Succinic acid is not included in the list of official preparations used as fertilizers for vegetable crops. But among folk remedies that improve the composition of the soil, accelerate the growth of vegetable seedlings, this folk remedy occupies one of the first places. This preparation is usually diluted in water and used for soaking seeds or cuttings, treating the roots of seedlings, and also carrying out its treatment "on the leaf".
What is succinic acid
Succinic acid is a colorless and odorless powder, this substance dissolves perfectly in water or alcohol. Experts have found it in many plants, this drug is also contained in amber (hence the name), in brown coal.
The benefits of this preparation for tomato seedlings are obvious:
- Seedlings planted in a permanent place better cope with weather changes - a decrease in temperature or a lack of moisture, and are also able to independently resist viruses and fungi;
- If you treat young plants with such a solution, and then apply such a top dressing a couple of times during the period of growth of green mass, the fruits will ripen faster, and the amount of sugars and nutrients in them will increase;
- When placing seed material in a solution of such a preparation, the percentage of their germination increases, the growth of vegetative mass accelerates;
- The preparation helps to normalize beneficial microflora in the soil, helps to improve the conditions for the vital activity of beneficial microorganisms.
- However, you need to be careful when using the amber preparation for feeding tomatoes, because its excess can harm vegetable crops.
Succinic acid as a fertilizer for tomato seedlings
Succinic acid is necessary for tomato seedlings because it helps strengthen the immunity of seedlings and accelerate their growth. But this product does not have a negative effect on the soil microflora or on domestic animals.
The concentration of the succinic preparation should be different for feeding seedlings and adult tomatoes.
To soak the seed, it is necessary to use a 0.2% solution of the succinic preparation. This product is prepared as follows: 2 g (incomplete teaspoon) of the product is dissolved in 50 ml of heated water. After the acid has completely dissolved, the volume of water is brought to one liter. Tomato seeds should be kept in this solution for no more than a day. Then the seed is dried - and it is ready for sowing.
Although seedlings or adult plants absorb exactly as much of this preparation as they need at a particular moment, and there is no overdose of succinic acid, you should not add it to the soil uncontrollably. A large amount of such acidic fertilizer in the soil can lead to its excessive acidification.
Seedlings and adult plants should be watered with a solution prepared according to the following recipe: 2 grams of the product are dissolved in a small amount of water, then the amount of solution is brought to 2 buckets. The resulting solution is watered "under the root" of the seedlings from a watering can without a nozzle, so that the solution flows in a thin stream.
The resulting solution is watered "under the root" of the seedlings from a watering can without a nozzle.
The same solution is prepared for watering adult tomatoes growing in beds in the garden or in a greenhouse. It is necessary to apply succinic acid to tomatoes during the period of active bud formation. Experts recommend treating these vegetable plants with succinic acid three times with a break of 11-13 days between them. Applying such a product helps to increase the yield of tomato bushes.
Step-by-step preparation of a solution of this preparation and its further use will allow beginning vegetable growers to grow strong tomato seedlings, which will subsequently yield a good harvest.
Such a solution is a strong stimulant, but does not harm the cultivated plants under which it is applied. However, if it gets on the skin or in the gastrointestinal tract of a person, it can lead to negative consequences. Therefore, when working with succinic acid, you should take precautions: use a mask or respirator to protect the nasopharynx and protective clothing to prevent drops of the solution from getting on the skin.
If drops of such a solution get on the skin, they should be washed off with running water. If the product gets into the eyes, they should be washed immediately and an ophthalmologist should be consulted.
Other fertilizers for feeding tomato seedlings
Succinic acid is needed for feeding tomatoes. But if you don’t have it at hand, you can use other fertilizers or folk remedies to grow strong and powerful seedlings.
First of all, you need to plant seeds for seedlings at home in nutritious soil. In this case, the shoots will receive the necessary nutrients for their growth from such a substrate. But the volume of containers in which the seedlings are grown is small, so the nutrients will quickly run out. Seedlings should be fed before planting in a permanent place in the garden at least twice.
One of the main fertilizers for tomato sprouts is nitrophoska, which contains the main elements necessary for plants: N, P, K. It should be diluted according to the instructions and used for watering not only seedlings, but also for fertilizing plants in the beds and in the greenhouse. You can also add this fertilizer to the planting holes when transplanting seedlings to the beds. For this, 1 tbsp. of fertilizer for each hole is enough.
Another popular fertilizer for seedlings and adult tomatoes is "Agricola". It is a complex mineral dry fertilizer and contains all the necessary macro and microelements for the growth and development of tomatoes. This substance is used according to the attached instructions.
For the first time, this dry fertilizer is added to the soil 11-13 days after planting the seeds for seedlings. At this point, the first shoots appear. The second time, this fertilizer should be added during the period of active emergence of ovaries. Further feeding of adult plants with "Agricola" is carried out once every two weeks.
The preparation should be diluted according to the instructions and the recommended dosage should not be exceeded. Otherwise, instead of benefit, you can cause irreparable harm to the plant.
Many vegetable growers plant tomato seeds in peat tablets, where the seedlings grow. The grown seedlings are planted in a permanent place together with these tablets, and the sprouts do not need to be fed during their growth period, because they receive everything they need from these preparations.