Wood ash can be called one of the most effective and frequently used fertilizers. Its composition includes many substances necessary for the proper growth of plants: potassium, calcium, phosphorus, etc. In addition to increasing the nutritional properties of the soil, ash as a fertilizer has another remarkable quality - it reduces its acidity. Another advantage of its use in the country can be the disappearance of pests such as ticks and aphids. Consider how to properly apply the ash in all these cases.
Use of ashes as fertilizers
To have an idea of how to make ash in the beds, you need to know how much this or that volume of ash weighs. In this regard, everything is absolutely simple: a half-liter glass jar includes a pound of ash, a tablespoon of 6 g, a glass of 100 g. Based on this, and you can make the right calculations if ash is used as fertilizer.
You can immediately improve all the soil on the site. For this, during autumn digging, it is necessary to add 100-200 g of ash per 1 m 2 throughout the area. A similar event will be successful over the next four years. However, it should be borne in mind that it is recommended to use ash in this way only on clay and loamy soils. Ash as a fertilizer on alkaline soils is absolutely unacceptable. Since, as mentioned above, it pretty much reduces acidity.
A specific dose of ash is used for each specific type of culture.
For example, for potatoes you will need to make about 80 g per 1 m
2 . The pumpkin family (zucchini, pumpkins, cucumbers, melons, etc.) when planting seedlings requires 1–2 st / l per well. Solanaceous (tomatoes, eggplant) - 3 tbsp. Ash as a fertilizer after application should be mixed with the ground. As for tomatoes, eggplant and potatoes, it is better for them to use not wood, but coal variety. This ash contains more calcium, sodium and copper. The last element restrains the development of late blight. In addition, it is with coal ash that it is best to reduce the level of
soil acidity. In this regard, it can be useful for pumpkin plants.
Consider in what cases, in addition to alkaline soils, ash as a fertilizer is unacceptable. You can’t feed plants like blueberries, heathers, cranberries.
It is highly recommended not to bring ash into the soil for any plants resulting from the burning of garbage, magazines, newspapers, painted boards, etc. It may contain a very large amount of harmful substances.
Soil is not fertilized with ash even if crops and ornamental plants such as rhododendrons, camellias and azaleas grow on the beds.
The use of ash for pest control
You can either dust or spray plants with ash. Before applying the first method, the cultures are slightly moistened. Dusting with dry ash helps against pests such as snails and slugs, Colorado potato beetle larvae, cruciferous fleas , etc. Using this method, you can protect strawberries from gray rot, and cabbage from a black leg or keel. Spraying will help save plants from aphids, powdery mildew, all kinds of sawflies, etc. It is produced with a solution of ash with water and soap (for 300 g of ash 10 l of water and 40-50 g of soap).