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Tomatoes are plants that are almost impossible to grow without fertilizing if you want to get a full harvest of tasty fruits. Of course, it is best to use complex fertilizers, but this does not always work out; in addition, there are times when plants lack a particular substance. In the case of tomatoes, this most often occurs with calcium. This element plays such an important role in the life of tomatoes that gardeners cannot help but remember its existence.
It is interesting that there are a great variety of fertilizers containing calcium, but most of them are slow-acting and are not suitable for use in cases where prompt assistance is needed for tomatoes. But in many situations, so-called folk remedies can help, the effects of which have been tested for centuries and there is no doubt about their safety.
Calcium - what is it for?
Calcium is one of the most essential nutrients for plants; in addition, it is absorbed by them in such large quantities that it can safely be considered, if not among macroelements (such as nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium), then at least among mesoelements in relation to most garden crops.
- Tomatoes show a need for calcium already at the time of seed germination: its deficiency can inhibit the emergence of seedlings, since it accelerates the consumption of seed proteins during germination.
- With a lack of calcium, first of all, the root system begins to suffer - the development and growth of roots slows down, root hairs do not form.
- It is also necessary for the growth of shoots and fruits - therefore, its deficiency most quickly affects the development of young organs of tomatoes: growing points, root tips die, buds and ovaries fall off.
- Calcium plays an equally important role in the metabolism of tomato plants; it balances the ratio of other nutrients contained in soils.
Thus, calcium is able to eliminate the harmful effects of aluminum, iron and manganese, which can be in an active state in acidic podzolic soils; an excess of these elements is harmful to any plants, including tomatoes, and the addition of calcium transforms them into sedentary forms.
- This element promotes the decomposition of organic matter in the soil, thereby forming and maintaining its structure.
- Calcium also plays a role in photosynthesis; it participates in the conversion of nitrogenous substances and promotes the movement of carbohydrates.
Signs of calcium deficiency in tomatoes
Tomatoes differ somewhat from other plants in their response to calcium deficiency. At the very initial stage of the lack of this element, fruits with a brown or gray top appear on tomato bushes. This stain can quickly spread to cover most of the tomato.
This so-called blossom end rot is not an infectious disease, but only a reaction of tomatoes to a lack of calcium.Moreover, there are varieties of tomatoes that are more or less susceptible to this phenomenon.
Interestingly, blossom-end rot can also appear on soils to which calcium fertilizers were applied before winter. That is, the soils can be filled with this element, but due to excessive doses of nitrogen or potassium fertilizers, it is in a form that is impossible for tomato plants to assimilate. Therefore, for first aid, tomatoes need to use foliar fertilizing with instant calcium fertilizers so that the element is directly absorbed through the leaves.
If calcium deficiency continues to worsen, other signs may also appear:
- The apical bud and young leaves become very light, while the old leaves remain dark green;
- Plants freeze in growth and development;
- The shape of the leaves changes, they curl;
- Finally, the tips of the shoots die and necrotic spots appear on the leaves.
Therefore, it is very important to maintain the correct proportions when feeding tomato plants, so as not to overdo it with some nutrients to the detriment of others.
By the way, excess calcium can lead, in turn, to disruption of the absorption of nitrogen, potassium, magnesium, as well as iron and boron. Accordingly, this may manifest itself in the form of the appearance of light spots of uncertain shape on the leaves, when the veins themselves remain green.
Fertilizers containing calcium
Most often, calcium-containing fertilizers for tomatoes are applied during autumn or spring digging of the soil.For acidic soils, this necessary procedure is called liming.
For this, the following types of fertilizers are most often used:
- Limestone flour – is ground limestone, which is a widespread sedimentary rock. Neutralizing capacity ranges from 85 to 95%. May contain impurities in the form of sand and clay up to 25%.
- Dolomite flour – consists of 56% calcium carbonate and 42% magnesium carbonate. Impurities in the form of sand and clay are, as a rule, no more than 4%. Thus, when applying this fertilizer, the soil is enriched with both calcium and magnesium. This type of fertilizer does not decompose on acidic soils as quickly as limestone flour.
- Slaked and burnt lime – contain only calcium, the neutralizing ability of these fertilizers is very high. There are almost no foreign impurities. But their cost is much higher than other calcium fertilizers and they are not as convenient to use.
- Ground chalk – is a soft, unrefined form of limestone, containing pure calcium carbonate with an admixture of silicon oxide and clay. Neutralizes acidity one hundred percent.
There are also two calcium compounds that generally do not have the ability to neutralize soil acidity, but are nevertheless valuable calcium fertilizers. They are usually used as fertilizer on neutral and alkaline soils. This is gypsum, which is calcium sulfate and calcium chloride.
Calcium nitrate
There is a fertilizer that, unlike most previous varieties, is highly soluble in water, which means it can be used for foliar feeding of tomatoes. This is calcium nitrate or calcium nitrate.This fertilizer contains about 22% calcium and 14% nitrogen.
Calcium nitrate is available in the form of white granules. It is characterized by increased hygroscopicity, therefore it requires storage in a dry place, in hermetically sealed packaging. The granules dissolve well in water of any temperature.
Usage calcium nitrate has the following advantages for feeding tomatoes:
- Accelerates the development of plants and the ripening of tomatoes, which allows for an earlier harvest.
- Increases overall yield by 10-15%.
- Helps tomatoes tolerate sudden temperature changes.
- Increases the immunity of tomatoes to diseases and helps protect against pests.
- Improves the taste and presentation of tomatoes, increases their keeping quality.
You can use calcium nitrate already at the stage of growing tomato seedlings. To do this, use the following composition: 20 g of calcium nitrate, 100 g of ash and 10 g of urea are dissolved in 10 liters of water. With the resulting solution, the tomato seedlings are watered at the root 10-12 days after picking.
When planting tomato seedlings in the ground, calcium nitrate granules can be added directly to the plant holes. Each bush will require approximately 20 g of fertilizer.
Finally, to prevent blossom end rot of tomatoes, as well as to protect against ticks and slugs, foliar treatment of tomatoes with calcium nitrate is used. To do this, dissolve 100 g of fertilizer in 10 liters of water and carefully spray the tomato bushes with the resulting solution. This procedure can be carried out either during flowering or during fruit formation.
Other water-soluble fertilizers
Calcium nitrate is the most popular and widespread water-soluble calcium fertilizer used for feeding tomatoes. But it is far from the only one. Firstly, for foliar feeding you can also use calcium chloride, which dissolves well in water. To prepare a solution for spraying, 100 g of this fertilizer is diluted in 10 liters of water.
There are also a number of modern fertilizers for tomatoes that contain calcium in the form of chelates, that is, in the form that is easiest for plants to absorb. These include the following fertilizers:
- Kalbit S is a liquid chelate complex with a calcium content of up to 15%.
- Brexil Ca is a chelate complex with lignin polycaboxylic acid with a calcium content of up to 20%.
- Vuksal Calcium is a fertilizer with a high content of calcium (up to 24%), nitrogen (up to 16%), as well as a wide range of microelements in chelated form (magnesium, iron, boron, molybdenum, manganese, copper and zinc).
Folk remedies containing calcium
The most famous and popular folk remedy for replenishing the calcium content in tomatoes is wood or straw ash. Depending on its origin, it can contain from 25 to 40% of this essential element.
To prepare a solution for watering tomato bushes at the root, dissolve a glass of ash in a bucket of water. After thorough stirring, water the tomato bushes at the rate of 1-2 liters per bush. To prepare foliar feeding of tomatoes with ash, they use a different method: dilute 300 grams of ash in three liters of water and boil for 30 minutes. After this, leave for about 4-5 hours, add water so that the volume of the solution is brought to 10 liters, as well as a little laundry soap for sticking and spray the tomato bushes.
Finally, a fairly simple way to replenish the loss of calcium in tomatoes at home is to spray with an infusion of eggshells. The finer you can crush the shell, the better. Add crushed shells from three eggs to one liter of warm water and leave for several days. After the characteristic smell of hydrogen sulfide appears, the infusion is ready for use.
Let's sum it up
As you can see, the choice of fertilizers containing calcium is quite extensive and can satisfy the needs of any gardener when growing tomatoes.
