Autumn is not only the harvesting season, but also the time to prepare the garden for the winter. At this time, the owners of household plots have a lot of work: they need to put things in order and provide autumn fertilizer to their plants, and make sure that they do not die in severe frosts. The importance of agrotechnical measures carried out correctly and in a timely manner can hardly be overestimated, because the harvest in the next season will depend on them.
Basic rules for feeding garden plants
Gardeners with experience are well aware of the huge importance of fertilizers applied in the autumn period. One of the main roles, among other top dressings, is played by such macro elements as potassium and phosphorus. However, it should be borne in mind that in the beginning of autumn the secondary growth of rhizomes is still ongoing, and nitrogen is involved in all growth and metabolic processes, therefore autumn fertilizer for fruit trees should be complex with a required nitrogen content. Close up drugs by digging the soil. For fruit crops, top dressing is applied to a depth of at least 15 cm, and for berry crops - to 10 cm. The clods of land should be left unbroken - they will provide better snow retention, and pests wintering in the soil will freeze. If the soil is dry, it must be carefully watered, and then the necessary funds should be added and dug up. Autumn fertilizer must be applied in advance (from August), taking into account the fact that the plants will need a certain amount of time (2-3 weeks) to suck the fertilizer, and if the soil is cold, the roots “fall asleep” and practically cease to perceive useful elements.
Autumn fertilizers for the garden
Phosphorus-based preparations are necessarily embedded in the root layer of the soil. If phosphorus-containing granules are removed from the active root zone by at least 6 cm, the entry of this important element into the plant will already be incomplete. Potassium in preparing plants for wintering is even more important than phosphorus. The best ballastless fertilizer in the fall is potassium monophosphate. Plants use it without a trace. This drug is available in powder form and is highly soluble in water. When autumn top dressing it is used in undiluted condition, properly sealed in the ground. Potassium monophosphate is quite an expensive tool, therefore, if there is no financial ability to use this fertilizer for all perennial crops, then you should at least bring it under the most non-frost-resistant plants, such as apricot, some varieties of apple trees, ornamental perennials (roses, clematis, honeysuckle and etc.).
Mineral fertilizers autumn: dosages
The age of trees plays a major role in calculating the doses of potash and phosphorus fertilizers. The introduction of double superphosphate is carried out in an amount of 9 g. per 1 square. meter of the near-trunk circle of pears and apple trees, whose age is 4-12 years, and for trees aged 12-20 years, this dose increases to 13 gr. Potassium sulfate for young trees is required in an amount of 13 grams, and for adults - 18 grams. Potash and phosphorus-based fertilizers can be applied every 2-3 years.