A budget tool that experienced gardeners treat tomatoes: calcium nitrate for top rot

Tomatoes are susceptible to a wide variety of diseases, and one of them is top rot: a dark spot appears on the tops of the fruit, the tomatoes stop growing, rot and disappear. It is important to catch up on time and protect your crop from such a problem. In the article, we will consider how calcium nitrate for tomatoes from top rot helps to fight it.

What is calcium nitrate

This fertilizer is used in gardening and horticulture. It is a crystalline salt that dissolves quickly in water. It contains 13% nitrogen and 19% calcium.

Calcium nitrate is used for tomatoes as a preventive measure against the appearance of top rot. It has a positive effect on the acidity of the soil, it is useful on sod-podzolic and acidic soils.

What gives tomatoes

Calcium nitrate has been used for growing tomatoes for a long time. Its calcium content helps tomatoes absorb nitrogen, which affects plant growth.

With a lack of calcium, the root system of the plant does not receive the necessary nutrition, it develops poorly, rots, and the bushes disappear.

Benefit:

• accelerates photosynthesis, promoting the growth of greenery;
• improves seed germination;
• affects the formation of the root system of bushes;
• helps tomatoes withstand temperature fluctuations;
• increases the yield;
• strengthens plant immunity.

What kind of disease is the top rot

A small, depressed dry spot appears on the tops of the fruit. Over time, it grows, darkens, tomatoes stop growing and disappear. The defeat begins on unripe fruits.

Vertex rot - physiological disease of tomatoes.

It appears in greenhouses and open ground for the following reasons:

1. Improper care.
2. Washing out of calcium from the soil due to abundant watering.
3. Drying out of the soil in hot weather.
4. Irregular watering.
5. Lack or excess of calcium in the soil.
6. Excess nitrogen.
7. Soil acidity exceeds the norm.
8. Sudden changes in temperature.

What is dangerous for tomatoes

The disease is dangerous because it does not appear on tomatoes immediately. In the initial stage, it is invisible, the symptoms are similar to phytophthora. In the future, the fruits darken and rotting en masse.

Symptoms and external signs

A dark spot forms at the top of the fruit, which gradually increases. Over time, a depression appears, the tomatoes become watery and stop growing.

Then the stain dries up, a dark brown depression becomes visible. Such fruits are unfit for food.

Does calcium nitrate help with apical rot

Calcium nitrate is an indispensable remedy for the fight against top rot of tomatoes. Its main advantage is that it saturates tomatoes with calcium, which helps tomatoes to absorb nitrogen. Plants develop, the root system is strengthened, the green mass increases.

By strengthening the immunity of tomatoes in this way, you can get rid of the problem.

How to apply

To achieve the effect when processing tomatoes, it is important to follow several recommendations:

• apply fertilizer in the spring for digging the soil;
• make 2-3 foliar and root dressings per season;
• spray in the evening in calm weather;
• process the plant from the outside and inside;
• observe the interval between treatments two weeks.

reference... To achieve the maximum effect and enhance the action of calcium, boric acid solution is added to nitrate. Dilute in a separate container at 1 g per liter of water. Then the solutions are combined and diluted with ten liters of water.

Solution preparation instructions

Let's look at how to properly prepare a calcium nitrate solution for treating tomatoes from rot.

Attention! When using this remedy, remember that higher doses can harm the plant.

A solution for processing tomatoes from top rot is prepared as follows:

1. We dilute a tablespoon of calcium nitrate in a liter of water.
2. Mix thoroughly until the crystals are completely dissolved.
3. Add water to make 10 liters.
4. We feed one liter under a bush or spray.

Main rules of use:

• use glass or plastic dishes to prepare the solution;
• apply root dressing after abundant watering;
• carry out foliar processing in the evening;
• apply the solution immediately after preparation.

Instructions for processing tomatoes

The fight against top rot should be started before the tomatoes are planted in the ground. Calcium nitrate contains nitrogen and calcium, which are used as a top dressing during flowering and ovary formation.

The product improves the structure of the soil, contributes to the enrichment of plants with oxygen. With a shortage of these components, flower buds crumble, the fruits are not set.

The processing rules are extremely simple:

1. Scatter crystals in the garden, dig up the soil. Use a tablespoon of saltpeter per square meter of earth.
2. Having found the first signs of the disease on tomatoes, immediately remove all affected fruits and leaves.

Precautions

Use calcium nitrate with caution as it is a nitrate fertilizer. Subject to the instructions, dosage, processing time, this tool will not harm health.

Attention! It is necessary to bring nitrate into the ground only in the spring for digging a garden. During the autumn application, the nitrogen in the fertilizer disappears, being washed out with precipitation. Calcium left without nitrogen is harmful to humans.

Nuances of use

Calcium nitrate is used in the garden when growing tomatoes to combat top rot.

In the open field

In the open field, they are used in early spring in two ways:

• when digging the soil, scatter over a tablespoon per 1 sq. m;
• add a teaspoon to each hole when planting seedlings.

In the greenhouse

The methods of dealing with the disease in the greenhouse and in the open field are very similar.

Recommendations for processing seedlings in a greenhouse:

• spray the ground after planting seedlings with a 1% solution of calcium nitrate;
• process seedlings from all sides with such a solution: 10 g of nitrate per 10 liters of water.

Can the solution harm

The solution is good for plants, but can be harmful if used incorrectly.

Spraying time:

1. The first feeding is carried out on the tenth day after transplanting.
2. Subsequent plant treatments are processed in two weeks.
3. Spraying stops after the ovaries appear so that the fruits do not accumulate nitrates.

Tips & Tricks

To avoid problems with top rot, follow these guidelines:

• choose varieties that are resistant to diseases;
• disinfect the seeds for 30 minutes before sowing in a 3% solution of potassium permanganate;
• Prepare the soil by adding slaked lime to reduce acidity
• add a glass of ash to each well;
• water in a timely manner, preferably in the evening;
• mulch the ground using hay, straw, needles.

Reviews of vegetable growers

Experienced gardeners share their advice on the Internet, talk about how calcium nitrate helps from the top rot of tomatoes.

Konstantin: «I have met with the top rot of tomatoes more than once and realized that it appears from a lack of calcium in the soil.I began to use calcium nitrate, sprayed it only twice and the result on my face. The tomatoes were healthy this year. ”

Maria: “I have been planting tomatoes for a long time. This summer was hot, dark spots appeared on my tomatoes, the fruits stopped growing, they began to crumble from the bushes. Found out that this is the top rot. Advised to use calcium nitrate. She tore off the affected fruits, sprayed the tomatoes. The harvest ripened on time. "

Love: “Top rot started in my garden a few years ago. At first it was not clear what kind of illness. Gradually, more affected fruits appeared. Calcium nitrate was advised. I started the cultivation from the ground, in early spring I scattered fertilizer and dug it up. In the summer I sprayed it a couple of times. Tomatoes hurt less. I will continue to fight rot with saltpeter next year. ”

Read also:

Why does gray rot appear on cucumbers and how to deal with it.

High-yielding hybrid tomato "Alhambra".

Beta-carotene champion: Klondike tomato.

Output

Calcium nitrate is a powerful and effective remedy for tomato apical rot. It is recommended to use it annually to prevent disease. Subject to the rules of agricultural technology, nitrate is not dangerous to human health.

Using our recommendations, you will forever get rid of the problems associated with this disease, and get a bountiful harvest of healthy tomatoes in your garden.