Preface

If suburban area is far from settlement and it can be difficult to replenish supplies of plant fertilizers, grass fertilizer will always help you out.

What is grass fertilizer and why is it needed?

Many gardeners know how long compost ferments. However garden crops They need feeding constantly and there is no reason to wait so long. Of course, it is necessary to pour the compost mixture into a barrel; this fertilizer will definitely come in handy in the future, but also this moment something must be used to supply the plants nutrients. If you don’t consider purchased fertilizers, it’s best to stick to liquid fertilizer made from the green mass of weeds. The finished product in liquid form is poured in small portions to the roots of plants, providing them with nitrogen, which is well retained in the soil.

Essentially, this is the same as compost, but it is prepared several orders of magnitude faster - only from 2 weeks to 2 months. When the fermentation product is ready, it will contain all those substances that were pulled out by weeds from the soil, that is, the microelements and minerals necessary for garden crops. Also, various additional components can be added organic matter, including chicken manure, yeast and others. Next, we propose to consider various options preparing liquid grass fertilizer.

What you need to prepare grass feed

Like future compost, green mass from chopped weeds is placed in big barrel. As a last resort, you can use a large box, covered instead of a lid with a board board of the appropriate size and shape. The grass is placed in a container, and the quantity can be any, even to the brim. In addition to weeds, tops can be used garden plants, as well as hay and straw, including those used as bedding in the chicken coop. Preference should be given to those types of plants that absorb nitrogen especially intensively, since this substance will become the main one in the composition of the future fertilizer.

Besides, additional component the prepared mixture must contain some kind of ready-made mixture, such as urea, which is also known as urea (1 tablespoon is enough). The use of liquid human waste is also allowed; it is enough to fill no more than 3 liters. Next, all that remains is to add water, just enough to drown all the grass, and then cover the container with a lid and patiently wait for the first signs of fermentation. It should be taken into account that in finished product the process continues, and without adding new raw materials, the bacteria will die in a couple of weeks, so it is advisable to update the green mass and liquid in the container every 2 weeks.

If you use a barrel to prepare liquid herbal fertilizer, it should be plastic or wooden, but in no case metal.

The first planting usually ferments for at least 2 weeks, and if the nitrogen content in the weeds is low, the process can last for a month. As the state of readiness approaches, a heavy smell of mullein and ammonia will begin to appear over the infusion, while the color of the liquid will approach brown and green, like manure. When the release of bubbles caused by the appearance of carbon dioxide in the liquid becomes most active, liquid fertilizer ready. The herb can be extracted by stirring lightly into the infusion to wash away particles of decomposed organic matter and used as mulch. As for the liquid, it is precisely this that will become a fertilizer for garden and garden crops, you just need to leave a couple of buckets in the container for a new bookmark.

Preparation of green nettle fertilizer

As is known, among weeds There are a lot of nitrogen lovers. One of these is the widely known nettle, which absorbs nitrogen from the soil very intensively, accumulating it in its stem and leaves. That is why this plant used not only in cooking and in medicinal purposes, but also quite often becomes a raw material for the production of liquid fertilizer. During the fermentation process, all the nitrogen accumulated by nettles is released, making it an excellent fertilizer for garden crops. The preparation process proceeds as described above, that is, the chopped green mass is placed in large capacity and is filled with water. However, you need to take into account some nuances.

Firstly, if your site has acidic soil, it won’t hurt to add a few components that will increase the alkaline component in the finished product. In particular, it could be . Secondly, other ingredients are allowed, such as mullein or chicken droppings. In general, you can throw any organic matter into a fermentation container, including carrion from fruit trees, diseased leaves and stems of garden and woody plants. That is, everything that would otherwise have to be buried or burned. Just do not plant branches of bushes and trees affected by disease or pests, even chopped ones. They won't be of any use, so it's better to just throw them into the fire.

Complex recipes for herbal fertilizers

So, you already know how weeds can benefit you by being a very effective, nitrogen-rich fertilizer for your garden crops. However, having grass at their disposal, many people forget about pond plants, which can add many additional nutrients to the fertilizer. To make an infusion with them, you will need for every 50 liters of water the same volume of crushed reeds and sedges mixed with weeds like nettle and lupine. We put the bucket there wood ash, up to 0.5 kilograms of chicken droppings (or up to 5 kilograms of manure). You can also add about 1 liter of EM fertilizers, that is, those that contain effective microorganisms.

Another option for increasing the usefulness of liquid feeding is as follows. Before making fertilizer from already soaked and infused grass, dissolve 1 kilogram of ordinary yeast for every 10 liters of water, and then dilute the liquid clean water 1:20. Drain the fermented infusion from the barrel after extracting the green mass, mix a yeast solution with it in a 1:1 ratio and get an extremely nutritious fertilizer for your garden. After all, it is known that yeast contains both chalk and soda, as well as many elements from the periodic table: potassium, calcium, magnesium, boron, sulfur. There was also a place among the components for diammonium phosphate. That is, it is a compact set of substances useful for plants.

And one more point that should be emphasized. Some novice gardeners, using liquid fertilizers for feeding, pour them under the roots of plants in their pure form. A couple of times per season, such a test with concentrated nutrients in combination with a huge amount plants can withstand nitrogen and alkali, provided that they are well hilled and have a powerful root system. But it’s better not to risk it and dilute the infusion from the barrel in a ratio of 1:10, obtaining a watering version of the fertilizer. In general, it is best to saturate the soil with this composition. in early spring before planting garden crops, and in the fall to prepare the land for the next season by saturating it with nitrogen.

It takes quite a lot of time to prepare compost; you can overdo it with mineral fertilizers, and they are not always quickly absorbed by plants. But there is a way out if you make liquid fertilizer from ordinary weeds that you have just removed from the beds.

Garden "reactor"

For this you will need any barrel. Plastic is preferable for these purposes, since iron rusts quite quickly. If the barrel is iron, place it on a stand to prevent the bottom from rotting. Now we fill this “reactor” with fresh weeds - about half or two-thirds. How more grass, the thicker the fertilizer will be. It is better to place the barrel in a sunny place.

Green plant matter ferments best, therefore, mown grass, weeds, and tops are usually used as the main raw materials for the production of liquid fertilizer. A nitrogen source is then added to enhance fermentation. The source of nitrogen can be 5-6 tablespoons of carbamide (urea) - the well-known granulated mineral fertilizer, or several caps of liquid humate fertilizer (black and smelling of ammonia).

Do not fill with water to the top, as the volume of the mixture will increase during fermentation. Covering the barrel plastic film and wrap it with wire to prevent it from being blown away by the wind. We make several small holes in the film to allow gases to escape. The film is needed to prevent nitrogen from evaporating during decay.

After a few days, depending on the weather, the mixture will begin to ferment and foam will appear. Almost the same thing happens in the stomach of herbivores, whose manure is sold at an unrealistically inflated price. Gradually, the liquid becomes cloudy yellow-green and acquires a very unpleasant odor.

When it stops foaming and the color becomes richly dark, the fertilizer is ready. This process will take about a week and a half, a little faster in the sun.

Under no circumstances should such a liquid be used without dilution - this fertilizer is so strong that it can burn both the tops and roots. For root feeding, you need to dilute it one to ten. For foliar use, we dilute one to twenty, and with this feeding our liquid fertilizer will be absorbed faster.

Before “using”, it is necessary to thoroughly stir the mass of grass in a barrel to prepare weed fertilizer, so that as many particles of decomposed matter as possible are washed off from it. The grass should be removed with a pitchfork and used for mulching cucumbers, pumpkins, cabbage, etc., and the liquid solution should be used for fertilizing. But not all of it: it contains a lot of microorganisms, so a couple of buckets should be left at the bottom of the barrel to “ferment” the next batch of herb. Then you fill a liquid fertilizer barrel with accumulated weeds, add a nitrogen source, fill it with water, and repeat the process.

In hot summers, when fermentation occurs quickly, the fertilizer ripens in 7–10 days. It is advisable to have several such barrels to provide for your area required quantity fertilizing

Fertilizing of any type is carried out once every three weeks before flowering and once every two weeks after the fruits begin to ripen. If the plant blooms for a long time (for example, tomatoes), then feed only at the root.

Advantages of liquid fertilizer

Firstly, we apply a quickly digestible substance to the plants. nitrogen fertilizer in the form of a solution - it will act much faster than mulch from rotted grass.

Secondly, we eliminate soil acidity due to the alkaline reaction of the solution (also faster than when adding dry deoxidizers).

Thirdly, we saturate the earth with living, active microorganisms, the secretions of which have a protective effect. That is, it is both nutrition, improvement of the environment, and protection from many diseases.

After applying such fertilizers, collect bountiful harvests, which last until the next season (and sometimes more).

In addition, it is very good to water clean soil with this liquid in advance preparation for planting. In short, a barrel of liquid herbal fertilizer in the summer becomes the main “figure” in caring for garden and vegetable gardens. garden plants. It is better to install it in the middle of the plantings so that you do not have to carry fertilizer far.

One more thing should be noted valuable property barrels with fermenting grass - it works as a disinfecting device. You can throw into it “for processing” tops affected by any diseases, which otherwise would have to be burned. There are anaerobic conditions in the barrel, not a single pathogen will survive there - everything will turn into fertilizer. In addition, you can pour carrion into the barrel - fallen currants and gooseberries, which should be buried deep or burned. Thus, a barrel of fertilizer eliminates the need to build fires and dig holes all summer.

Determining readiness

When the weed fertilizer is ready, the contents of the barrel have a “cowshed” smell, the color becomes similar to slurry: greenish-dirty, the herbal mass bubbles strongly - it stands out carbon dioxide. If there is bubbling, it means that fermentation is definitely going well, the grass is decomposing and carbon dioxide and ammonia are formed. It is very beneficial to us that ammonia ends up in water and combines with it to form ammonia, and does not volatilize, as when storing manure or compost.

Ammonia has an alkaline reaction, which has a very beneficial effect on acidic soils. In addition, since the ammonium ion is positively charged, it is well fixed in clay soil, where the particles carry a negative charge on the surface (opposite charges attract). Therefore, the liquid contents of the barrel, like everything else in general, organic fertilizers, can be applied to the soil in the fall: nitrogen is little washed out.

“How much to weigh in grams?”

The resulting universal nutrient mixture can be used both as a basic fertilizer, applied when preparing the soil, and as a summer top dressing.

Fertilizer is usually diluted “by eye” - one to one, that is, from 200 liters of liquid fertilizer you get 400–500 liters of fertilizer!

The volume of fertilizing depends on the needs individual crops. So, if for cabbage and cucumbers in August you can apply a bucket of diluted fertilizer per bush, then for growing strawberries - 1-2 liters per bush. It should be noted that fertilizing is nitrogen-based; if you overdo it, it can cause unwanted excessive growth of tops (tomatoes, strawberries) or provoke the appearance of pests and diseases. Balance on the golden mean.

In August and autumn, fertilizer production does not stop; fortunately, in addition to weeds, a lot of cut tops appear - let them go to work. It is useful to frequently water all clean patches of land preparing for spring with fertilizer.

Is it possible to water the plants themselves with this fertilizer in the fall? Be careful here! Trees and shrubs are not fed with nitrogen in the second half of summer. Water the tree trunk circles with this fertilizer. perennial plants only late autumn, when the plants have shed their leaves and are fully prepared for winter! Otherwise, our nitrogen-containing fertilizer can slow down the growth of branches and cause their poor winter hardiness.

It turns out that in three summer months with one barrel you can send 6 tons of fertilizer to the site.

How long does it last?

Anyone who has studied biology knows that ammonia in high concentrations is poison for all living things (that’s why livestock breeders remove droppings from cages so carefully!). Including for microorganisms. When too much ammonia accumulates in the barrel, the microbes die: they are poisoned by their own secretions. After standing for a month, the solution will still be nutritious, but without germs. Therefore, if you want to water the soil with living microbes, if you want to have continuous living production of fertilizer, then you need to not only constantly add fresh food for the microbes, but also remove the ripened liquid in a timely manner.

Summer residents and gardeners count weeds worst enemies and wage a merciless fight against them throughout summer season. Grass growing along fences and under trees will suffer the same fate. They say that if you cannot destroy an enemy, then you need to make him a friend. The grass can be successfully used as a fertilizer, which will be natural and therefore harmless.

How to make liquid fertilizer from grass

So, you can make fertilizer from grass in this way:


Chop or chop herbs;


- fill a wooden or plastic barrel by 1/3rd part;


Add water, close the lid, tie with plastic wrap;


Add manure to speed up the fermentation process;


Place the barrel in the sun, away from rest areas for 2 weeks;


Stir the fertilizer daily.


Foam, a characteristic pungent odor and a marsh color will indicate that the fertilizer is ready. Top dressing is prepared from 1 part of fermented grass and 10 parts of water. One plant needs from 1 to 3 liters of feeding, depending on its size and age. Fertilizer should be used on well-moistened beds.

How to make compost from grass

You can make fertilizer from grass by composting. Sod soil is poured into a pre-dug hole or trench, lightly dried grass is placed on top, then manure, fallen leaves, and food waste. The finished compost mixture should consist of 60% grass clippings, 20% soil, 20% waste and manure in equal quantities. The mixture must be stirred periodically. Earthworms thrown into the pit will contribute to the process of compost maturation. The fertilizer will be ready in a year and a half. The compost mixture prepared in this way must be placed in the beds in the spring.

How to fertilize with chicken droppings

Many summer residents raise chickens on their plots. For better growth and fruiting plants, you can make fertilizer from chicken droppings. To do this, fill the third part of the barrel with droppings, and fill the rest with water. The fertilizer should infuse for 4 days with periodic stirring. The preparations “Baikal M” or “Tamir” will help to activate the decomposition process, one tablespoon of which is diluted in a bucket of water. Ready fertilizer need to be diluted with water at the rate of four parts water to one part fertilizer. This mixture is used to water the beds per 1 sq. meter, 1.5 liters of the finished mixture is enough.


Amateur gardeners probably know that fertilizer is made from dry chicken manure. To do this, droppings are introduced into the ground while digging. However, it is not necessary to crush it. For 1 sq. meter of soil you need to take 500 grams of dry droppings. This fertilizer contains many microelements and substances beneficial to plants, increasing their productivity.

How to make fertilizer from pine needles

Experienced vegetable growers who care about their harvest use pine needles to feed vegetables and root crops. You can make fertilizer from pine needles as follows:


Start harvesting pine needle branches immediately after New Year's holidays using old Christmas trees for this purpose;


Keep freshly cut branches in a cool place for a week;


Chop branches with needles into pieces no larger than 1 cm and fill a large container with them almost to the brim;


Upload content cold water, bring to a boil over medium heat, then simmer for 10 minutes over low heat;


Leave the pan open for 6 hours, then close the lid and leave for another 3 days;


Strain the finished broth, bottle it and store it in a cool and dark place.


For root watering 1 liter pine fertilizer you need to dilute water in a bucket, water it, and then loosen the soil. This feeding is suitable for cucumbers, turnips, eggplants, cabbage, carrots, daikon, tomatoes, radishes and zucchini.


Making this fertilizer is not difficult, the main thing is to stock up spruce branches after the New Year celebration.

How to make fertilizer from grass - green manure

Not every gardener can boast fertile soil on the site, so fertilizers are needed. As fuel, you can use something that is always abundant at the dacha - weeds! It will take time to feed the land, make it fertile and ready for planting. But what if you don't have time to wait? Then you can launch a garden reactor for the express production of liquid fertilizer!

How to make green manure

To prepare green fertilizer you will need a barrel: you can use any barrel, but preferably a plastic one - the bottom of an iron one quickly rots. If there is no choice, place the iron barrel on any stand, so it will last longer. Place the container in the sunniest place, close to the garden, so that it is convenient to feed the plants. Fill the container about half or two-thirds full with any fresh plants. IN progress is underway everything: weeds, grass clippings, tops. The only thing is that it is not recommended to use horse sorrel and buttercup for liquid fertilizer - in addition to being useful, they also contain harmful substances, inhibiting the growth of crops.

To speed up the fermentation process, add 5-6 tbsp. l. carbamide (urea) or several caps of any humate fertilizer. All that remains is to fill the barrel with water, but not to the top, since during the fermentation process the volume of the solution will increase and a head of foam will appear. Cover the barrel with plastic wrap and tie the film with a rope, after making several holes for gases to escape.

After a few days, the green mass will begin to bubble - carbon dioxide is released. This is a sign that the process has begun. Very soon the infusion will acquire the specific smell of a barn. There is nothing surprising here - we are just copying natural processes that go into the stomach of herbivores! If you find it difficult to come to terms with this specific aroma, add not: how many drops of valerian to the infusion. They will tell you when the plant fertilizer is ready external signs: the infusion will stop foaming and acquire a rich brown-brown color.

The conveyor in the barrel must operate continuously, supplying the summer resident with liquid fertilizer throughout the season, so you need to manage it wisely. Before use, the green mass must be stirred so that the decomposed particles sink to the bottom and the tops remain at the top. Then pull out the tops with a pitchfork, but do not throw them away, but place them under garden crops (pumpkin, zucchini, cabbage, cucumbers), and use the liquid solution for fertilizing. A couple of buckets can be left at the bottom of the barrel: there are a lot of microorganisms there, and this is a ready-made starter for the next batch, which will speed up the process. All that remains is to refill the barrel with plants and repeat the steps.

What are the advantages of green manure?

  • Feeding in liquid form quickly and well absorbed by plants.
  • The solution is alkaline, which will help reduce the acidity of the soil.
  • The soil will be saturated with living beneficial microorganisms, which will improve its structure and protect plants from diseases.
  • It's not only nutritional supplement, but also a healing procedure for the soil. You can water the clean beds with herbal infusion even before planting.
  • You can even throw fallen currants and gooseberries into the barrel; everything will be processed into valuable fertilizer.

It is worth warning gardeners who once put plant residues in a barrel and use the same infusion all season, occasionally adding water.

  • If the fertilizer is infused More than a month, too much ammonia will accumulate in it, the vapors of which are destructive to all living bacteria. The infusion will retain its nutritional power, but will be “dead”, without beneficial microorganisms. Try to use the fertilizer within 3 weeks of its readiness.
  • If the volume is too large, pour the solution into plastic bottles and store it for a month in a dark place.
  • The green fertilizer is too concentrated: it can burn the roots and leaves. Therefore, in the case of root feeding, dilute it at the rate of 1:10, and for watering the leaves - 1:20. The volume of a standard barrel is 200 liters, which means that from just one batch you will get 400-500 liters of fertilizer!

How to properly feed plants with green fertilizer

Feeding rates depend on the individual needs of each crop. For cabbage and cucumbers, you can apply 1 bucket of diluted fertilizer per bush, for strawberries - 1-2 liters per bush. The tincture is suitable for fruit trees And berry bushes: when watering, add 1 liter to 1 bucket of water. infusion.

Do not forget that nitrogen predominates in green fertilizer, and it is applied only in the first half of summer, during active growth green mass. In the second half, during fruiting, fertilizing herbal infusion needs to stop.

The combination of herbs in green fertilizer can be different, but it is advisable to add nettle to any assortment - it holds the record for nitrogen content and attracts worms. Here are just a few recipes:

  1. Harvest nettles before they begin to set seeds. Chop, add comfrey, wormwood, dandelion, tomato shoots. Crumble the remaining bread into the barrel, add a little yeast. After a week, the fertilizer is ready. Excellent for feeding tomatoes, cucumbers, peppers, and leafy greens.
  2. Use stinging nettle as a base. The second ingredient is common dandelion, which is harvested before the seeds form. Add 1 tsp to the mixture. humate solution per 10 l. water.
  3. Mix legumes, nettles, 3 kg of bone meal, 1-3 kg dolomite flour, any microbiological preparation with beneficial bacteria.

Green fertilizer from grass is used to feed any plants when they want to stimulate rapid and abundant growth. It contains mainly nitrogen and potassium.

Preparation of herbal fertilizer.

Liquid fertilizers from weeds can be used for both root watering and leaf spraying (foliar feeding). Foliar feeding Helps quickly eliminate nitrogen and potassium deficiency. It works faster than fertilizer applied to the soil.

Off-horse feeding is carried out at intervals of 2-3 weeks in the first half of the growing season. The solution is prepared 2 times weaker than for the root.

How to prepare green fertilizer

This is how green fertilizer is prepared. The container (plastic or enamel) is filled 1/3 with freshly picked chopped grass. Fill with water, but not to the top of the container, because The liquid rises during fermentation. Cover and place in the sun.

For filling, take any weeded weeds, trimmed thin green branches of trees and shrubs, including insecticidal ones (horseradish leaves, burdock, tansy, chamomile, etc.). The contents are stirred once a day.

After 10-15 days, the fertilizer is ready. For feeding, take 1 liter of liquid per 10 liters of water (the color of weakly brewed tea). Only fermented mixture can be used. Plant residues are squeezed out and buried in tree trunks. You can dry the presses, burn them, and use the ash as fertilizer.

Intense fermentation begins in the container.

How to water plants

The fermented liquid is added to trunk circle, pre-watered.
Consumption rates:

  • - 20-30 liters of diluted green fertilizer per tree
  • - up to 10 liters per bush
  • , pepper and other vegetables - 2-3 liters per plant.

To speed up the preparation of herbal fertilizer, you can add soda ash(a glass for 100 liters of water) or baking soda(2 glasses). The mixture will be ready earlier - in 8-10 days.

Before use, green fertilizer can be enriched superphosphate (1 tablespoon of simple superphosphate per 10 liters of diluted fertilizer and potassium sulfate (1/2 tablespoon or 1 - 2 handfuls of ash per 10 liters). Superphosphate and potassium are pre-dissolved in a small amount hot water(60-70 degrees), after a few hours the sediment is drained and poured into the solution.

This liquid fertilizer contains all the elements vital for the plant in an easily digestible form. It is especially valuable for plants in the first half of summer (May - June). Repeat feeding after 10-15 days.

In the second half of summer, the interval between fertilizing is increased to 20-25 days, the addition of superphosphate and potassium is doubled. From the second half of August, feeding of trees is stopped, because... grass fertilizer contains a lot of nitrogen, which can cause secondary growth of shoots and delay the ripening of shoots. The trees are poorly prepared for winter and may freeze.

If insecticidal plants are used to prepare green fertilizer, it also heals the soil.

From unpleasant odor You can get rid of it by adding a few drops of valerian infusion and valerian leaves to the container.

The solution can be enriched by adding a little aromatic herbs(they contain biologically volatile active substances), onions, garlic, bird droppings, wood ash.

Reviews from gardeners about green fertilizer

All reviews are taken from the gardening forum

User review Elol:

“We also have a compost pit; we regularly fill it with lime and ash. But I prefer liquid green fertilizers made from grass - we soak the weeds in old buckets (we, however, have an old bathtub for this). The container should be in the sun - then everything happens faster. We cover it, because the smell from these fertilizers is very, very strong. And we wait. It will wander there and even gurgle for several days. And then you get some kind of greenish slurry. We shake it, and add one jar per bucket of water to the evening watering. It turns out great! You just need a clothespin on your nose - it’s very fragrant. But the plants really like it, especially peppers. We feed almost all crops; I haven’t heard any contraindications yet.”

Irina:

“I want to try it. How often should you water with this fertilizer?

“We water once every two weeks. But usually there is not enough “potion” for all the beds, so it turns out that first one half of the garden, and along the way we “feed” the second. But I think so - it’s possible more often, especially while the growing season is active. When the harvest is already close, we don’t feed anything at all, we stop all feeding at least two weeks before the harvest date. Even green fertilizers are still fertilizers!”

Forum address from which the reviews were taken: https://sazhaemsad.ru/forum/zelenoe-udobrenie-t104.html

Continuation of the topic:



This article is also available in the following languages: Thai

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