What fertilizer contains potassium. When potash fertilizers are applied. Potassium sulfate, or potassium sulfate

The main sign of a lack of mineral nutrients is the appearance of marginal burns on the leaves, their darkening and folding. This means that the plant needs potash fertilizers.

Together with phosphorus and nitrogen, potassium acts as one of the main elements of the mineral nutrition of plants, but unlike them, it is not an integral part of organic substances. The ionic form of potassium in the form of soluble salts is found inside plant cells, in cell sap.

In the vital parts of young plants, there is much more potassium than in the same, but older representatives of the species. If there is not enough potassium in the nutrient medium of young shoots, then the process of reutilization occurs (reuse of nutrients as a result of the outflow of potassium from old plants to the organs of young, growing inflorescences).

Potash fertilizer is a type of mineral fertilizer that improves the taste and quality characteristics of horticultural crops. Its use helps to increase immunity and provides the plant with resistance to the occurrence of diseases. Potassium protects the plant from various pests in the form of small beetles, caterpillars, and insects. With the use of potash fertilizers, horticultural and horticultural crops become resistant to cold, they more easily tolerate changeable weather conditions.

How to apply potash fertilizers for cucumbers in greenhouse growth?

Cucumbers are early maturing types of vegetable crops. In greenhouse conditions, cucumbers develop even faster, and can produce crops almost all year round. Like other plants or garden crops, cucumbers need to be fed with fertilizers.

Since their root system is not resistant to a lack of nutrients, this can lead to the loss of part of the crop. Therefore, it is necessary to apply the necessary fertilizers to the soil in time, while the importance of potash fertilizers is very large.

Before starting feeding all plants, it is recommended to first try the effect of fertilizer on several bushes. After 2-3 days, you should check the fed cucumber bushes. If their growth has improved, then the proportion is maintained correctly, and potash fertilizer can be applied to the soil to all the remaining bushes.

Cucumbers do not tolerate excess and deficiency of potassium. The first signs of potassium deficiency are the appearance of a light green edge along the edge of the leaves. Oversaturation with potassium causes the appearance of a mosaic yellow-green color on the leaves and a decrease in the amount of magnesium.

To avoid this, you need to know how to apply potash fertilizers for cucumbers during their greenhouse growth.

The planning of the number of dressings for greenhouse cucumbers largely depends on the preparation of the soil in the greenhouse in autumn and spring.

Based on the practice of soda-garden research, direct feeding of cucumber plants on poorly prepared soil should be carried out only in the summer from 3 to 5 times, at approximately the same intervals or according to the needs of a particular bush.

With well-fertilized soil in a greenhouse in spring or autumn, only two top dressings are carried out:

• Before the cucumber bush begins to bloom. Summer residents prepare a complex fertilizer for this (in 10 liters of water they add: mullein or liquid bird droppings - 0.200 kg., - one teaspoon, potassium sulfate - 1 teaspoon). Plants are watered with such a substance under the root using a watering can.
• Before fruiting. Fertilizers are applied by summer gardeners during the formation of ovaries. For this, a 10-liter bucket of water and 150 g of mullein are used, and one tablespoon of nitrophoska should also be added.

If there is no mullein, you can use ordinary herbal tea from finely chopped nettle roots, wood lice and. It is insisted for about 5 days, then it is applied to the soil at 3 l / m 2. Potash fertilizer for cucumbers can also be used in the form of potassium chloride. You can use it in the case of an open greenhouse.

You should know that the use of chlorine is highly undesirable for cucumbers. Potassium chloride is not applied directly for plant nutrition, but long before that, during the autumn soil preparation. Before planting cucumbers in the soil, the rains will wash the chlorine out of the soil, leaving potassium useful for cucumbers in it.

The most suitable and optimal option for mineral fertilizer for cucumbers, regardless of the landing site (greenhouse or vegetable garden), is the use of potassium sulfate. In another way, it is called potassium sulfate fertilizer (it contains 50% potassium). It has the form of a crystalline powder with a grayish tint or pure white color, which is easy to dissolve in water. Most importantly, it does not contain chlorine.

The application of mineral fertilizers in the required proportions depends on the spring and autumn soil preparation. Before applying this or that potassium-based fertilizer, you need to know the characteristics of the soil and the nutrient needs of cucumbers. The need for feeding cucumbers is indicated by the color of their leaves and the state of the root system.

Potash fertilizers for tomatoes

For growing tomatoes, mineral fertilizers such as potassium chloride and potassium sulfate (potassium sulfate) are used.

Most often, summer residents use potassium sulfate as a potash fertilizer for tomatoes, since it does not have chlorine. It can be used for direct feeding of tomatoes. Potassium chloride is used in the fall, when preparing the soil after harvest.

To achieve the maximum possible results of tomato yields, you need to know the necessary rates of fertilizer application to the soil. Usually on the package there is a table on the use of fertilizer for tomatoes.

In order for the tomato bush to receive the required amount of potassium, 40 g of potassium sulfate per 1 m 2 are added to the soil. Such soil nutrition will help increase the yield of tomatoes and protect the plant from leaf wilt.

Potash fertilizers for roses

Of all types of potash fertilizers, potassium sulphate is well suited for the first feeding of roses. With further feeding of the bushes, gardeners use potassium nitrate, which is applied to the soil during their flowering period in spring.

The rose is very sensitive to the use of fertilizers, so they must be applied after watering.

Signs of a lack of potassium fertilizer for roses:

• Reducing the size of a rose flower.
• Slow bush growth.
• Dried leaves around the edges.
• Leaf reduction.
• Falling leaves from the stem.

Feeding roses, alternate types of fertilizers. In this case, potash fertilizer for roses can be alternated with superphosphate.

Potash fertilizers are one of the most useful mineral fertilizers for all kinds of plants. Only its direct use in the form of a compound with chlorine is undesirable for some plant species. Therefore, this fact must be taken into account when fertilizing horticultural crops.

Video about potash fertilizer

A separate type of mineral fertilizers, which is designed to meet the needs of plant crops in potassium, is potash fertilizers. They are water-soluble salts or compounds containing potassium in a form suitable for consumption by plants.

Potash fertilizers - their meaning and application

Potassium is a fertilizer that is very important for the mineral nutrition of plants, so the importance of potash fertilizers cannot be overestimated. Just like nitrogen and phosphorus, potassium is an essential element in the life of plant organisms. It is found in the cytoplasm and cell sap, while phosphorus and nitrogen are an integral part of organic compounds. Potassium in the soil normalizes the water balance, stabilizes the metabolism in plant cells, plants can easily tolerate a lack of moisture, consuming what is in the soil.

If the plant wilts and dries quickly, this indicates a lack of potassium in the cells. Potassium in the soil is able to activate the action of various enzymes, improve the process of photosynthesis, which is necessary for the growth of green mass. The element affects other metabolic processes of plants, carbon and nitrogen metabolism.

When fertilizing plants that lack potassium with nitrogen fertilizers, unprocessed ammonia is formed, which disrupts the normal process of plant life. A similar situation arises with carbon. The lack of potassium in the soil does not allow monosaccharides to turn into polysaccharides. Therefore, potassium is an indispensable element for the accumulation of starch in potatoes, sugar in sugar beets. Due to the large amount of sugar in the cells, plants become more resistant to harsh winters. Substances responsible for aroma are also formed with the direct participation of potassium.

Potassium is needed by plants to reduce the susceptibility of plant crops to diseases such as rust and powdery mildew, various rots. The element makes the stems stronger. It slows down too fast growth and premature ripening of fruits. This is very important, since usually such fruits suffer from an excess of phosphoric acid.

Most potassium is found in young shoots. In seeds and roots, the amount of potassium is minimal. With a lack of potassium in the soil, its amount is distributed in favor of young shoots that use the element repeatedly. Potassium improves the quality, aroma and color of fruits, improves the development of the root system, accelerates metabolic processes, increases the shelf life of fruits, makes the plant resistant to various diseases and frosts.

Potassium is especially needed during the growing season and at the stage of fruit formation. Potassium fertilizers are essential for plant life. In order for the effect of these fertilizers to be effective, they are used in combination with nitrogen and phosphorus fertilizers. The right approach guarantees a balanced diet when growing horticultural crops.

Properties of potash fertilizers

To saturate plants with potassium, potassium salts are used, which were originally contained in fossil ores. But plants can only get them in an aqueous solution, so all types of potash fertilizers dissolve well in water. Due to this property, the reaction of plants to the application of fertilizers to the soil occurs very quickly.

Potash fertilizers behave differently on different soils. Potassium chloride is recommended for use on acidic soils, where there is a lot of rainfall. In greenhouses and on dry soils, potassium sulfate is used. For soils with a high content of clay, it is recommended to apply potash fertilizers to the soil in the fall. Clay soil does not pass fertilizer well, to improve the effect, you need to deepen it closer to the roots.

Light soils require potassium fertilization in the spring. Serozems have a sufficient amount of potassium without fertilizing. It is necessary to correctly choose not only the dosage, but also the time of fertilization. Much depends on the type of fertilizer and the composition of the soil.

Chlorine-containing fertilizers are applied in the fall, potassium penetrates well into moist soil and lingers there, and chlorine, which is not very useful for plants, is washed out. It is better to apply potash fertilizers several times in small doses. Potassium fertilizers applied in cool weather to moist soil are more effective.

An overdose of potassium in the soil is dangerous for plants. Due to the large amount of potassium, plants lose their immunity, begin to dry, get sick, shed their leaves. Against the background of a lack of phosphorus and nitrogen, the situation is aggravated. You should strictly follow the instructions of the fertilizer manufacturer, and remember that only healthy plants are fed.

What is dangerous lack of potassium

• The reproductive function of plants is deteriorating. Few buds, fruits are formed, the fruits become small.
• The risk of infection by fungal diseases and pests increases.
• Frost resistance decreases.

How to recognize that plants lack potassium? The first symptom is marginal leaf burn. With a lack of potassium, the leaves, especially the lower ones, become brown at the edges, as if burned. Traces of rust can be seen on the sheet plate.

The need of various crops for potassium

Potassium is necessary for all plants, but the need for it is different for everyone. Particularly acute in potassium need:

• from cereals: buckwheat, barley, flax;
• from vegetables: rhubarb, all varieties of cabbage, eggplant, beans, pumpkin, tomatoes, peppers.
• from flowers: anthuriums, spathiphyllums, gerberas, hydrangeas, callas.
• from fruit and berry crops: plum, pear, apple tree, grapes, raspberries, blackberries.

The need for potassium in strawberries, gooseberries, lettuce, radishes, onions, and currants is one and a half times less.

Fertilizers with potassium for tomatoes are applied with watering. These plants need potassium to improve the quality and quantity of tomatoes. Foliar top dressing with a large amount of fertilizer will lead to the development of green mass, reducing yields. The lack of potassium in the cultivation of tomatoes is indicated by the unripe green part of the tomato.

A lack of potassium leads to deformation of cucumbers, they become like pears. Potash fertilizers for cucumbers: wood ash, potassium sulfate, potassium magnesia. Potassium magnesia is used as a root top dressing during flowering in combination with superphosphate (10 g / 10 liters of water).

Top dressing for grapes is made every year. It is best to use ordinary ash, which is diluted with water or crumbles dry.

Types of potash fertilizers

Many novice gardeners ask: potash fertilizers, what are they? There are many varieties. By chemical composition, they are divided into sulfate and chloride. According to the method of manufacture, they are concentrated and raw. Each type of fertilizer has its own advantages and disadvantages, as well as features of use.

Potassium chloride

The most common fertilizer containing potassium is potassium chloride. These are pink crystals that absorb water well. May clump if stored incorrectly. Potassium chloride contains 40% chlorine, so for many plants such top dressing is not recommended. Chlorine-containing potash fertilizers are not suitable for potatoes. Also, cucumbers, tomatoes, beans, houseplants do not like chlorine. And spinach and celery respond well to top dressing with potassium chloride. It should be applied in the fall, because then chlorine is washed out of the soil faster.

The disadvantages of fertilizer include its ability to increase acidity and accumulate salts in the soil. Not suitable for heavy soil gardening. In agriculture, potassium chloride is applied before planting, avoiding overdose.

potassium sulfate

Potassium sulfate, or potassium sulphate, comes in the form of small gray crystals that dissolve easily in water. Doesn't stick. In its composition contains sulfur, potassium, calcium, magnesium. Sulfur prevents the accumulation of nitrates in the plant, improves the safety. It is effective to use for feeding vegetables.

The advantage of this fertilizer is the absence of chlorine, which allows it to be used at any time of the year. It is well tolerated by all cultures. It is not recommended for use on acidic soils, as it causes an oversaturation of the soil with acid. Cannot be used in conjunction with lime mineral dressings.

Potassium salt

Potassium (potassium) salt is a mixture of ground sylvinite and potassium chloride. The amount of potassium is 40%. The high content of chlorine makes this fertilizer unsuitable for a number of plants. It is recommended to apply to the soil in the fall by deep incorporation. If the earth is oversaturated with moisture, it can be applied in the spring. In the summer season, potash salt is not used.

Sodium, which is contained in salt, is well accepted by root crops of the fodder group and sugar beets. Potassium salt is also suitable for fruit and berry crops. If it is necessary to mix potassium salt with other dressings, this should be done immediately before application.

Potassium nitrate

It is a complex growth stimulator, it contains nitrogen. Fertilizer easily absorbs moisture, it must be stored in a dry place, otherwise it will turn into stone. It is necessary to make potassium nitrate in the spring when planting. It is not recommended to use in summer. The effectiveness of the application directly depends on the level of acidity. Acidic soil does not absorb nitrogen; alkaline soil does not absorb potassium well. The best option is to use only on neutral ground.

Potassium carbonate (potassium carbonate, potash)

Potassium carbonate does not contain chlorine. But it is very hygroscopic. Able to cake at the slightest humidity, lose its properties. Rarely used as a fertilizer. Lime is sometimes added to potash, but such a mixture leads to a change in the state of the soil to alkaline.

Experienced gardeners recommend mixing potassium carbonate with peat in equal parts to reduce hygroscopicity. Fertilizer is applied in the same way as potassium chloride. The advantage of potassium carbonate is the ability to use on acidic soils.

Kalimagnesia

Potassium-magnesium sulfate (potassium magnesia) does not contain chlorine. Suitable for fertilizing tomatoes, potatoes and other vegetables. Thanks to magnesium, it is recommended to use on sandy and sandy lands. The fertilizer is not hygroscopic, it is convenient to use.

wood ash

Wood ash is considered a commonly available and universal fertilizer. It is perfect for podzolic and heavy soils, lowering its acidity with the lime it contains. On alkaline soils, use with caution.

In the ashes of deciduous trees there is 2 times more potassium than in the ashes of conifers. More potassium in the ashes of young trees. There is no chlorine in wood ash, so any culture perceives it well. It can be mixed with soil for seedlings, added to a solution for soaking seeds, water for watering plants. Wood ash is applied dry under shrubs. With nitrogen fertilizers, superphosphate, manure, the use of ash is prohibited.

Potassium, along with nitrogen and phosphorus, is an important nutrient necessary for fruit and berry crops for the development and formation of fruits. Experiencing a deficiency in at least one of these substances, the plant will not bear fruit well.

The main characteristic of mineral potash fertilizers is good solubility in water, potassium is not able to accumulate in the soil. It is better kept on heavy soils (loam, clay), in light soils it is less, the most depleted in potassium are peaty.

The value of potassium for vegetable and fruit crops:
■■increases frost resistance of crops;
■■increases plant immunity, enhances resistance to fungal infections;
■■promotes an increase in overall yield;
■■improves the taste of fruits, their appearance and increases the shelf life.

Signs of potassium deficiency in plants:
As a rule, a lack of potassium does not appear immediately, but by the middle of summer:
■■plants become faded, stop growing;
■■ shoots become thin;
■■ the leaves turn yellow, then turn brown, die off along with the petioles;
■■leaves become wrinkled, twist into a tube;
■■Sometimes plants bloom unnaturally and then produce small fruits.

All types of potash fertilizers

Raw potassium salts

It is extracted from natural minerals - ground natural potash ores. The best known are sylvinite and kainite, both containing an admixture of chlorine and other ballast components. They are rarely used, as a rule, in the regions of production (Urals, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Ukraine).

Concentrated potash fertilizers

These are potassium chloride and potassium sulfate, potassium-magnesium concentrate, potassium-magnesium sulfate (shenit).

Potassium chloride

Potassium chloride ranks first in this group in terms of popularity due to the largest specific gravity of potassium oxide (K 2 O) - 52-63%. However, as the name implies, it contains an admixture of chlorine, which is extremely toxic to many plants. Outwardly, it is white crystals with a gray tint, possibly pink, which are readily soluble in water.
Potassium chloride must be applied in advance: fruit and berry crops do not tolerate chlorine. It is recommended for making before winter, for deep digging.

Potassium sulfate, or potassium sulfate

Potassium sulfate, or potassium sulfate does not contain chlorine. It can be applied to the soil both in autumn and spring, used both in open and closed ground and mixed with other mineral fertilizers. It is small white crystals with a yellowish tint. Doesn't stick.
Most commonly used on cruciferous crops that respond well to sulfur applications.

Complex mineral fertilizers

Double (nitrogen-potassium and phosphorus-potassium) and triple (nitrogen-phosphorus-potassium) fertilizers are produced.

Potassium nitrate

Potassium nitrate - the composition includes K 2 O (44-46%) and nitrogen (13%). Outwardly, these are small gray-white crystals with a yellow tint, soluble in water. It can be used even after the formation of the ovaries, as a small amount of nitrogen will strengthen the culture, but will not spur the active growth of the vegetative mass.

Potassium nitrate most often used for feeding root crops (carrots and beets) and berry crops, suitable for tomatoes. Fertilizer can be applied in dry and liquid form. The last top dressing is carried out at least 3-4 weeks before harvest.

Kalimagnesia

Kalimagnesia - complex potassium-magnesium fertilizer, chlorine-free, hygroscopic, non-caking. It is used as a top dressing (10 g/m2) with a low content of mobile magnesium in the soil.
Used for feeding potatoes.

Nitrophoska

Equal amounts contain nitrogen, oxides of potassium and phosphorus. Can be used for any horticultural crop.

Nitroammophoska

Natural source of potassium - wood ash

As mentioned above, potassium is needed in a garden plot in a small amount, so it is almost never applied in its pure form. An excellent source of potassium is ordinary wood ash, in addition, it contains phosphorus, calcium and other trace elements. The percentage of potassium content in the ash depends on the type of wood being burned and ranges from 7 to 40%, for example, the ash of young deciduous plants contains up to 14% potassium oxide, in coniferous species it is less. The presence of potassium oxide in the ash allows it to be used on soils with high acidity.

Store the ashes in a dry place, as moisture helps to leach potassium out of it.

Top dressing with potash fertilizers by crops

cucumbers

cucumbers need potassium. Potassium-containing fertilizers are applied three times: the first time when sowing, the second time - when 2-3 leaves appear, the third time - during abundant flowering and the formation of ovaries.

tomatoes

tomatoes not demanding on potassium, prefer more phosphorus and nitrogen. Potash fertilizers for tomatoes are scattered along with sowing, after planting seedlings in the ground, before flowering, a second top dressing is carried out. You can carry out another top dressing in the phase of fruit formation.

With a lack of potassium in tomatoes, corrugation and dome-shaped twisting of the leaves are observed - “marginal fuse”. The fruits are covered with yellowish-bronze spots.

Potassium deficiency in cucumbers and tomatoes

Grape

Grape demanding on potassium. If grapes don't get enough potassium, they can draw potassium from older leaves, redirecting it to younger shoots. Fruit-bearing grape bushes are annually taken for growth and fruit formation up to 10-12 g of potassium.

The Best Potash Fertilizers for Your Garden

Lebozol POTASSIUM 450 suitable for feeding plants in the second half of the growing season: it compensates for the lack of potassium necessary for fruit formation, increases productivity, the content of sugars and vitamins in fruits and root crops, and also increases the winter hardiness of plants. It contains specialized components that allow it to be better distributed on the surface of the leaf when foliar feeding, increase the absorbency of the fertilizer and make it resistant to rain washing.		brand Bona Forte developed a complex granular fertilizer “Universal. Autumn" technology "all batteries in one granule". The high content of phosphorus and potassium improves metabolism and stimulates the growth of the root system, nitrogen ensures complete solubility of the fertilizer and better absorption of phosphorus and potassium. The granules dissolve well, so the nutrients are evenly distributed in the soil: 5 kg of fertilizer is enough for 8 acres!

Complex granular fertilizer of prolonged action “FERTIK Lawn. Autumn" contains all the necessary macro- and microelements in the optimal ratio. The increased content of phosphorus and potassium ensures good rooting of grass mixtures and promotes the formation of a powerful root system. Fertilizer provides good overwintering plants and generally high conservation of the lawn.	POTASSIUM HUMATE "PROMPTER" - highly concentrated organomineral fertilizer with a high content of humic acids. It increases the resistance of plants to fungal and bacterial diseases, accelerates the growth of green mass and ripening of fruits, and also helps plants to endure the cold period more easily.

1 It is better to apply potash fertilizers, especially chlorine-containing fertilizers, for autumn digging.
2 If the soil is light, then potassium-containing fertilizers are applied in the spring, since it is quickly washed out of such soils.
3 Potash fertilizers are used together with calcium-containing or lime, because they have high acidity.

Photographs to the material: archives of the press services, Alexander Kirillin.

The soil is not always suitable for the growth of healthy plants. A common deficiency is a reduced potassium content. To saturate the soil with them, potash fertilizers are used. Potassium is one of the main elements of the mineral nutrition of the plant. There are several types of potash fertilizers. They have certain features and rules of use.

How to understand that plants lack potassium?

To begin applying potassium fertilizers, it is necessary to understand whether additional potassium is needed, or whether the soil supplies the plant with enough of this substance.

External signs of potassium deficiency:

• Brown spots appear on the leaves of the plant.
• The leaves change their color, acquire a yellowish tint.
• Leaf parts die off.
• The stem of the plant is weakening.
• The plant grows worse.
• The process of bud formation is delayed or does not occur.

All of these listed signs indicate that there is insufficient potassium in the soil. And, as a result, the formation of protein in cells stops, there is a slow development of reproductive functions. With a lack of potassium, the plant stops fruiting or may die completely.

Varieties of potash fertilizers

There are several varieties of potash fertilizers. They differ in their composition, properties and spectrum of use. But the main mission of all kinds is to make up for the lack of potassium.

• Wood ash. This type of fertilizer is safe for plants. In addition to potassium, it contains calcium, phosphorus and magnesium. The potassium content is 10% of the total composition. Wood ash can be used at any time of the year.
• Kalimagnesia. This fertilizer is most useful for sandy soils. Contains potassium and magnesium.
• Potassium nitrate. It is the best option for use in greenhouses. Potassium nitrate contains potassium (up to 38%) and nitrogen.
• Potassium salt. The composition of the fertilizer is potassium and chlorine. The potassium content is up to 40%. It is customary to use potassium salt in the fall for all crops.
• potassium sulfate. Fertilizer with a high content of potassium - up to 50%. In addition to potassium, the composition includes calcium, magnesium and sulfur. Fertilizer is effective for all kinds of plants and on any types of soils.
• Potassium chloride. The most common potash fertilizer. Contains 60% potassium in the composition. Also a significant part of the chlorine, so it is recommended to use in the fall, long before planting.

Each fertilizer has its own dosage for use. It should be borne in mind that for sandy soils, the dosage should be increased, for chernozems - reduced. Do not get carried away with excessive use of fertilizers, this can also harm the plant.

When to apply potash fertilizers?

The use time of potash fertilizers depends on the type of fertilizer. Those that have chlorine in their composition should be used in the fall, while digging the soil. Chlorine is harmful to plants. Other types of fertilizers, for example, wood ash, potassium nitrate, can be applied in the spring when planting, or in the summer, as bait. Each type of crop requires a different amount of potassium. Based on this, fertilizers should be dosed for each type of plant individually. For example, fruit plants (apple, cherry, apricot, etc.) need a high content of potassium. Vegetable crops such as cucumbers and tomatoes, on average. And some root vegetables, especially radishes, use potassium minimally.

Potash fertilizers are an important element in gardening and horticulture. The main substance - potassium, positively affects the development and fertility of the plant. For correct use, please read the instructions for use. Basically, potash fertilizers are applied to the soil in the fall. Additional use - in spring and summer, is practiced only with a lack of potassium in the soil.

To obtain high yields, farmers use various top dressings - fertilizers. Both organic and mineral components are introduced into the soil. Each type of fertilizer is very important, therefore, in no case should one component be neglected, considering that if organic matter is added to the soil, then minerals are no longer required.

One of the most important mineral supplements is potash fertilizer.

Article plan

What are potash fertilizers?

Potash fertilizers are extracted from the so-called potash ores, in natural deposits. Such fertilizers are applied to all types of soil: chernozem, clay and even sandy. Potassium is an extremely important component for the development of all plants, since it promotes the distribution of sugars through tissues, which ensures normal plant nutrition, the formation of tasty and sweet fruits.

Potassium is responsible for the growth of foliage and increases the level of plant resistance to diseases and various pests. Fruits saturated with potassium are well stored in the winter. Potash fertilizers introduced into the ground are assimilated by crops by almost 100%.

Potassium is perfectly combined with other minerals, forming complex top dressing. There are various potash fertilizers, each of which has its own name.

Simple potash fertilizers

It would seem that potassium chloride is completely unsuitable for fertilizing plants and is generally toxic. The composition of the component includes 60% potassium and chlorine, which is extremely harmful to all plants. To fertilize the soil with potassium chloride, farmers begin to apply this component in advance.

Potassium fertilizers are most well perceived by berry crops, but despite this, they also do not tolerate chlorine included in top dressing. Given the negative effect of chlorine on crops, potassium chloride is applied to the soil only for the winter, before plowing.

Potassium sulfate is known to many as potassium sulfate. Most farmers believe that potassium sulfate is one of the best potash fertilizers. Among the many different mineral fertilizers, only potassium sulfate does not have toxic additives such as sodium, magnesium and chlorine. Top dressing is applied to the soil in the autumn-spring period directly into the hole.

Potassium sulfate is allowed to combine with other types of fertilizers, without any harm to plants. The amount of applied top dressing is calculated for a specific case separately.

In winter, before digging, potassium sulfate is applied in the amount of 30 g per 1 m², and in spring period, before boarding, the amount of fertilizer is reduced to 5 g per 1 m². Potassium sulphate is used as a fertilizer not only for open, but also for closed ground. The use of this fertilizer increases the level of sugar and vitamins in fruits, the products become tastier, juicier and healthier.

Plants fertilized with potassium sulfate are resistant to many diseases, and finished products are much less affected by gray rot.

consists of 2 components: potassium chloride and sylvinite. By mixing these two components, a complex called potassium salt is formed. The concentration of the substance is 40%. Potassium salt with a lower concentration (30%) is obtained by mixing potassium chloride with kainites.

Potassium salt contains much more chlorine than potassium chloride, so it is not recommended to feed plants that do not perceive chlorine well.

Cultures, the growth and development of which is not affected by chlorine, are fertilized strictly according to the prescribed recommendations and according to the dosage. This fertilizer is recommended to be applied to sandy, sandy and peaty soils, since it is in such soils that a lack of potassium is often observed.

The soil is fertilized with potash fertilizing only in autumn as the main plant nutrition. The amount of potash salt per 1 m² ranges from 30 to 40 g. In the spring and summer seasons, soils are not recommended to be fertilized with potash salt.

Potassium carbonate is also called potassium carbonate or Potash. The composition of this potassium supplement does not include chlorine and is considered one of the most recently developed forms of potassium supplements. Top dressing contains 55% potassium oxide, a small amount of magnesium and sulfur. Potassium carbonate is widely used for potato production.

The rate of application of potash to the soil depends on the time of year and the purpose of feeding.

• As a regular top dressing, the rate ranges from 15 to 20 g per 1 m².
• In autumn, the soil is fertilized in the amount of 35-65 g per 1 m².
• With spring recharge, the rate increases to 85-100 g per 1 m².
• The dosage of late top dressing is 16-18 g per 1 m².

At industrial facilities, potash is obtained by processing natural potassium salts. Potash is a by-product from the processing of alumina and nepheline. Potash can also be obtained on your own personal plot by processing plants and ash.

Ash is considered a natural, inexpensive and readily available mineral fertilizer. It contains only 10% potassium, calcium, magnesium and phosphorus, boron, iron and copper. Feeding the soil with potash fertilizers in the form of wood ash is applied to the soil throughout the year and regardless of the season. In spring, wood ash is applied when planting, and in autumn before plowing.

In summer, ash can be used as a dry fertilizer or diluted with liquids and various complex feeds can be made. In winter, wood ash will become an indispensable fertilizer for all greenhouse crops. Wood ash not only saturates plants with elements important for life, but also protects against pests.

cement dust

Oddly enough, but cement dust also applies to mineral fertilizers. These fertilizers are obtained from cement production waste. Cement dust is an excellent potash fertilizer that does not contain chlorine.

Top dressing is used mainly on acidic soils for plants that do not take chlorine well. Sometimes cement dust is mixed with milled peat to improve its physical properties, in a ratio of 1:1.

Complex potash fertilizers

Such potash fertilizers as saltpeter are used for plants that are in the fruiting phase. Potassium nitrate is essential for crops growing in greenhouses. This fertilizer contains 38% potassium and 13% nitrogen. It is these 2 components that are considered the most important components for the normal growth and yield of plants.

Potassium nitrate can also be used as an external top dressing. The application rate of such a fertilizer is 20 g per 1 m², previously diluted in 10 liters of water. Potassium nitrate liquid fertilizer is applied in the spring when new shoots develop. When fertilizing the soil, one should not forget that an excess of top dressing will negatively affect plants and yields.

If the soil is fertilized with several top dressings containing nitrogen at once, then their dosage is reduced by 2 times. Farmers do not recommend applying nitrogen during the flowering period of plants.

Kalimagnesia is a sulfate of potassium and magnesium. Potassium-magnesium top dressing is most often applied to sandy and sandy loamy soils. Kalimagnesia consists of 26% potassium and 16% magnesium and includes a small amount of chlorine - 3%.

Potassium and magnesium sulphate is mainly used to feed crops that are extremely sensitive to high chlorine content. In accordance with the type of soil and crop, the application rate of potassium magnesia is calculated. The amount of root dressing is 10g per 1 m².

Nitrofoska is a nitrogen-potassium fertilizer ideal for soils that need phosphorus fertilization. Timely application of nitrophoska ensures abundant flowering of crops, good development and normal fruit formation.

Fertilizer refers to cheap, simple and, at the same time, effective top dressing. Nitrofoska can fertilize any garden and garden crops.

Plants need a number of useful elements, which makes complex top dressing one of the most popular. Nitrogen-phosphorus-potassium fertilizer or nitroammophoska contains 3 necessary minerals for the stable development of plants.

The fertilizer contains 28% potassium, 24% phosphorus and 17% nitrogen. Top dressing with this composition is useful for any horticultural crops, and especially for tomatoes.

Fertilized tomatoes are much less susceptible to late blight, scab, as well as stem and root rot. Needs nitroammophoske and grapes. The fertilizer is intended for all types of soils, but interacts better with alumina and chernozem.

Symptoms of potassium deficiency

What can be fertilized with potassium fertilizers

tomatoes

Unlike other crops, tomatoes are not heavily dependent on potassium. To get 100 kg of tomatoes, 50 kg of potassium will be enough. Tomatoes do not tolerate fresh organic fertilizers well, and if they are applied, the vegetative mass increases significantly.

Potassium top dressing for tomatoes affects the quality of the fruits themselves to a greater extent than contributes to an increase in yield. Tomatoes are demanding on the content of phosphorus in the soil, therefore, it is recommended to use complex top dressings as fertilizers.

Norms of potash fertilizers for tomatoes:

• At the first feeding per hundred square meters - 0.15 kg.
• With the second top dressing per hundred square meters - 0.30 kg.

Cucumbers are demanding crops, for their normal development and productivity, the soil must be fertile and balanced in all minerals. To obtain 100 kg of cucumber, 44 kg of potassium are needed. Potash fertilizers for cucumbers are applied in several stages: before sowing, after 14 days after planting in the ground and during the initial flowering period.

Norms of potash fertilizers for cucumbers:

• During the sowing period per hundred square meters - 0.1 kg.
• At the first feeding per hundred square meters - 0.2 kg.
• With the second top dressing per hundred square meters - 0.4 kg.

Potash fertilizers for grapes are applied to the soil annually, since grapes consume a large amount of potassium during the season. Plain ash can be an ideal fertilizer for grapes. Ash is applied in dry form in the amount of 1 bucket per 1 bush or diluted with water (to obtain an extract, ash diluted with water must be infused for 3 days before use).

How do I fertilize grapes with potash fertilizers

Flowers

Potassium fertilizers for flowers are very important, because it is thanks to potassium that healthy shoots develop and large buds form. Flowers are very demanding on potassium, and with a lack of it, negative changes immediately appear.

With a lack of potassium observed:

1. Slow growth.
2. Falling leaves.
3. The buds are getting smaller.
4. Flowering time is shortened.

Potash fertilizers for roses are applied not only during planting, but during flowering, to obtain large and long-blooming buds. Flowers are fed with potash fertilizers in autumn and spring. Most often, potassium sulfate and nitrogen-phosphorus complexes are used for top dressing.

More about phosphorus-potassium fertilizers

When to Apply Potassium Fertilizers

Plants always show the gardener what they lack, they just need to learn how to correctly recognize these signs. When crops slow down in development, and the leaves grow dull and acquire a grayish tint, then it is time to apply potash fertilizers. There are several ways to fertilize the soil, each of which must be done at a certain time and in the shortest possible period, since the fertilizer quickly dissolves in the ground and may become less active after 24 hours.

There are several main periods for applying potash fertilizers:

1. Presowing or the main fertilizer is applied in autumn or spring, based on the climatic conditions of a particular zone. Fertilizer before sowing provides green crops with nutrients for the whole season.
2. Sowing or starter fertilizer is applied to the soil directly at planting. Starting feeding helps young plants to take root and ensures stable development in the early stages.
3. Post-sowing fertilizer or top dressing is an additional measure to the above methods. The main task of top dressing is considered to be auxiliary nutrition at the peak of growth and feeding with the missing elements.

Most often, potash fertilizers are applied in the autumn., since most of them contain chlorine, which has time to neutralize only during the winter months. Doses of application are adjusted depending on the depletion of the soil. It is almost impossible to get a good harvest on depleted soils, but when fertilizing, you also need to know when to stop.

When planting seedlings, it is undesirable to fertilize with dressings that contain chlorine, since young shoots may die.

It is recommended to fertilize the plants twice in small quantities. than one and many. Sprinkling fertilizer several times a season on the upper layers of the soil, at a distance of 10-15 cm from the root system, is considered much more effective than a one-time top dressing.

Most often, farmers use potassium nitrate as a fertilizer, since it is suitable for almost all plants.

Liquid potash fertilizers are considered the most effective top dressings, since their action begins immediately after entering the soil. It is necessary to dilute potash fertilizers with water based on the attached instructions, and water the root system. Saltpeter is diluted with water in a proportion of 10 liters of water per 30-40 g of top dressing, on the basis that 1 liter of liquid goes to 1 bush (0.5 l for cucumbers).

Humic fertilizers and their combination with potassium

Humic fertilizers are organic top dressings that are formed by processing products of natural origin, such as brown coal, peat and sapropel, resulting from the decay of leaves, branches, roots and animal remains.

Humic fertilizer is considered environmentally friendly and versatile. When hit, it does not kill the natural microflora, but improves the physical characteristics of the soil.

The introduction of humic fertilizers into light soils increases their moisture capacity, and when it enters heavy soils, it increases the level of water permeability, improves the structure of the earth and reduces its density.

These fertilizers help eliminate heavy metals and radionuclides by forming insoluble elements with them, which prevents the absorption of harmful substances by the root system. In turn, this increases the rate of decomposition of chemicals in the ground. In fruits growing on plants fertilized with humin, a significantly lower amount of nitrates is observed.

The disadvantage of humic dressings is that they are used in small concentrations, so I cannot fully replenish the soil with elements such as potassium, phosphorus and nitrogen. Humic potash fertilizers are a mixture of humins and potassium. With a mixture of humins with potassium and nitrogen, excellent complex fertilizers are obtained.

Humic fertilizers should not be combined with phosphorus, since as a result of the interaction a compound is formed that practically does not dissolve and does not have a positive effect.

Humic fertilizers are in solid and liquid state. Solids are easy to transport and store, but liquid solutions are considered more efficient.

Why potash fertilizers

Potash fertilizers are mineral fertilizers that are very important for the development and fruiting of plants. It is thanks to the normal level of potassium that you can get a high yield of any crops, protect plants from pests and various diseases.

Potassium fertilizers increase the survival rate of plants and the preservation of fruits. But potassium has the best effect on taste, with a normal amount of this element in the soil, farmers get high yields of large, tasty and sweet fruits that are stored for a long time and do not rot throughout the winter.

Potash fertilizers, and especially their complexes, are the key to the success of all gardeners who put their strength and love into every seed.

Complete analysis of potash fertilizers in 5 minutes