Why spray currants with soda
Baking soda is perhaps the most affordable of all garden chemistry. The tradition of using sodium bicarbonate to process garden plants dates back to the days of the Soviet Union, when, due to a total shortage, gardeners had to use for their needs not what is better and more effective, but what can be obtained from the store. This substance at all times remained extremely cheap and accessible, but at the same time a very effective means.
Soda - gardener's assistant
It can be used on currant bushes for the following purposes:
- Reducing soil acidity.
- Prevention of the appearance of certain fungal diseases.
- Fight against certain types of insect pests.
- Enrichment of the soil with sodium, which contributes to a more complete assimilation of nutrients by the roots of plants.
- Improving the taste of berries.
Important! Sodium bicarbonate is absolutely safe and environmentally friendly.
Why aphids are dangerous
Aphids cause harm in the following way: they settle on the back of the leaves, on young shoots and buds, and can affect the entire stem or branch. It feeds on plant sap, piercing the top layer with the proboscis. Drinks all the vitality of culture.
Why are aphids dangerous for humans and plants? It carries many infections that are dangerous to plants. In addition, the insects secrete "honeydew", which is an excellent breeding ground for sooty fungus. Due to the covering sticky layer, the leaves of the plant stop breathing and participate in photosynthesis. They curl, pathological formations appear, the plant withers.
The benefits of soda to help black currants
In stores, you can find 2 types of soda on sale: baking soda (sodium bicarbonate) and soda ash (sodium carbonate). The chemical formulas of these substances are very similar, but their properties have significant differences. Sodium bicarbonate is a food additive and is widely used in bakery and cooking, while calcined can only be used for technical purposes.
Calcined
Soda ash in dissolved form is an alkali. In such a solution, it is useful to keep the currant seedlings for disinfection before planting. Sodium carbonate is used to spray bushes against various fungal diseases, for example, powdery mildew and gray rot.
Soda ash is used only for technical purposes.
And also it is used to fight slugs, scattering powder in the aisles. In addition, soda ash is an excellent remedy for currant aphids.
Food
Baking soda, unlike soda ash, when dissolved in water, gives a fairly weak alkaline reaction. It is used for the same purposes as calcined. Currants are treated with sodium bicarbonate from aphids and weevils, as well as from fungal diseases.
The design of this pack hasn't changed in decades.
In addition, spraying currant bushes with a solution of soda is carried out to obtain a bountiful harvest.
How to dilute soda for processing currants
For spraying currants, a solution is used, which includes 3 main components:
- soda;
- water;
- liquid or laundry soap.
The proportions of these substances, depending on the purpose of the spraying, can be different. Here is the composition of the base, most commonly used solution:
- Laundry soap - 50 g.
- Water - 10 liters.
- Soda - 100 g.
Important! In order to quickly dissolve the required amount of laundry soap, you must first grate it or shave it off, and then dilute it with a little hot water.
Soda solution is an effective remedy for aphids on currants
For processing from aphids and caterpillars on currants, mix 5 tbsp. l. baking soda and 30 g of liquid soap with 10 liters of water. This solution is sprayed on the bushes with a spray bottle or garden sprayer. Often, an additional 200 g of wood ash is added to the tank mix.
Another recipe for a composition for spraying currants, which includes iodine for feeding, is described in the video:
Vinegar is an effective helper in the fight against cabbage moth
The harm is caused not by the moth, but by its larvae, caterpillars. It is impossible to recognize the presence of pests on cabbage before the appearance of visible damage. You can suspect damage to the cabbage by moths if there are signs:
- damaged leaves;
- spots on cabbage leaves;
- damage to the forks;
- dried leaves;
- slow, insufficient plant growth;
- poor maturation;
- kidney damage.
Plants are processed with a decoction of vinegar and water until large forks appear. In other cases, get rid of cabbage, as its use in food leads to serious health problems.
To prevent the appearance of moths on the forks, you need to change the place of planting of cabbage from year to year.
Processing is carried out using a spray bottle
How to spray currants with baking soda
All treatments with soda solutions of currant bushes are periodic and are repeated, as a rule, several times per season. Depending on the purpose of the work, the intervals between adjacent spraying increase or decrease, and the quantitative composition of the mixture components also changes.
Rules for processing currants with soda from powdery mildew
Powdery mildew is a fairly common fungal disease that affects many horticultural crops. It manifests itself in the form of a thin whitish coating on the leaves, which then darken and rot. The spread of the disease is especially facilitated by wet weather and low air temperatures, such weather is typical for the central and northwestern part of Russia.
Powdery mildew is a common fungal disease of currants
To combat powdery mildew on currants, both baking soda and soda ash are used. The composition of the tank mixture when using these components is shown in the table:
| Components | Food | Calcified |
| Soda | 10 tbsp. l. | 2 tbsp. l. |
| Liquid soap | 2 tbsp. l. | 2 tbsp. l. |
| Iodine | 1 tsp | |
| Water | 10 l | 10 l |
All components must be well mixed. For processing currants, it is better to use a garden sprayer, this will improve the quality of work and reduce the consumption of the working solution. In the absence of a sprayer, you can use a regular broom, dipping it in a bucket of solution and evenly irrigating the bushes. In this case, the processing quality will be far from ideal and the consumption of the working mixture will significantly increase.
Important! Currant processing should be carried out in the evening or early in the morning so that the solution on the leaves does not dry out longer in the sun.
In a few days it will be possible to evaluate the result of the work done. If foci of infection remain, then the processing of currants must be repeated.
How to treat aphid currants with soda
To spray blackcurrant bushes from aphids, you can use a basic solution of baking soda, the preparation of which has already been described above. Soda ash can also be used to combat this pest.A working solution consisting of 20 g of soda ash, 20 g of onion gruel and 10 liters of water is especially effective. The limitation of the use of such a mixture is the period of berry pouring. If less than 3 weeks are left before harvesting, then it is no longer worth using it.
The appearance of aphids on currants can be detected by curling and changing the leaves.
Garlic can be added to the composition of the components of the soda composition for treating currants from aphids, it also significantly increases the efficiency of work. In 10 liters of water, it is necessary to insist 150 g of pre-chopped garlic for at least 6 hours. Then add 2 tbsp to this infusion. l. soda ash (alternative - 10 tbsp. l. food grade) and 100 g of liquid tar soap. As a rule, a single application of such a composition is enough to get rid of the pest. If necessary, the bushes can be re-processed after 5-7 days.
Spraying currants with soda for a bountiful harvest
The use of baking soda enriches the soil with sodium, this helps the currants to more fully absorb nutrients and increases yields by about a quarter. However, these substances must be used with caution. An excess of more active sodium contributes to the leaching of less active, but vital for plants, calcium and magnesium from the soil, and their absence can lead to the fact that there will be no harvest at all.
Soda is a guarantee of a bountiful harvest of currants
Baking soda is used even at the stage of planting seedlings, adding it in small quantities to the planting pits. Such a measure not only protects the plant roots from pests, but also stimulates the seedlings to grow rapidly. After flowering, currant bushes are treated with a weak soda solution, adding 30 g of powder to 10 liters of water. This stimulates the formation of new fruit ovaries and prolongs fruiting. In addition, during the season, foliar feeding of currants is performed three times using a solution consisting of 10 g of soda per 10 liters of water. Spraying the crown with this composition stimulates the formation of lateral shoots and increases fruiting for the next year.
In what other cases can you water the currants with soda
Spraying currants with a solution of soda can be carried out not only for medicinal, but also for prophylactic purposes. This procedure strengthens the immunity of the currant, enhances the plant's resistance to various diseases, and makes it resistant to pests. In early spring, a sodium carbonate solution can be used to treat currants from a kidney mite. Some gardeners use this method as an alternative to the traditional boiling water treatment of shrubs.
While the weeds are small, they can be destroyed with a baking soda solution.
With the help of sodium carbonate, weeds can be controlled at the initial stage of their growth. In this case, the root zone of the bushes is treated with a soda solution, for the preparation of which, for every 2.5 liters of water, you need to take 1 tbsp. l. soda ash. A good result is also obtained by using this substance as an alkalizing agent that normalizes the acidity of the soil. In this case, the solution is prepared at the rate of 1 tbsp. l. baking soda for 1 liter of water. With this composition, the root zone of the bush is treated twice a season, in spring and in mid-autumn.
Frequently asked Questions
Answers to frequently asked questions will help you avoid mistakes in the processing of plants. It is best to familiarize yourself with them in advance so that later unforeseen situations do not arise.
How often can you process cabbage with vinegar?
Vinegar is a harmless remedy for cabbage. Therefore, you can use it until the pest problem disappears. The interval between treatments is from 3 to 7 days.
How to understand that you have filled the cabbage with vinegar
If the plant has received vinegar in a large dosage or concentration, this will affect its appearance. The cabbage will wilt, pigmentation spots will appear on the leaves, and the decay process may begin. To avoid this situation, monitor the dilution proportions of the solution.
Professional advice
Gardeners have been using baking soda for quite a long time, so they have accumulated considerable experience with this substance. Here are some tips to make your currant processing more efficient:
- Sodium carbonate becomes a fairly strong alkali when dissolved. When working with solutions of this substance, it is necessary to take all precautions and be sure to use personal protective equipment: rubber gloves, a respirator, and goggles. If dissolved soda ash comes into contact with open areas of the body, immediately rinse them with cold water.
The use of PPE when working with soda ash solution is mandatory - A very effective way to obtain a bountiful harvest of black currant is a mixture of baking soda and yeast. For its preparation, it is necessary to mix 100 g of baking soda with 500 g of baker's yeast dissolved in 5 liters of warm water. After a day, the total volume of the solution is brought to 10 liters by adding water to it, and then currant bushes are sprayed. This procedure is carried out three times during the season: during the period of bud swelling, during flowering, after picking berries.
Yeast and soda - the most effective feeding for currants - When working with any soda, you cannot use metal dishes, since its solution enters into a chemical reaction with iron. It is best to use a chemically neutral plastic, such as ordinary building buckets, for preparing mixtures for spraying currants.
When preparing soda solutions, metal containers must not be used. - All compositions for spraying bushes are prepared on the eve of use. Over time, their effectiveness drops greatly, since the active substance rapidly decomposes.
- The use of a small amount of vegetable oil in the mixture increases the efficiency of processing currants against fungal diseases. However, after such spraying, it can be difficult to wash the spray bottle or sprayer from the oil film that has settled on the walls.
