Content
Raspberries belong to the category of common shrubs. Its fruits have a pleasant taste and aroma. In addition, raspberries have healing properties and help in the treatment of colds and other diseases. In order for the bush to fully develop and produce a good harvest every year, it is necessary to fertilize it regularly. Many experienced gardeners recommend feeding raspberries with urea during this period, as it contains all the necessary components for active growth.
Urea marked “B” on the packaging should be used as a fertilizer.
Is it possible to feed raspberries with urea in spring?
Urea or urea is a nitrogen fertilizer in which the mass fraction of the main component is 46%. It is carbonic acid diamide. This granular fertilizer is white, odorless, and easily dissolves in water.
Urea is not only possible, but also should be used to feed raspberries in the spring. This fertilizer provides the fruit bush with the nutritional components that are necessary at this stage of development.This allows raspberries to quickly recover after winter and begin active growing season.
Why feed raspberries with urea in spring?
Nitrogen is an important element of plant nutrition. It is this component that is the main part of the proteins, chlorophyll, DNA, enzymes that are required for the active growth of the shrub. A particularly increased need for this nutrient occurs in the spring during the period of active growth of shoots and leaves.
Feeding raspberries with urea in early spring helps replenish the nitrogen deficiency that has formed after winter. This fertilizer also helps to obtain a high yield of excellent quality. After all, nitrogen helps not only to grow shoots and leaves, but also flowers and fruits.
If there is a deficiency of this component in the soil:
- raspberry development slows down;
- the leaves become smaller and acquire a light shade;
- shoots become thinner;
- the number of ovaries decreases.
When using urea to feed raspberries, it should be taken into account that this fertilizer reacts with enzymes and bacteria upon contact with the soil. And over the next 2-3 days, a chemical reaction occurs, as a result of which urea is converted into ammonium carbonate. This substance is subsequently transformed into volatile ammonia.
And if this fertilizer is simply sprinkled at the base of raspberry bushes, then the effectiveness of using urea will be insignificant. Because the nutritional components will never be able to reach the roots of the bush. Therefore, experienced gardeners recommend spraying or watering raspberries with urea so that fertilizing gives the desired result.
Pros and cons of use
Urea is very popular among gardeners and gardeners. After all, this fertilizer has many advantages. But it also has certain disadvantages that cannot be ignored.
Urea for watering raspberries can be used at temperatures above +14 ° C
Main advantages:
- the fertilizer is well absorbed;
- the result is visible within a day;
- accelerates the pace of development;
- increases harvest volume;
- activates vegetation processes;
- availability;
- ease of use;
- suitable for root and foliar feeding;
- dissolves slowly in soil;
- destroys wintering pests;
- Dissolves completely in water.
Flaws:
- requires embedding into the soil;
- does not give results when used on depleted soil;
- does not combine with fertilizers based on calcium and lime;
- at high humidity it quickly deactivates and is washed away from the soil.
Timing of feeding raspberries with urea
In order for the root feeding of raspberries in the spring with urea for a large harvest to be as effective as possible, it must be carried out in well-warmed soil. Therefore, experienced gardeners recommend doing it in mid-April or in the first half of May, depending on the climatic characteristics of the region.
These timings for fertilizing with urea must be adhered to, since nitrogen is converted into an accessible form for raspberries by soil microorganisms. And at low temperatures they are still inactive.
And when using urea to protect shrubs from pests, earlier treatment is recommended. In this case, you can spray raspberries at a temperature of + 5 ° C before the start of the growing season.The optimal time for carrying out such a procedure is the beginning of April.
How to dilute urea to feed raspberries in spring
To feed raspberries in spring, you should use an aqueous solution of urea. Before preparing it, you need to put gloves on your hands. Fertilizer and water should be mixed in a plastic or glass container to avoid a chemical reaction.
Initially, you should dissolve the required dosage of the product in a small amount of water, and then bring the total volume to the desired amount. The nutrient solution should be prepared immediately before use, as it can be used within 12 hours.
The concentration of the working fluid depends on the purpose of its use. It is easy to determine the required dosage of fertilizer if you know what it contains:
- in a tablespoon – 11 g;
- in a matchbox – 14 g;
- in a glass – 131 g.
Urea can be used on different types of soil
How to treat raspberries with urea in spring
You need to use urea for raspberries correctly in the spring. Only in this case will fertilizer be useful for the bush. Therefore, you should familiarize yourself with the basic rules of the procedure.
Watering
Before applying fertilizer to the soil, you need to first prepare the raspberry plant. To do this, it is recommended to trim the lower shoots, remove weeds and loosen the top layer of soil, but carefully, without touching the roots.
There is no need to additionally water the shrubs before the procedure, since in spring there is enough moisture in the soil. The urea rate for feeding raspberries in spring is 30 g per 10 liters of water.The bushes need to be watered with a nutrient solution at the rate of 3 liters per plant. It is recommended to water with fertilizer in the evening.
Spraying
Treating raspberries with urea in the spring helps not only replenish nitrogen deficiency, but also prevents damage by weevils and aphids.
To destroy wintering pests, you need to spray the bush in early spring before the buds open. In this case, it is necessary to use a solution of increased concentration, namely 30 g per 1 liter. But it is important to adhere to deadlines. Since later treatment can lead to burns of foliage. The solution should be sprayed not only on the shoots of the bush, but also on the top layer of soil at its base.
According to experienced gardeners, early spraying of raspberries with urea also helps slow down flowering by 7-10 days. This makes it possible to prevent damage to the bush from return frosts. Therefore, such processing is especially relevant for early varieties of the crop.
Before use, the urea solution must be mixed thoroughly
You can spray raspberries with urea in the spring to replenish nitrogen deficiency about a week before flowering. Carrying out the procedure later may have a negative impact on fruit set. In this case, a less concentrated solution should be used. To spray raspberries, add 20 g of fertilizer to a bucket of water. The solution should be sprayed evenly on the leaves and shoots of the bush.
It is recommended to carry out the treatment in cloudy, windless weather in the morning or evening. The consumption rate of the nutrient solution is 1 liter per hundred square meters.
Conclusion
Knowing how to properly feed raspberries with urea in the spring, you can count on abundant fruiting of the bush. But it should be understood that a lack of nitrogen, as well as its excess, negatively affects the development of plants. Therefore, it is important to strictly adhere to the recommendations for the use of urea, observe the timing of fertilizing, and adhere to the specified dosages. Otherwise, the fertilizer may not only be useless, but can also harm the raspberries.
