Using baking soda to fertilize tomatoes

To grow a good tomato harvest, many gardeners resort to fertilizers. Using ordinary baking soda is an effective treatment for tomatoes. It's easy and convenient to dilute, and the powder is readily available in almost every home.

Beneficial properties

In addition to its widespread use in everyday life, sodium bicarbonate has been used in gardens for decades. Its primary property is disinfection. When applied to tomato leaves and stems, the powder kills pathogenic microorganisms and repels pests. Unlike antifungal fungicides, sodium bicarbonate is completely safe for both humans and tomatoes. Its solution can be prepared without goggles or gloves, and mixing it with water does not produce toxins or unpleasant odors.

Soda has the following benefits:

1. Prevents the formation of powdery mildew, late blight and other diseases on bushes and in the soil.
2. Improves the immune qualities of tomatoes and prevents premature wilting of bushes.
3. Improves the taste of fruits.
4. Increases the growth of seedlings.
5. Reduces soil acidity.

However, using soda isn't always advisable. Root feeding is particularly effective in acidic soil. Bicarbonate should not be used in alkaline soils, as it increases the pH, which can kill tomatoes.

Baking soda can be used for root feeding, but is more often used for foliar feeding. The first application is carried out in late spring, 2-3 weeks after transplanting tomatoes into a greenhouse or open ground. The second and third applications are carried out at intervals of 2 weeks.

Soaking seeds

Before planting, seeds must be treated with a disinfectant solution. Untreated seeds grow poorly, appear weakened after transplanting, and are easily infected with viruses and diseases. To avoid these unpleasant consequences, dilute a weak baking soda solution: 5 grams per 500 milliliters of water. Dip the dry seeds in the resulting solution and let them sit for 2-3 hours until they swell. Then remove the seeds, rinse with warm water, and lightly dry with a towel. The seeds are now disinfected and ready to plant.

For soil and compost processing

Pathogenic microflora can develop not only on seeds but also in the planting soil. Before transplanting the seedlings, treat them with a soda solution. Dissolve a tablespoon of sodium bicarbonate per bucket of water in a bucket of warm water and stir well. Water the compost or soil a few days before transplanting the tomatoes. This watering will provide reliable protection against potential diseases.

To combat pests and diseases

Once the seedlings are planted, they must be treated against aphids, midges, mites, spiders, and diseases. Dissolve 5 tablespoons of sodium bicarbonate in a bucket of water and spray the shoots. For a more effective solution, add 40 grams of grated laundry soap to the mixture. Apply the mixture to the shoots and stems using a water gun or spray bottle. The alkaline environment prevents powdery mildew and late blight. The treatment should be carried out once, two weeks after transplanting.

Another equally effective mixture helps against pests and diseases. Mix a tablespoon of copper sulfate and bicarbonate of soda per bucket of water. Spray the tomatoes with the resulting solution.

Root feeding

To ensure juicy, healthy tomatoes with excellent flavor, water the soil with a diluted baking soda solution. Dissolve a teaspoon in 5 liters of warm water and water the tomatoes at the roots. Apply the fertilizer no more than 2-3 times throughout the season. Typically, the fertilizer is applied twice in July and again in August. This type of fertilizer is only suitable for areas with a low soil pH. During root feeding, foliar treatments for pests and diseases can be applied.

Recommendations for using fertilizer

Baking soda will definitely benefit tomatoes if used correctly. Improperly applying the proper amount of baking soda when watering or sprinkling foliage can cause chemical burns. Before applying baking soda to your plants, it's important to consider a few important points:

1. The concentration of bicarbonate solution in any application should not exceed 5%.
2. Watering is best done in the morning. Sprays should be fine, so they are evenly distributed over the surface of the leaves and stems.
3. The frequency of treatment should not exceed 10 days.

If you notice that your tomatoes are wilting or the leaves are turning yellow after soda treatment, temporarily discontinue use. This reaction may be caused by an incorrectly selected solution concentration or by highly alkaline soil.

Reviews

In fact, reviews of using baking soda when growing tomatoes are mixed. Some are quite satisfied with the supplement and use only bicarbonate for disease prevention every year. Others have negative reviews, citing its aggressiveness and the high risk of causing serious burns to the foliage. To avoid such problems, it's best to test a baking soda solution on a couple of plants and observe their condition. If the fertilizer is beneficial, continue using it.

Those who use baking soda as a disease preventative recommend combining it with potassium permanganate for foliar feeding. The resulting solution should be light pink. Spray tomatoes with the mixture in early or mid-May. The effectiveness of this treatment increases significantly, and the risk of disease infection is completely eliminated.

When applying baking soda to the roots, it's recommended to add a couple of drops of iodine or a tablespoon of potassium sulfate to enrich the solution with microelements. Potassium and iodine have a beneficial effect on the taste of the fruit and the texture of the pulp, and also increase yield.

Baking soda is considered more of an auxiliary agent when growing tomatoes; other complex additives, mineral and organic fertilizers, should be used in addition. When used together, it always helps to grow a healthy, high-quality harvest.