Due to changes in climatic conditions and depletion of the soil, vegetable crops are not always capable of a rich harvest. Increasingly, there is a need for additional feeding. Both organic fertilizers and mineral complexes are used. Popular among gardeners is fertilizing plants with yeast. In its composition and effectiveness, it is equated to complex fertilizers.
Live nutrition
Yeast is a unicellular mushroom that, when it enters a liquid medium, begins to multiply, and if you learn how to use it correctly in the garden, they will give the plant a lot of useful properties. Depending on the type and conditions of reproduction of bacteria, their composition may vary. They mainly contain proteins, minerals, vitamins, carbohydrates, fats, as well as the three most essential elements that are needed for the development of plants: nitrogen, potassium and phosphorus.
The effect of yeast on plants
The benefits that can be provided by feeding yeast to plants are their following effects:
- Fertilizer promotes active root formation.
- Due to the high nitrogen content there is an intensive growth of vegetable crops. This is especially noticeable on small seedlings. Bushes are actively gaining green mass and look healthy and luxurious.
- The stems become powerful and resistant.
- Yeast is a source of additional nutrients that may not be in the ground.
If you fertilize young seedlings with fertilizer when it is indoors, then after planting in open ground, it better survives and stretches less.
As a result of the experiment, it was noticed that the release of nutrients by yeast bacteria not only accelerates the process of root formation, but also multiplies their number.
You should know that the positive effect of yeast is more noticeable in soils where organic fertilizers were previously applied. Such a soil creates favorable conditions for the active activity of bacteria. When interacting with organics, they produce a large amount of nitrogen and phosphorus. Unicellular fungi contribute to the decomposition of elements, resulting in improved soil microflora. But regular feeding of plants with yeast creates a deficiency of potassium in the soil. Therefore, you need to alternate them with potash and calcium fertilizers. Many gardeners use ash for this purpose. The recommended number of top dressings is no more than 2-3 times.
The easiest way
There are many recipes for feeding plants with yeast, but they all have the same principle. The constituent components of such fertilizers may include: bread, organic extracts, ash, sugar and water. In all cases, fermentation occurs due to beneficial microorganisms. Even an inexperienced gardener does not need to make special efforts to feed the plants with yeast. How to prepare such a fertilizer is described below:
- Defend water in advance and pour into a 3-liter jar (the water should be warm). Fill the container so that there is room for fermentation and the liquid does not overflow over the edge.
- Dilute 100 g of yeast in a small amount of warm water and pour into the total volume of liquid.
- Pour 5 tbsp. l sugar and stir thoroughly.
- The jar with the contents must be put in a warm place.
- As soon as the fermentation process ends, the solution must be applied immediately, otherwise it will lose its useful qualities.
- Add 1 cup of ready-made mash to a bucket of water and pour 1 liter under the plant.
The article describes several other methods that explain how to breed yeast for plant nutrition.
What yeast to use?
A product that carries beneficial bacteria is commonly found in dry and fresh form. There is also granulated, baker's and brewer's yeast.
For plant nutrition, yeast is used both in dry and fresh form.
Do not use yeast with an expired shelf life. Some mistakenly believe that if the yeast is subjected to temperature changes during their manufacture and during culinary use (for example, put in a refrigerator), this does not play a special role for plants. The gardener should consider that he is dealing with living microorganisms. Also, this product may lose its properties when interacting with other bacteria. Therefore, the opened packaging with dry yeast should be tightly closed so that with future use they do not lose their qualities.
In order for the yeast to work, they need to be given time. Only after the fermentation process will they begin to give away those useful substances that vegetable crops need.
If yeast is used to feed plants in cold weather, they will not give the expected result. The earth must be very well warmed up. It happens that in late May or early June, air and soil temperature does not rise to normal levels. In this case, it is better not to use beneficial bacteria, otherwise the gardener's labor will be in vain. Also, insist on future fertilizer should only be in a warm place.
Plants for which yeast is used
Yeast contains some substances that are not always taken into account when fertilizing vegetable crops. It is believed that the main thing for plants is to get enough nitrogen, potassium and phosphorus. This, of course, is important, but for the full development of crops, iron, amino acids, as well as useful trace elements such as cytokinin, thiamine and auxin are needed. As a rule, in the soil they are in very small quantities. That is why it makes sense to use yeast to feed plants in the garden.
Enrichment with microorganisms will be useful for plants such as tomatoes, cucumbers, peppers, eggplant, cabbage, zucchini.
The good effect of healthy mushrooms is noticeable on strawberries. After the first feeding, the culture begins to take root better and accelerates significantly in growth.
When planting new bushes, trees and various flowers, the effects of beneficial bacteria, as never before, will be helpful. Indeed, for new seedlings, the processes of acclimatization and rooting are the most important stages of development. From how the plant will adapt to new conditions, depends on its vegetative development and the quality of fruiting.
For indoor plants, yeast supplementation is also effective. Unicellular fungi have an excellent effect on the development of geraniums.
Do not use yeast for potatoes, carrots, beets, garlic, radishes and radishes. This fertilizer is mainly aimed at the development of plants through nutrition of the root system. Root crops such an effect will not bring benefits. From an excess of nutrients, they acquire an ugly form, and also become harmful to the human body.
What do gardeners say?
Some recipes and reviews about plant nutrition with yeast.
Many gardeners are delighted with the results that a fermented infusion can give. The leaves of the plants acquire a rich green color, the bushes become strong, and the fruiting differs in the length of time. There was a case when, as a result of yeast top dressing, the first cucumbers were picked in mid-June, and the last in late October.
Fans of experimenting mixed yeast with other products and got good effects. For example, using bread:
- 4 loaves of crumbled bread pour lightly warm water and knead a little;
- add half a glass of sugar (honey) and mix thoroughly;
- separately diluted 100 g of yeast and poured into the total mixture;
- when after 3 days the solution is ready, it is diluted with water in a ratio of 1: 5 and, as always, watered per liter.
Experienced gardeners warn that the constant use of yeast to feed plants leads to depletion of the soil, so at the end of the season you need to make complex fertilizers in it. Only with this approach can generous crops be obtained from small plots of land.
Yeast Herbal Infusion
Natural fertilizers have become quite common. Firstly, these are environmentally friendly infusions that can saturate plants with essential nutrients. By their properties, they are in no way inferior to chicken droppings, manure and humus. Secondly, they do not require large expenditures.
If yeast is added to the herbal infusion, this will significantly accelerate both the process of preparing the fertilizer itself and its effect on plants. It is prepared like this:
- fill a large barrel (70 l) with half fresh grass;
- add about 2 loaves of dry bread and 0.5 kg of yeast;
- fill the barrel with water (leaving a little space for fermentation) and after two days the infusion will be ready for use.
Eggplant Feeding
A culture such as eggplant is very demanding on top dressing. Unlike tomatoes, eggplants need fertilizer even during fruiting, and complex fertilizers are more suitable for them. There is a proven recipe for plant nutrition, in which yeast is mixed with other components. The following components are taken per 1 bucket of water:
- 1 liter of extracts from fresh organics;
- 60 g of yeast;
- 4 glasses of wood ash;
- 10 tbsp. l Sahara;
- stir everything, cover and put in a warm place for fermentation.
Ready fertilizer is diluted in a ratio of 1:10 and at each stage of eggplant development, a certain dose is added.
The first time the planted seedlings are fertilized after 7-10 days, when rooting occurs. For 1 bush of eggplant use 0.5 l of solution.
The second top dressing is carried out during budding. The norm for 1 plant is 1 liter.
The third feeding for eggplant is carried out without the use of yeast.
Cucumber Fertilizer
For this culture, exposure to unicellular fungi is especially beneficial. Cucumbers are one of the most demanding plants. Feeding with yeast can be done after each wave of fruiting. But you need to ensure that such fertilizers do not lead to an increase in green mass to the detriment of fruiting. To avoid such a problem, it is necessary to timely apply mineral fertilizers and observe intervals of at least 10 days between them. If the soil is good and the leaves of the cucumbers have a healthy green color, then in this case 1-2 waterings per season will be enough. You can fertilize the plant with dry yeast, as they are more accessible and more often at hand. They are bred like this:
- 5 l of warm water take 1 bag of product (10 g);
- pour 0.5 cups of sugar and leave until the mash is formed;
- 1 cup of concentrate is diluted in 10 liters of warm water and watered per liter per 1 bush.
It is important to ensure that the liquid does not spread far from the roots, since the dosage is calculated and applied in practice by many gardeners. It is better to plant cucumbers in the recesses, then useful substances will go to the roots of the plant. It is better to carry out such a procedure in the evening when the earth warms up well.
Plant nutrition with dry yeast can also be carried out in the greenhouse. This is best done after the second week of planting cucumbers in a permanent place.
Stimulating solution is used not only for cucumbers. If there is excess fertilizer left, then they can safely water other crops. In principle, it does not matter what type of product was used in the preparation of the solution. In the same way brew, alcohol and pressed yeast insist.
Dressing tomato
The first experience of plant nutrition with yeast was carried out on tomatoes. It was observed that live bacteria positively influenced the development of seedlings. Also, tomatoes were watered with fermented infusion and during fruiting.
Some gardeners managed to water the tomato bushes with beer, but since it is expensive, they switched to baker's yeast.
Good results were observed when growing tomatoes in greenhouses.
For the manufacture of top dressing for tomatoes, it is not recommended to add manure or bird droppings. It is best to cook a mash of water, sugar and yeast. You can use crackers.
Conclusion
Judging by the reviews and recipes about feeding the plants with yeast, we can conclude that this method of fertilizer is effective and quite simple. But the use of live bacteria in the garden requires a competent and balanced approach, as with the application of other fertilizers. You should carefully observe how plants react to feeding and draw appropriate conclusions.