptoms may appear:
- If the boron deficiency is still insignificant, then on tomato bushes everything will begin with the fall of buds and ovaries, and poor fruit formation.
- At the next stage, curvature of the apical young shoots and a change in the color of the leaves at the base of these shoots are possible. And the top itself may remain green for some time.
- Further, all young leaves begin to curl from top to bottom, and their color becomes whitish or light green.
- At the last stage, the veins of the affected leaves darken, the growth points die off, the leaves and stems become very fragile at the fold. If the tomatoes already have fruits, then dark spots appear on them.
In addition, a lack of boron in tomatoes can lead to oppression and decay of roots, a general lag in growth and development. Boron deficiency also provokes the development of some diseases - gray and brown rot, bacteriosis.
And in the absence of obvious signs of a deficiency of this element, many gardeners attribute the lack of tomato harvest to unfavorable weather conditions. While it would be enough to carry out a few preventive dressings with boron, and everything would be in order.
It is also important to keep in mind the signs of excess boron on tomatoes in order to be able to stop in time in attempts to correct the situation with feeding. If boron in tomatoes is more than necessary for the normal life of plants, then signs, on the contrary, appear first on the lower old leaves.In this case, small brown spots are formed on them, which increase in size until this leads to the complete death of the leaf. The leaves themselves, in addition, often take on a domed shape, and their edges are wrapped inward.
Boric acid and its effect on tomatoes
Boric acid is the most accessible chemical compound of boron found in our everyday life. It is a colorless crystalline powder, colorless and odorless, non-toxic and may not pose a hazard to human skin. But once it gets inside the human body, it cannot be excreted by the kidneys and will accumulate and poison it. Therefore, care must be taken when using an acid solution.
Boric acid solution has long been used for feeding tomatoes, and its effect on tomato bushes is very diverse.
- It has a positive effect on the formation of ovaries and stimulates the flowering of tomatoes, thereby increasing productivity.
- Accelerates the ripening of tomatoes, which is important for areas with unstable weather conditions.
- Improves the assimilation of nitrogen and, thereby, accelerates the formation of new stems, the development of leaves.
- Stimulates the development of the root system, therefore, the ability to absorb various useful elements increases.
- Increases the resistance of tomatoes to various adverse conditions.
- Improves the quality of the tomatoes themselves: their sugar content increases, a bright taste is acquired, and the keeping quality of fruits increases.
The fungicidal properties of boric acid should also be noted. Processing it helps tomatoes to escape the development of late blight, which is the most insidious and widespread disease of nightshade crops, especially in the open field.
Methods for using boric acid
Boric acid solution can be used to feed tomatoes at various stages of development, starting from the stage of seed treatment.
Preparation of the solution
The scheme for preparing a solution of boric acid for different methods of use is the same - only the proportions that are used in different cases differ.
The fact is that crystals of this acid dissolve best in water at a temperature of about + 55 ° C - + 60 ° C. Boiling water and cold water will not work. Therefore, you must first thoroughly dissolve the required amount of the substance in a small container with hot water, and then bring the solution to the recommended volume. It is also possible to immediately dissolve boric acid in a large volume of hot water and then cool to room temperature, but this is less convenient.
Boric acid for seed treatment and soil spillage
To accelerate the germination process and more amicable emergence of tomato seedlings, seeds are soaked before planting on seedlings in an acid solution of the following concentration: 0.2 g of powder is measured per 1 liter of water. In the resulting solution, tomato seeds are soaked for about one day. After soaking, they can be sown directly into the ground.
With a solution of the same concentration (that is, 2 grams per 10 liters of water), you can spill the soil before sowing seeds into it or planting seedlings. It is advisable to do this if there is a suspicion that your soil lacks boron. Usually these are the majority of sod-podzolic soils, waterlogged or calcareous soils. 10 sq. meters of the garden, 10 liters of solution are used.
Foliar dressing
Most often, foliar processing of tomatoes with boric acid is used for feeding. This means that the entire tomato bush is sprayed with the resulting solution from the top to the roots. To prepare such a solution, 1 gram of powder is used for 1 liter of water. Since the acid is often sold in 10 gram sachets, you can immediately dilute the bag with 10 liters of water. This can be useful if you have a lot of tomato bushes.
For preventive purposes, it is desirable to carry out foliar feeding of tomatoes boron three times per season:
- In the budding phase;
- During full bloom;
- During the ripening of the fruit.
Foliar feeding with boric acid of tomatoes in a greenhouse is especially important.
Spraying with boron helps tomatoes overcome adverse environmental conditions and improve the self-pollination process. Therefore, the moment of mass flowering for tomatoes is the most traditional for an active foliar feeding boron.
The concentration of the solution is 2 grams per 10 liters.
Finally, foliar feeding with boron is also used to prevent late blight and other fungal diseases. The concentration of the solution in this case is the same as for conventional feeding (10 g per 10 liters). But for maximum effect, it is better to add 25-30 drops of iodine to the solution.
Conclusion
For growing tomatoes, boric acid is one of the most necessary types of dressings, since it simultaneously serves as a stimulator of flowering and growth and protection against diseases.
