Needles are used as fertilizer in the country. Pine and spruce needles are a good fertilizer for plants and an excellent pesticide.

From ancient times to this day, pine and spruce needles have been held in high esteem in Rus'. It is used in medicinal purposes, prepare infusions, make jam, add to the bath, even use to scare away evil forces, in those places where the traditions of their ancestors are still remembered.

Serve good service this one is fragrant and very useful material maybe for summer residents who are looking for an effective and harmless way to control pests, as well as additional fertilizer for the soil.

Needles are an invaluable storehouse of useful substances; they contain calcium, magnesium, manganese, zinc, copper, but insects do not like them.

Needles as protection against pests

She is especially effective in defense fruit and berry crops. The codling moth, the moth that destroys currants and gooseberries, the weevil that spoils raspberries and many other insects will never approach a plant sprayed with an infusion of pine or spruce needles.

Use of needles

To prepare it, you need to infuse one and a half kilograms of green needles in ten liters hot water, cool and strain. Using the resulting infusion from a sprayer, first treat the plant trunks, then the branches and lastly the leaves. This treatment should be carried out three times in a row, once a week during the period when trees and shrubs begin to flower.

Pine needles show excellent results when used to protect the garden. A concentrated infusion of two kilograms of pine needles filled with ten liters of water is infused for a week, in a place protected from light, stirring daily. In order not to burn the leaves of the plants, the pine infusion is diluted with water in a ratio of 1:3 or 1:5.

This solution is incredibly effective against aphids, copperheads and cruciferous flea beetles. Good results are obtained from processing lettuce, cauliflower and many root crops.

Even the eternal enemy of potatoes, the Colorado potato beetle, cannot stand the coniferous “soul.” In addition to spraying, you can add a mixture of pine needles and water in a 1:1 ratio between the rows of plants.

Do not spray plants during periods of rain and heavy dew. Otherwise best time for the procedure – morning and evening. If you add about thirty grams of pine needles to the solution laundry soap and ash extract, this will help eliminate the effect of soil acidification.

Apart from these, no other components should be added, as they will weaken the effect of the infusion on pests.

With the use of infusions of pine and spruce needles, crop yields usually increase. You can do this purposefully by preparing a special solution. To do this you will need a mixture of pine and spruce needles mixed with ash.

Using pine needles as fertilizer

All this must be boiled in water, cooled, strained and diluted with water in a ratio of 1:5. Plants need to be sprayed twice. As a result of such treatment, for example, tomatoes grow more intensively, sprout together, do not get sick and bring a much larger harvest.

To protect strawberry bushes from pests and diseases, as well as to provide them with sufficient nutrition for intensive growth, you need to embed a mixture of pine needles with sand, compost and ash in equal parts into the top layer of soil.

With this feeding, strawberries grow much larger, and the yield is on average one and a half times larger.

When planting potatoes, pine needles are generally irreplaceable as fertilizer. It is capable of destroying scab, even if the planting tubers are affected by it. The needles qualitatively increase the yield of potatoes, protect them from harmful insects and many diseases. A mixture of pine needles, ash, bark and compost is applied directly under the potato tubers and on top in a volume of one liter.

By the way, you can also use pine needles to store potatoes in the cellar according to the method of gardener V. Shchelkov. If you fumigate potatoes monthly with pine needles mixed with sawdust, they will not only not rot, but will also retain all their beneficial properties.

Thanks to the experience of the famous gardener L. Rendyakov, today every owner land plot can grow an excellent harvest of onions in his garden. Rendyakov covers the onion plantings with coniferous spruce branches, which are removed after three weeks.

Then the soil needs to be well mulched with pine needles, thanks to which it perfectly retains nutritional value, moisture and looseness. Weeds do not grow in such soil, it effectively protects onions from diseases, and also greatly increases productivity: from one kilogram of sowing, the onion yield is forty kilograms.

There are those who oppose the use of spruce and pine needles on the site, citing the harm caused to plants when young needles are removed from the forest. In fact, a gardener may well use litter, since it has the same properties as the green helper growing on trees.

If there are no pine needles, use pine concentrate

In pharmacies you can buy pine concentrate in the form of bath salts or powder. This is a proven, budget-friendly and, most importantly, pest control product that is not harmful to trees or people.

Dilute two or three tablespoons of concentrate into a bucket of water and spray the fruit trees when the buds swell; the second treatment is when the first leaves hatch.

The most interesting thing about this spraying is that in this way we confuse the pests; because of this “camouflage” they completely ignore the fruit trees, because it “seems” to them that in front of them is a coniferous tree that they do not like.

Also in terms of concentration: if you dilute 4-6 tablespoons of concentrate in a bucket of water, you can destroy aphids and caterpillars. This remedy is effective against aphids at any time during the season.

Aphids are generally the most harmful pest - they will stick to the bush, populate all the young branches, not without the help of ants, of course, and suck the juices from the young shoots. So, after spraying with pine concentrate, this whole team disappears instantly.

Video - using pine needles in the garden

In conclusion, I suggest you watch a video from Tatyana Kudryashova, from which you will learn about the benefits of pine needles in the garden.

The topic of using plant needles in everyday life. In the second part we will talk about the use of needles for garden plot. True, one Christmas tree or pine tree is unlikely to be enough for such purposes, but you can always go to the nearest forest and collect needles there. Also, many people have coniferous trees growing right on their property, and you can get additional benefits from this.

As a mulching material

It is best to use pine needles as mulch; spruce needles are too acidic, so it is better not to use them for these purposes. Pine needles, although they slightly increase the acidity of the soil, are suitable for mulching many plants.

Onions will especially like this shelter; pine needles will not only help retain moisture in the soil, but will also protect the plants from fungal diseases and some pests, and it will be difficult for weeds to break through such a coniferous cushion.

It is very good to fill the beds with garden strawberries with pine needles; the berries will not come into contact with the ground, which will protect them from rotting and slugs. Needles can be covered tree trunk circles fruit trees and berry bushes.

But flowers, for the most part, do not like acidic soil, so you should not mulch them with pine needles. The exceptions are, perhaps, hydrangea, rhododendrons and heather. They will like the coniferous shelter.

Important! Do not use fresh pine needles! But rotted or already fallen dry needles are quite suitable. And, of course, pine needles that have already defended their New Year's pine also quite suitable.

As a covering material

Spruce spruce branches have long been used as a covering material. The needles will also help protect plants from winter cold. It can be used to cover the roots of trees and shrubs. Moreover, such a shelter will protect the plants not only from the cold, but also from small rodents. Few of them like to make their way to the treasured bark along sharp thorns.

Beds with garden strawberries can also be filled pine needles. Such a shelter will protect plants no worse than expensive covering materials. On the one hand, it will protect the plants from frost and wind, and on the other, it will allow oxygen to freely penetrate the soil, preventing it from suffocating.

As a fertilizer

Needles, along with other organic residues, can be placed in a compost heap. Having overheated, they will provide a very valuable natural fertilizer, which is suitable for any plants and helps improve the soil structure.

If your entire greenery is limited to just a few pots of water, pine and Christmas tree needles can come in handy in this case too. You can prepare an infusion for irrigation from pine needles indoor flowers. This infusion will not only be a vitamin supplement for green pets, but also, thanks to the disinfectant and bactericidal properties of pine needles, it will be suitable for the prevention of fungal diseases.

To prepare a pine infusion, you need to take twigs with needles, chop them finely and put them in a three-liter bottle, filling it about 1/3. Pour boiling water into the jar and let it brew for 3-4 days. Before use, this infusion must be diluted with water. Such coniferous water can be used not only for watering indoor flowers, but also plants in the garden and vegetable garden.

For pest control

The needles are also effective for pest control. It will help protect potatoes from wireworms and mole crickets. To do this, when planting potatoes, just put a handful of needles and half a glass in each hole. wood ash.

Snails and slugs do not like needles. To protect the plant from them, simply surround it with a “coat” of needles.

No plant is capable of producing as much oxygen as evergreen trees. It is not for nothing that people choose forests where spruce, pine, and fir trees grow to treat the respiratory system. Sanatoriums, which are located in pine forests, have amazing properties heal the body thanks to the phytoncides found in the resin of these plants.You can recreate a piece of the forest on your own summer cottage by planting the types of trees you like. Before this, you need to familiarize yourself with the growing methods and nutritional system of conifers.

Feeding spruce, thuja and other tree species with needles must be done carefully. These breeds are unpretentious in nutrition and excess feeding can only harm them.When growing on a site for beauty, you need to knowhow to feed coniferswhen is the best time to do this? Professionals advise not to be too zealous with mineral supplements; it is better not to use anything at all than to use it incorrectly.

How does the nutrition of conifers differ from ordinary trees?

Fertilizer for conifers plants differs from that usually used for fruit trees, berries and vegetables. They do not need nitrogen in such concentrations as for deciduous trees, therefore complex mixtures - nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium - are not suitable.

The necessary elements are potassium and magnesium, as well as phosphorus in small quantities. This is due to the fact that the necessary chlorophyll, which is always present in modified foliage, is obtained by plants through photosynthesis. The role of roots in this process is secondary.

Video: What fertilizers are best to use for conifers

The process of photosynthesis depends on magnesium. This microelement is part of chlorophyll, which is very abundant in needles, and its amount within all year round stays at the same level. In fact, magnesium is needed in small quantities for the growth of new branches that are located on the tops of trees.

Why fertilizer for coniferous treesnot needed in large quantities:

• evergreens do not shed their leaves, so they do not need building material for restoration in spring;
• do not produce crops, so they do not consume many nutrients;
• Plants can obtain the necessary nitrogen from the air.

Considering the type of nutrition, growth characteristics and shape of the “foliage”, you don’t have to worry too muchHow to fertilize coniferous plants.

Why nitrogen is dangerous for evergreen species

Fertilizers for coniferous treesmust not contain nitrogen. Plants need it, but in tiny quantities compared to deciduous trees. Specialfertilizers for feeding conifersplants do not contain large number phosphates, potassium and magnesium. Thesenutrientsenough for the trees.

Firstly, nitrogen can burn root system and destroy the plant. Secondly, a large amount of nitrogen causes rapid growth, which does not have time to become woody before the onset of cold weather and the tops freeze. Moreover, evergreen trees are considered the most frost-resistant on the planet. In Siberian forests, temperatures often drop to -65 degrees, but this does not harm pine and spruce trees. All because in the natural environmentno one uses it.

For this reason it cannot be used as fertilizers for conifersmanure. Not in any form, even diluted. Manure is a good source of nitrogen for leafy plants, but it will kill an evergreen tree.

Mineral fertilizers for evergreens in autumn

Considering that soil fertilization is carried out in early May and mid-summer, it is worth considering whatautumn fertilizers for coniferous treeswon't hurt. You can use mulching around the root zone - this will protect the roots from freezing. Tree bark, hay, fallen needles, humus, crushed stone, and stones are used as mulch.

Feeding conifers in autumn includes superphosphates. Fertilizers in dry form are scattered around the perimeter of the plants and watered. You can bring it under digging and also water it. Over the winter, phosphorus is transformed and in the spring it becomes available to the root system.Autumn feeding coniferous plants superphosphate is not dangerous, since its effect will be noticeable only after 4 - 6 months.

Video: How to properly fertilize coniferous trees

Feeding conifers in August and Septemberis not carried out because the growth cycle is completed and new shoots ripen for wintering. Growth stimulants are not needed during this period.

Organics for evergreen trees

Organic mixtures that are suitable for evergreens:

• vermicompost;
• compost (necessarily rotted), which consists of green grass and kitchen waste.

Organic mixtures are placed around the trunk and lightly mixed with the top layer of soil. Organic additives are applied in the spring.

The main value of such supplements is the presence of potassium and microelements

Special additives for conifers

To make it easier to calculate fertilizers for conifers, special mixtures were created:

• "Fertika-lux";
• “Hello turbo for conifers”;
• "Aquarin";
• "Needle";
• "Green Needle";
• "Fertile universal for conifers."

"Fertika-Lux" is recommended by some amateurs as a fertilizer for conifers, but it contains no magnesium and a lot of nitrogen (16%). This mixture can be used in diluted concentration once every five years.

“Zdraven turbo for conifers” is a more acceptable option spring fertilizer. Most of the essential microelements are present, including magnesium. But the nitrogen content is worrying - 22%. It is not recommended to exceed the dosage of this mixture, much less use it asautumn fertilizer for conifers.

"Aquarin" is a water-soluble mixture that can be usedfor liquid feeding of conifers in the fall,but no later than the beginning of September.

"Hvoinka" is a good additive for dwarf evergreens. The main application is in spring and summer, since the nitrogen content is quite high (13%) .

"Green Needle" - wonderfulfertilizer for coniferous plants in autumn.A large percentage of magnesium and sulfur ensure the bright green color of the needles all year round.Fertilizer for spruce and pinewill prevent yellowing of the needles. A small percentage of nitrogen (3.4%) makes it safe for all types of conifers.

“Fertile universal” - spring feeding for the growth of new shoots. Starting from August, its use is not recommended.

Of the traditional nutritional mixtures for conifers, the most suitable is “Kalimagnesia”.

Conclusions

To support green look conifers, you cannot use large amounts of nutrient mixtures, especially those with a high nitrogen content. The emphasis in caring for pine needles is on the microelement magnesium and the macroelement potassium.

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Natural farming is becoming increasingly popular these days. In addition to significantly reducing the volume of excavation work and the pleasure of obtaining high yields of various garden crops, this method requires the mandatory use of mulch. Can be used as mulch different materials. Mulching with pine needles is used when growing many plants that are not afraid of acidified soil. For these purposes, they do not use green pine needles, but brown ones that have fallen long ago.

Purpose of mulch

Mulch is any type of loose, air- and moisture-permeable, biodegradable material that is placed on the surface of the soil. The use of mulch provides:

• keeping the soil moist for a long time;
• growth retardation of many types of weeds;
• maintaining optimal temperature soil;
• creation of humus through gradual rotting;
• life support beneficial organisms, inhabiting the upper layer of the earth.

Growing plants on soil covered with a layer of mulch gives incomparable best results than without it. The thickness of the mulch should be from 5 to 20 cm. The needles are laid out at some distance from the base of the plant. They only need to cover heated soil.

If you rush to lay mulch in the spring, the ground underneath will remain cold for a long time. The effect of such use will be the opposite - a delay in plant development.

If in spring and summer the purpose of mulch is to protect the soil from drying out and the growth of weeds, and to accumulate heat, then in the fall it is to protect the soil organisms living underneath it from freezing.

Many natural materials can be used as mulch:

• pine litter;
• hay, straw;
• husks from seeds, buckwheat;
• pine nut shells;
• dry last year's leaves;
• sawdust and shavings;
• wood chips from tree bark;
• crushed cones;
• humus, humus, peat;
• freshly cut grass.

Buy mulch from natural materials not easy, it is rarely on sale even in specialized stores. Such materials are quite expensive and require renewal after a year, as they decompose in the soil.

Currently, in addition to natural shelters, modern nonwoven materials are used:

• spunbond;
• agril;
• lutrasil;
• Virotex.

They allow moisture to reach the ground and delay its evaporation. Their use is justified by the ease of acquisition and use. But it will not be possible to create real humus under such cover. Such a cover will not provide nutrition to the plant.

By using completely free pine litter, which can be collected from pine forests in any quantity, gardeners receive not only mulch, but also a natural factory for the production of humus.

When raking needles into bags, you can see white mycelium veins under the pine needles. These myceliums provide the soil with enhanced nutrition and protection. Fertility and wildlife, and in the beds, is created by soil inhabitants who actively recycle thick layer needles

Soil inhabitants - fungi, bacteria, small fauna that live under litter, help plants digest and assimilate any organic matter. Plant productivity in such conditions is optimal. After all, if there is no organic matter, there is no soil life, and there is no food for plants.

Application of pine mulch

In gardening literature you can read about restrictions on the use of pine needles. It has an acidic reaction and over time, with constant use, acidifies the soil. Not all plants like this. Some people need such land, others suffer and get sick in such conditions.

The way out of this situation is very simple. It is worth remembering which vegetables, bushes and trees love such conditions. Raspberries and blackberries tolerate acidic soil well. Slightly acidic soil is suitable:

• for apple trees;
• pears;
• cherries;
• plums;
• quinces;
• gooseberries;
• currants

Medium acid soil is suitable:

• for strawberries;
• potatoes;
• pepper;
• pumpkins;
• parsnip;
• sorrel.

Pine mulch helps the growth of sunflowers, eggplants, onions and garlic.

From ornamental plants loves coniferous mulch: hydrangea, rhododendron, all heathers, roses.

In addition, acidic soil can be neutralized by sprinkling slaked lime on the beds in the fall - 50 grams per 1 square meter. m. It is even better to deoxidize the soil with ash, which is a natural supplier of nitrogen.

Pine needles contain natural phytoncides that counteract fungal and bacterial diseases. The needles also contain a huge amount of vitamins and minerals, which gradually pass into the soil.

Raspberry

Mulch from pine needles allows you to grow luxurious crops using biotechnology, which was studied and described by the outstanding Russian land manager Alexander Kuznetsov. Its principle is that plant nutrition is provided by root microbes and fungal mycorrhiza. Microbes and fungi do not live in the arable layer, only in rotting plant residues.

That is, by covering the raspberry beds with pine litter or any organic mulch, they create conditions for a favorable symbiosis between the plant, fungi and microbes. This symbiosis is a living biological product that enhances the breakdown of organic matter and improves plant nutrition.

Raspberry roots secrete substances necessary for the functioning of mycorrhiza, and mushrooms enrich the soil nutrients. Pine mulch is natural environment mycorrhiza habitats.

Its presence allows you to increase the planting density from 5 shoots per 1 sq. m. up to 30-40 pieces.

At the same time, the weight of the berries increased from 4-6 g to 10-12 g. Fruiting remontant raspberries instead of August it starts from mid-July.

In beds that are mulched annually, plants either do not get sick at all or the disease is mild. With such agricultural technology, fertilizers, frequent watering are not needed, chemicals for baiting pests.

Strawberry (strawberry)

When using Kuznetsov’s biotechnology, strawberries instead of ordinary berries weighing 40 grams produced berries weighing 65 grams. The harvest increased by 1.5 times. Mulch, among other things, plays the role of an antiseptic; strawberries do not suffer from any diseases.

Unlike straw mulch, pine needles will prevent slugs from getting close to the berries. Mice won't live in it either. The mulch layer should be at least 5-7 cm high.

Lingonberries, blueberries, cranberries

Growing these crops is gradually becoming fashionable. Small plantations are planted in fenced beds covered with peat. For good development of plants, they are watered with acid-containing solutions. Covering such plantings with coniferous mulch is a mandatory procedure.

Onions and garlic

It is recommended to cover the beds with these plants with pine litter. Needles will not only retain moisture and prevent weeds from sprouting, but their phytoncidal properties will save plants from fungal and bacterial diseases. From mid-May, the beds are covered with a dense layer of pine mulch. At the same time, work on watering and loosening the beds is reduced.

Very good to cover for the winter pine mulch roots of berry bushes, fruit trees, grapes and strawberries. Protecting from icy winds and low temperatures, it prevents the roots from suffocating from lack of oxygen. Many other protective structures become winter quarters for rodents. The needles will not allow them to settle in shelters built for grapes and roses.

In most houses new year holidays It is customary to put up a Christmas tree or pine tree. And as soon as the holidays are left behind, the green beauty almost immediately goes to the trash heap. And it’s completely in vain, because the pine needles can later be very useful in a summer cottage! For what purposes can it be used and what to do if christmas tree Already thrown away and no needles at hand?

Saving potatoes from pests and diseases

If potatoes often suffer from the above insects or diseases, then in the spring, when planting them, it won’t hurt to first throw a full handful of larch or pine needles into each hole, and then pour half a glass of wood ash there. And only then seed potatoes are laid out in the holes and covered with soil. By the way, fairly loose needles also provide excellent air drainage to the potato root system, which requires oxygen for the full formation of tubers.

In the event that New Year a long time ago, the Christmas tree has been safely thrown away, and the new summer season is almost upon us, you can go into the forest and collect fallen pine needles there. Moreover, in order to collect pine needles in the forest, you won’t need superhuman efforts - a few swings of a rake, and in seven to eight minutes you will have a full bag of valuable raw materials in front of you!

Mulch the soil

If you cover beds with garlic, onions, lettuce, radishes and some other moisture-loving crops with pine around mid-May, the yield will increase significantly, and the effort required for watering and weeding will be noticeably reduced!

Covering the beds for the winter

Another valuable property of pine needles is its ability to act as a covering material - it really reliably protects crops covered for the winter! Covering the beds with pine needles is very easy and simple, and the result is excellent! Grapes and strawberries respond especially gratefully to such shelter. It is not forbidden to sprinkle pine needles on the roots of fruit and berry crops - it can protect them no worse than state-of-the-art covering materials. Excellent protection against heat loss and chilly winds, the needles at the same time perfectly transmit oxygen, vital for plants, without allowing the soil to “suffocate.” She is also a reliable protector against enterprising rodents, which is also important!

For the same reason, it is permissible to use pine needles and not for all crops - for example, they often react negatively to changes in soil acidity garden flowers. But sour berries and fruits simply adore pine needles! This raw material is ideal for mulching the soil around most garden trees, as well as around blueberry and cherry bushes, and it also perfectly helps the growth of garlic, onions, sunflowers and even eggplant! So it’s definitely worth making friends with pine needles!