Nettle – worst enemy in the garden, at least that’s what is commonly believed. Seeing nettles, they immediately pull them out and eliminate them from the site. In addition, many people have memories of how nettles burned them in childhood if they carelessly wandered into its thickets. In general, no one likes nettles.
But in fact, nettle is extremely useful plant and nettle infusion can be used as fertilizer. Not only is this fertilizer incredibly beneficial for plants, but it is also plant-based, that is, completely safe. Using nettle infusion, you can completely abandon some chemical fertilizers, which are used to feed plants, maintaining a balance of macro and microelements. Nettle fertilizer – perfect solution for everyone who wants to see their plants healthy and producing a bountiful harvest.
How to prepare nettle fertilizer?
The process of preparing nettle fertilizer is extremely simple and does not require any special skills.
- Collect nettles. Armed with a knife and hiding your hands under gloves, you need to collect nettles. If you don’t have it on your site, then you can collect it anywhere, but not near the road.
- Soak the nettles. Place the “harvest” you have collected in a bucket and fill it with water so that the water completely covers the nettles. The bucket, by the way, should not be small, since during the fermentation process, the amount of liquid may increase.
- Additional ingredients. You can add some other ingredients to the nettle fertilizer. For example, wood ash, or even herbs like tansy, shepherd's purse, etc. You can, without fear, experiment and “invent” new types of fertilizer. But for the first time you can limit yourself to only nettles.
- Fermentation process. Cover the bucket with your infusion with a lid and place it in a sunny place. Every day, nettle fertilizer needs to be stirred so that the fermentation process proceeds better and faster. On hot summer days, this process takes about five days, a maximum of a week, but in spring and autumn, fermentation will last for two weeks.
Ready fertilizer nettle exudes a specific aroma, foams, bubbles and acquires an expressive marsh color, so you will immediately understand when the infusion has reached the desired state.
How to fertilize with nettles correctly?
You have prepared nettle fertilizer, and now let's look at how to fertilize your plants with nettles.
Plants can be fed and sprayed with nettle fertilizer. For fertilizer, the infusion is diluted with water in proportions of 1:10, and for spraying - 1:20.
Regular use of nettle infusion will strengthen the plants (their roots, stems, leaves), they will look healthier, and spraying with nettle fertilizer will repel some insect pests from your plants.
In principle, all plants can be fertilized with nettles, but there are some species that do not particularly like nettle fertilizer - beans, beans, peas, onions, etc. For other plants, nettle fertilizer will only be a joy.
There is nothing useless in nature, and you can see this in the example of nettle. How zealously you always rid the garden of this “scourge”, calling nettle a pest and a weed, but in fact it turned out that nettle can help you and your harvest better than any chemical fertilizers, which heal one thing and cripple another, according to the law of the genre . Plants can never be treated unambiguously, because behind the scorching leaves there may be hidden healthy vitamins and elements that will serve you well. We hope that our tips will help you, and your garden will become even greener, thanks to nettle fertilizer.
Quite often, gardeners and gardeners think about how to improve the quality and increase the quantity of crops through organic fertilizers and at the same time save your budget. This is where so-called green supplements come to the rescue. They are becoming increasingly popular among amateur gardeners. This simple method perfectly improves soil fertility. Of course, self-prepared organic fertilizer from nettles or dandelions, as well as many other weeds or plant tops, will significantly save the cost of expensive mineral supplements and humus. It's productive and affordable way please your plantings with nutrients and extremely useful substances.
One of the most common natural ingredients for creating homemade plant food in the garden is nettle. The indisputable advantage of this weed, rich in various vitamins, is that it contains almost all the necessary easily digestible microelements that are extremely necessary for plantings. Nettle contains vitamins, tannins, phytoncides and organic acids. Useful elements that are part of this amazing plant: calcium (37%), potassium (34%), magnesium (6%) and other trace elements. These substances are well absorbed by all types of garden and garden vegetation. Nettle fertilizer is especially useful for tomatoes. And vitamin K1, contained in the foliage of this weed, promotes photosynthesis and has a healing effect.
How to prepare fertilizer
To prepare a nettle tincture, it is recommended to take branches with green foliage, but without seeds (the plants must be checked to ensure they are healthy!). After selecting the tops, they must be placed in a container made of wood or plastic (volume of at least 10 liters). To speed up the cooking process, chop the weed and pour warm water. You need to infuse the nettle fertilizer for two weeks, stirring constantly, but if you place the container in the sun, the fermentation will go much faster.
At the end of fermentation, the mass stops foaming, becomes dark and disappears bad smell. You can add to the resulting liquid wood ash, thereby increasing the value of the fertilizer. Some gardeners prepare green manure from the whole set medicinal herbs, weeds and other plants. These could be: chamomile, dandelion, valerian, calendula, mint; overgrown but not flowering - spinach, sorrel, lettuce, etc.
One of the most useful and effective is the combination of nettles and dandelions. Homemade fertilizer for these miracle plants is quite simple to prepare.
The base is nettle, and the additional ingredient is the well-known common dandelion. Plants collected before seed formation are used. They are slightly dried and crushed. Then the mixture is poured into a container (not filled to the brim) and filled with water by adding a humate solution (one teaspoon per ten liters of water). Feeding from these plants is infused for five days.
After the mixture has matured, it can be used in the garden beds in its pure form or with the addition of ash. In addition to dandelions, it is quite effective to add wormwood, wheatgrass (with roots) to nettle fertilizer. shepherd's purse etc. Please note that there are some plants that absolutely cannot be used when making fertilizer from nettles and dandelions - these are cereals (they produce alcohol, which is harmful to green spaces) and bindweed (poisonous).
Video “How to make fertilizer yourself”
Video instructions on how to make your own fertilizing.
What plants can it be used with?
Nettle fertilizer is a universal fertilizer for almost all flower and garden crops, except onions, garlic and legumes. Summer residents use it to replenish the soil with useful substances and repel various pests (nettle has a disorienting effect). Fertilizer from this weed is perfect for strawberries. It not only nourishes the plant useful microelements and stimulates growth, but also increases the sugar level in the berries. And for tomatoes, this infusion is simply irreplaceable, thanks to the high content of potassium and calcium - both the bush itself and the fruits are actively developing and growing.
White cabbage, cucumbers and peppers also respond well to regular feeding from nettles and dandelions. The infusion can be used on these plants twice a month throughout the season. This is fertilizer homemade in combination with ash it will also be useful for flowers - it will promote their growth and abundant flowering . Today, more and more gardeners and gardeners are trying to switch to fertilizers for different cultures in their areas from natural products . Using infusions from organic plants, you can significantly reduce your consumption level mineral fertilizers and use environmentally friendly and useful fruits 
from their beds.
Video “The benefits of nettles”
Informational video about the benefits of nettle. Despite a wide range of
Fertilizers produced by industry remain popular mixtures and infusions that summer residents prepare themselves from improvised means. This is easily explained by the fruitfulness of application and low cost. For example, nettle fertilizer is used in private farmsteads throughout the growing season.
After all, this plant can help seedlings take root in a new place, increase the yield of vegetables, and cope with pest invasions. The main thing is to know the potential of the green helper and the rules for using fertilizers.
Composition of nettle
There is hardly a person in Russia, even a city dweller, who does not know what nettles look like. The burning bites are remembered forever; everyone walks around the lush thickets of the scorching beauty. But the acquaintance does not end there. Person interested in conservation own health
, knows how useful the young leaves of May nettle are in spring in soups and borscht. They strengthen the immune system, tone up, protect against viruses and bacteria, and relieve inflammation. The juice heals wounds and stops bleeding, has diuretic and choleretic properties.
- What is the secret of such benefits of this widespread and at the same time amazing plant? It consists of:
- macroelements: nitrogen, potassium 34%, calcium 37%, magnesium 6%;
- trace elements: silicon, iron, copper, manganese, zinc (30 items);
- amino acids: glutamic (provokes the accumulation of nitrogen, participates in the process of photosynthesis and pollination);
- tannins;
- flavonoids;
- lignans;
- coumarins;
- carotenoids;
- phytoestrogens;
- organic acids.
This valuable composition useful elements allows you to obtain an infusion of nettles for plants, which provides young vegetables with a complex of essential substances and replenishes the deficiency of mineral compounds.
Procurement of raw materials
Young, flowering and dried nettles are suitable as starting material. You can harvest it together with the roots. Together with this plant, biodynamic herbs that have medicinal properties and enhance its effect in infusions:
- dandelion;
- burdock;
- shepherd's purse;
- chamomile;
- comfrey;
- wheatgrass
Important! It is permissible to use any plant raw materials except poisonous and cereal crops.
The grass is cut with a chopper: a knife, a chopper, or a pruning shears. Top dressing is obtained as a result of fermentation of green mass. For this, gardeners invent various recipes, adding healthy ingredients to the mixture.
Preparation
Fertilizing with nettles is carried out at different stages of development:
- aging in seed infusion;
- watering seedlings;
- fertilizing seedlings;
- root and foliar nutrition of an adult plant.
Due to the different methods of using grass liquid fertilizer, its preparation also takes place differently.
Basic infusion
Fill 1/3 of the container (barrel or plastic bucket) with chopped nettles. A pressure is placed on top of it so that the grass does not float up. For example, brick. I fill it with water, pour a shovel into the 200 liter barrel garden soil. Cover and leave in the sun to ferment.
Every day everything is mixed with a long wooden stick. Infusion stops when fermentation ends, foam stops being released, the color of the liquid becomes dark brown, and the grass settles to the bottom.
In hot weather, preparation takes 5-7 days, closer to autumn - 2 weeks.
Nettle kvass
In a barrel with a volume of 200 liters, add chopped grass until 1/3 of the part is filled, 1 shovel of ash, 1 shovel of bird droppings, a liter of candied jam (syrup), a solution of “Baikal-M” or “Siyanie-3”. Fill with water and close. Stir every day to allow the released gases to evaporate. Readiness occurs when fermentation stops, when foam stops forming.
Infusion of nettle and comfrey
Herbs are collected in equal quantities, crushed, placed in a container and prepared with the same composition and the same method as the previous product.
Infusion of nettle and dandelion
Plant materials are collected before flowering in equal quantities, crushed, filled with 1/3 of the barrel, and filled with water. Additionally, potassium humate is added (1 tsp per 10 l). The result is a multivitamin product.
Nettle-yeast supplement
First, the starter is prepared: 0.5 tbsp. sugar and 1 packet (11 g) of dry baker's yeast are diluted in 3 liters of warm water.
5 buckets of chopped nettles, a bucket of mullein, and a shovel of ash are placed in a 200 liter barrel. Fill with warm water, add starter, cover and leave to ferment in a sunny place for at least 2 weeks. The mixture is stirred daily with a wooden stick until the process is completed.
Nettle-bread fertilizer
This infusion should be prepared using the previous technology. Instead of sourdough, add a bucket of dry bread crusts to the barrel and liter jar sugared jam.
Nitrogen fertilizer
1 kg fresh leaves mix with talc, add 10 liters of water and leave for 10 days.
Potash fertilizer
Overripe nettles with thick stems and seeds are good for obtaining ash fertilizer. It is cut with pruning shears, dried for 4-5 days and burned. Light bluish ash contains great amount microfertilizers and 40% potassium.
Important! Nettle infusion lacks phosphorus, so you can add 20 g of superphosphate per bucket.
Composting
If there are thickets of grass growing near the garden, then a nettle fertilizer is prepared, which ripens in a record time of 2-3 months.
Make a pile of grass, cover the layers with the soil on which it grew (ratio 10:1). The finished stack must be watered and covered with opaque material. After 30 days, the pile is re-irrigated with a solution of “Siyanie-3” or “Epin M-1” and closed until fully ripe.
Making compost using nettles gives excellent results. After cultivation, the soil becomes fertile, because the humus content is 9.8%.
Gardeners allow typical mistakes in the preparation of useful fertilizer:
- collection of raw materials in a contaminated place (by the side of the highway);
- preparing the infusion in a metal bucket (the metal reacts with acids);
- using nettles with ripened seeds (they can be sown).
Important! The resulting infusions are highly concentrated. To be used correctly in the garden, they are diluted with water.
- For root feeding, 1 liter of liquid nettle fertilizer is diluted in 10 liters.
- For foliar spraying, 0.5 liters of infusion is stirred into 10 liters.
- Store the finished concentrate in a plastic container with a closed lid for 2-3 weeks.
There are many presented on the YouTube channel useful videos with the described and other methods of making nettle fertilizer.
Advantages and disadvantages
Unlike organic fertilizers(manure, droppings, humus), green fertilizers have a number of advantages:
- less volume required;
- excess does not cause damage;
- do not cause burns to leaves and roots;
- do not contain harmful spores;
- suppress pathogens.
The disadvantages of nettle infusions include the lack of improvement in soil structure after their use. However, the soil is improved by adding ash and compost based on this plant.
Compared to mineral fertilizers, grass subcrusts also have a number of undeniable advantages:
- do not accumulate in the ground;
- activate microflora in the soil;
- productive on any soil;
- nutrients are kept in an easily accessible state;
- contains active ingredients (for example, vitamins, amino acids).
Among the shortcomings, many cite the unpleasant smell of fermented green infusion. However, the smells of mineral fertilizers or manure cannot be called attractive either.
The technology for preparing an infusion at home may seem complicated only at the beginning. If you use it during the summer and annually, the work is done automatically, without difficulty.
Important! As with any fertilizing, it is necessary to pre-water the beds with vegetables.
Usage
Nettle infusion, although extensive, has a specific composition, so it is used to achieve the specified goals:
- soaking and sowing seeds;
- fertilizing almost all types of vegetables;
- planting trees and shrubs;
- during vaccination;
- pest control.
Feeding vegetables
Main food crops are very responsive to the application of herbal infusions of nettle. These include the following vegetables:
- tomato;
- cucumber;
- pepper;
- cabbage of all kinds;
- beet;
- potato;
- carrot;
- strawberry;
- any greens.
Fast-growing crops need 2 feedings every 10 days. Cabbage After rooting, the seedlings are watered with infusion weekly. For cucumbers food is required less frequently - once every 2 weeks, throughout the season. At the same time, fruits begin to actively set and new shoots grow.
Water tomatoes diluted nettle can be used during the period of green mass growth. When the tomato begins to set fruit, it is advisable to start using ash or fish meal.
For strawberries A tincture with the addition of bread is best. Nitrogen and yeast help develop a powerful above-ground part, and potassium increases the amount of sugar in the berries.
Using infusion on beds potatoes justified during the period of leaf growth, before flowering. At the same time, 3-4 foliar feeding with an interval of 10-15 days.
How much liquid fertilizer do vegetables need? 0.5-1 liter should be poured under each plant.
Important! Herbal fertilizers should be used at the beginning of the growing season to stimulate the growth of above-ground mass. During the formation of fruits and berries, they switch to the use of potassium and phosphorus additives.
It is definitely worth using nettle fertilizer in a greenhouse, since in addition to nourishing the plants, it ensures their health, destroying many pathogens.
However, there are a number vegetable crops, which should not be watered with grass fertilizer:
- garlic;
- peas;
- beans;
- beans;
- turnip;
- radish.
Feeding flowers
Organic fertilizers are useful not only for vegetables, they can be successfully used for nutrition flower crops, for example, roses. Each flower will respond to watering or spraying with vigorous growth.
But it is advisable to use nettle infusion with the addition of ash. Yeast mixtures should not be used.
Soaking the seeds
Nettle-based products act as natural germination stimulants. To do this, brew 1 teaspoon of dry herb with a glass of boiling water, leave for 2 hours, strain and keep the seeds in it for 2 hours.
Sowing seeds
Sometimes used in agriculture original way planting seeds, which gives 100% germination. It should be used especially during periods of lack of spring rains.
Sprigs of fresh nettle are placed in the groove, and vegetable seeds are placed on it. Then everything is covered with earth in the usual manner.
Feeding seedlings
Seedlings planted in spring are watered with herbal infusion, diluting it with water in a ratio of 1:20. At this time, the nettles are still very small; it will not be possible to collect a third of the barrel. But you can make an infusion in a 3 liter container and fertilize the seedlings.
During this period, dry raw materials are also used. 200 g of grass are poured into a bucket, kept for 14 days, filtered and used for work.
Important! If you have collected a little nettle, then herbal infusion They use dandelion, chamomile, and wormwood.
Pest repellent
Watering cabbage with ready-made nettle extract repels white butterflies and other flying insects from the garden bed.
Colonies of aphids and mites on vegetables or shrubs are destroyed in the following way: 2 kg of green nettle is placed in a bucket of water and left in the shade for a day, filtered and sprayed on the affected branches without reducing the concentration.
Mulching vegetable beds fresh grass will help get rid of slugs.
Many gardeners use an infusion based on nettle for feeding plants, because this herb is a real storehouse of useful substances and nutrients.
Although nettle is very useful, its appearance on the site is not always rejoiced. Instead of just removing it, you can cook it excellent fertilizer For garden trees And garden plants. To prepare a nettle infusion that will be used as fertilizer, you need:
- Take a few nettle bushes (you can collect all that you have).
- Pour water over the nettle stems and leave until it ferments.
- You can throw a handful of mineral fertilizers into a container with prepared nettle grass, which will only enhance its fermentation.
- The nettle infusion needs to be stirred periodically so that the gases formed during fermentation can freely escape from what will soon look like fertilizer for your cucumbers and tomatoes.
- Fermentation occurs best in the sun, where fertilizer for the garden is formed.
- You need to infuse nettle for watering and feeding plants for 5 to 10 days.
- The resulting infusion should be filtered through several layers of gauze for watering plants (spraying; this fertilizer cannot be applied to the soil). Ready-made garden fertilizer is diluted with water in a ratio of 1 to 10.
You need to collect nettles in order to obtain an infusion for watering plants in ecologically clean areas, preferably in spring and early summer.
What is it used for?
This magical infusion of nettles is used to water (spray) everything possible. It is used to fertilize the garden and water vegetable beds with tomatoes, cucumbers, strawberries. The infusion is well suited for watering (irrigating) all garden and even house plants. It is especially good for cucumbers, which nourish this tool special love and affection.
This infusion from the nettle plant has many useful properties for garden plants growing in the garden. Nettle, when watering plants, is quickly and gently absorbed, and also contains such a huge supply of vitamins that it freely releases after a little fermentation. During irrigation and watering of plants, the infusion replenishes the reserves of potassium and nitrogen outside the roots of plants, serving as one of the best variations of fertilizing. You can treat your garden with nettle infusion every two weeks, for example, I use it to water plants such as tomatoes and cucumbers. This will only benefit them from any variety of cucumbers and tomatoes. By the way, take note that the aroma of this miracle nettle infusion is not for the faint of heart. Don't let this come as a surprise to you. If you want to reduce it somewhat, throw a handful of ash or dust into the infusion; you can use valerian leaves for these purposes. And after that, calmly proceed to the procedure of watering (irrigation) and fertilizing your favorite garden plants.
Such a huge complex of vitamins, macro- and microelements, many organic acids, besides - tannins and phytoncides. This fertilizer made from nettle infusion is distinguished by its availability, ease of preparation, fertilizing and watering. In addition, the amazing effect bestowed by the infusion of this magical herb has a strong effect on tomatoes, cucumbers, and other plants.
Transform your garden with nettle infusion in a matter of time and with minimal effort!
Video “Fertilizer from ordinary nettles” In pursuit of a bountiful harvest
and a lush flower garden, many gardeners resort to the help of fertilizers, the range of which is growing every year. But homemade nettle fertilizer, which is easy to make without much expense, can bring equal benefits.
The use of nettle as a fertilizer is a unique and natural cycle of useful substances: everything that this weed took from the soil for its growth returns back to the ground, thereby giving life and strength to new plants. An added bonus is that there are no chemicals.
Article outline To understand the benefits of nettle fertilizer for plants, you need to understand chemical composition
this weed, which is familiar to many from childhood and grows in huge quantities in many regions.
- Key macronutrients: Calcium – 37%, being one of important elements
- in plant metabolism and photosynthesis. With its deficiency, they slow down their growth; Young shoots begin to die, the top withers. In such a deplorable state, there can be no question of any harvest.– 34%. Its task is to activate enzymes and move nutrients. It is responsible for the strength and elasticity of the trunk, as well as for maintaining moisture. With its deficiency, the leaves begin to die off one by one, and then the plant dies completely.
- Magnesium– 6%. Being part of chlorophyll, it is necessary for photosynthesis. Magnesium deficiency can be determined by changes in appearance foliage - it begins to discolor.
- Iron.
Nettle also contains other useful substances: sulfur, copper, nickel, flint, manganese. The leaves of the weed contain a high concentration of vitamin K1, which has a healing and strengthening effect on young plantings.
For these reasons, nettle infusion is very effective for feeding plants. Such a regular addition to watering stimulates growth well and promotes abundant flowering and fruiting.
Garden plots treated with this fertilizer become more fertile due to the complex effect on the soil. On the one hand, it is saturated with useful micro- and macroelements, minerals and nutrients. On the other hand, the infusion improves the soil structure, attracting earthworms.
Green fertilizer from nettle is quite universal: it is suitable not only for watering the soil, but also for treating the green part of plants. At the same time, they additionally receive many natural elements that stimulate the process of photosynthesis, which helps to enhance the growth of agricultural and other crops. Plant stems become stronger and leaves take on a deeper green hue.
Using nettle fertilizer as a source of beneficial substances of natural origin allows you to avoid purchasing various chemicals that line the shelves of agricultural stores. This will save your budget and grow a healthy harvest.
Step-by-step instructions for preparing nettle infusion
There are several recipes for preparing nettle fertilizers on your personal plot. All of them are quite simple and do not require special equipment. But so that no difficulties arise in the process, and the resulting liquid turns out to be truly nutritious and useful for planting, you should follow some rules:
After the nettle has been prepared (and this is not difficult to do, since it is common in abundance), it is the turn to choose a suitable container for infusion. The main condition: it should not be metal. This material may trigger the onset chemical reactions, during which useful substances will be destroyed.
If possible, it is recommended to take wooden barrel(preferably oak). But this is not available to everyone, so any plastic container, the volume of which exceeds 10 liters. Good decision You may want to purchase a special vessel with a tap for draining the liquid - it will certainly come in handy in the future, and it is convenient to use.
How to make liquid fertilizer - video
This is the simplest recipe for liquid nettle fertilizer. The liquid can be used immediately after readiness, or in combination with various additives that enhance the beneficial effects.
Nettles need to be thoroughly chopped with a knife, and then filled with a pre-prepared container. Then the raw materials are poured with warm water. There is no need to do this to the brim! After all, after this, the fermentation process begins, during which the liquid will foam until it is ready - and this will happen in about 2 weeks.
During this time, the future fertilizer for the garden should be stirred daily so that the fermentation is uniform and all the nettles release their beneficial substances.
You need to prepare for the fact that the infusion will smell very unpleasant.
Fertilizer from nettles and bread
This method has gained great popularity among gardeners because its technology is no more difficult than the previous one, but much faster. The recipe is in many ways similar to the recipe for making kvass.
Bread, rolls or natural yeast in briquettes are added to nettles to make the fermentation process faster. Therefore, fill the container no more than three-quarters full - otherwise the foam may spill out.
And this gives good results: after just 5 days, the resulting fertilizer can be used to treat beds, trees and flower beds. Just before use, the resulting composition should be thoroughly filtered and diluted in a concentration of 1 liter of fertilizer per 10 liters of water.
If desired, you can add various or, but it is important not to overdo it with their quantity.
A real “green smoothie” can be prepared from nettles and nettles, which grow in abundance in and around the site. After all, nutrients are also contained in many other plants, fertilizing them will definitely benefit the plantings in the garden. For example, the widespread dandelion.
It also needs to be collected strictly before the seeds appear. Before preparing the infusion, the leaves should first be dried and finely chopped. After this, dandelions are mixed with nettles and poured into a container so that they occupy approximately 1/8 of its volume.
Then pour in water, in which you can additionally dilute potassium humate in the proportion: 1 teaspoon per 10 liters. It will become additional useful ingredient in preparing fertilizer from nettles and dandelions. I infuse this plant mixture for 5 days, after which the fertilizer is ready for use.
Not only dandelions, but others too weeds can be beneficial in tandem with nettle. Among them:
- coltsfoot;
- comfrey;
- shepherd's purse;
- sagebrush;
- wheatgrass;
- chamomile;
- yarrow.
Thus, almost all plants that are usually thrown away after weeding and cleaning the site can be used together with nettles for green herbal fertilizer. The only exceptions are those species that contain toxic substances: for example this field bindweed or St. John's wort.
It is also not recommended to use cereals, because during fermentation they release compounds containing alcohol. When watering with this composition, wait positive result It definitely won’t be necessary for the future harvest.
Many gardeners use one little trick to make green fertilizer from nettles even more beneficial for garden plantings. This method allows you to retain more nutrients from raw materials and is called “methane fermentation”. Its technology, however, is also quite simple.
Cover the container with regular plastic film, used for insulating beds. It is able to withstand the deforming changes of methane, which is released during the decomposition of nettles and other ingredients of the infusion. Thus, the process of obtaining fertilizer occurs without the participation of oxygen, i.e. hermetically sealed, so beneficial substances do not evaporate from the liquid.
The preparation time for this composition is 14 days (if additives that accelerate the fermentation process are not used). The readiness of feeding can be easily understood by the smell: when it has reached the desired state, the characteristic smell of manure appears.
Rules for preparing the ideal nettle fertilizer
There are several tips that will help you prepare the ideal nettle fertilizer for your garden:
- if you place the container in the sun, the fermentation process will occur faster;
- The infusion should be stirred several times a week;
- the rest of the raw materials can be stored in an airtight container closed jar as a starter for later use in a cool place (including for the winter);
- the unpleasant odor from the fertilizer can be easily eliminated by adding valerian root (sold in any pharmacy).
You can also add other components to the nettle fertilizer:
- sugar, old jam (will speed up the onset of readiness);
- yeast in briquettes (stimulate the fermentation process);
- manure or chicken droppings are an additional source of nutrients;
- EM-preparation (effective microorganisms) – also helping fermentation and making the infusion smell softer.
In general, liquid nettle fertilizer is good on its own, so it does not require the addition of organic matter. But there are significantly fewer minerals, but they should be added separately.
There are two ways to use this fertilizer: root and foliar.
To water at the root, the composition should be diluted beforehand. clean water 10 times, and if methane fermentation was used, then half. The optimal frequency of feeding is approximately 1–2 times every two weeks. Please note: after such procedures, abundant watering is necessary.
As for foliar use (spraying), the concentration should be as follows: 1 part of the prepared infusion to 20 parts of water (for methane fermentation - 1:5). This type of feeding can be used no more than once a month so as not to damage the foliage.
What can be fertilized with nettles?
This fertilizer is quite universal, because stinging nettle contains substances useful for the growth of many crops. The only exceptions are legumes, garlic and onions.
Vegetables
Nettle fertilizer, rich in potassium, is very beneficial for tomatoes at all stages of growth, stimulating a rich harvest of sweet tomatoes. Nitrogen helps to increase the vegetative mass of the plant. But as a crop from the nightshade family, it is not enough for them to receive organic matter - therefore, watering with infusion should be alternated with the addition of mineral complexes.
Fertilizing cucumbers with nettle also shows remarkable results. They begin to grow better, bloom and bear fruits with high taste. You can use this fertilizer from the time the seedlings are planted in the ground until the end of harvesting. Nettle fertilizer is excellent for cucumbers of all varieties: both early and late. The recommended time between watering with infusion is 2 weeks.
This recipe will also be useful for other vegetable crops: for example, nettle fertilizer is often used for cabbage and bell pepper. The main thing is to regularly monitor the condition of the plants: how they react to such an additive to watering. If the foliage begins to turn yellow and lose tugor (elasticity), wither, then it would be better to stop feeding or look for errors in the process of preparing the composition.
How to make nettle fertilizer for peppers and tomatoes - video instructions
Berries
Strawberries will also thank you for feeding nettles. These plants love nitrogen, which promotes vigorous growth, and potassium, which adds a mild sweetness to their fruits.
Liquid natural fertilizer is no less useful for others. berry crops: V southern regions nettle infusion is often used for grapes, which also has a positive effect on taste qualities future harvest.
Flowers
Nettle fertilizer is also suitable for flowers: by watering flower beds with it 2 times a month, you can count on bright colorful carpet, pleasing to the eye until the frosts.
Houseplants
This one is unique green composition can be used not only on your “six hundred square meters”. Nettle infusion is used for feeding indoor plants. At the same time, you cannot add yeast to it - the inhabitants of the windowsill are unlikely to like it. It is better to add a handful of ash to the composition, because with it, nettle fertilizer is even suitable for enhancing the flowering of exotic orchids.
Preparing liquid fertilizer from nettle is easy and inexpensive, and the benefits of such an infusion are very great. The high content of micro- and macroelements, versatility and simplicity make this type of feeding popular among gardeners and gardeners.