Revealing the secrets of proper strawberry watering
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What kind of garden can be called a real one without tasty and juicy strawberries in the beds? The vast majority of gardeners allocate more than one garden bed for this berry. The harvest can be eaten neat, or you can make delicious jam or strawberry jam, enjoying it not only in summer, but also on cold winter evenings. If you want to get a huge harvest of delicious berries, the soil on which strawberries grow must be watered with strawberries. But this must be done wisely, otherwise watering can be detrimental to the harvest.
Watering Tips
Strawberries are a berry that loves water. For this reason, from the beginning of May, you need to start regularly and abundantly watering the strawberries. When the real summer has not yet come on the street with a characteristic heat and drought, you need to water the strawberries at least once a week. When the air temperature exceeds the mark of plus 20 degrees, it is necessary to increase the number of irrigations up to several times a week.
If sandy soils are present in your garden, then strawberries need to be watered every two days. This is because the sandy soil allows moisture to pass through almost instantly, and watering a couple of times a week for strawberries will be comparable to one glass of water for the entire garden. With this watering regime, strawberries will grow quickly and those metabolic processes that are necessary for the rapid appearance of berries will form in it.
In autumn, excessively rainy weather can have a detrimental effect on strawberries, its root system will begin to rot and various pathogens will begin to emerge in it. In order to prevent the death of strawberries, on rainy autumn days, watering must either be reduced to a minimum or completely stopped. Strawberry bushes, which are illuminated by the sun more than others, need to be watered several times more often than "shade plants". As for the spring period, if the weather took pity and brought us a complete absence of rainfall, strawberries should be watered from mid-spring. Until mid-summer, if the weather is cool outside, the beds can be moistened three times a month. The most important thing is not to water it thoughtlessly, but to look at the soil moisture level and control it yourself. All watering should be done either in the morning or in the evening. It is also important to ensure that no water gets on the strawberry leaves or berries. To make the process of watering strawberries easy, many gardeners simply throw a hose of water into the garden beds.
Berries will also grow with this method, however, watering strawberries with ice water is not only not useful, but even, according to experts, is extremely harmful. When watering with water that is too low temperature, the root system of strawberries weakens, and this, in turn, increases the risk of various diseases and infections. Of course, all this affects both the quality and quantity of the crop.
A good solution would be to collect water in multi-liter buckets and put them outside during the warm season. Then the water will evenly warm up and become the optimal temperature for irrigation. Warm water has an effect on stimulating the growth of strawberries.
Watering strawberries and its features
Now let's take a closer look at all the features of watering strawberries. In the first few weeks after planting the culture, no more than half a liter of water can be poured at a time (as discussed earlier, not cold). It is worth carrying out such a procedure several times a day, but preferably no more than three. Further, about ten liters of water per one square meter should be evenly distributed weekly on the already grown bushes.
During the period of incessant showers and cold weather, it is advisable to cover the strawberries. For this, ordinary plastic film is suitable, it will save the beds from flooding and also organize space under the film for the formation of a small microclimate, which, in turn, is able to make strawberry roots stronger and more stable.
For watering strawberries, some gardeners use spray bought in specialized stores. But few people know that they can be used only before the beginning of the plant budding process, otherwise you can reluctantly wash off all the accumulated pollen from the stamens.
Features of watering strawberries after planting directly depend on the type of soil and its condition. So, sandy soil must be supplied from fifty percent moisture, and clay soil in general from sixty, since it needs more water. After each watering of strawberries, it is advisable to clear the beds of weeds, not forgetting to loosen the ground.
During the flowering of the bushes, it is necessary to approach the process of watering the beds with special care. Because, if water procedures are violated, strawberries may not give a large harvest and weaken. To avoid this, during the flowering period, it is necessary to use about twenty liters of warm liquid per square meter. In order for moisture from the beds to leave or dry more slowly, you can put straw or black film between the rows. Also, these actions will prevent the growth of harmful annoying weeds. When the first berries appear on the bushes, it is necessary to provide watering in beds within twenty-five liters. In addition, you need to ensure that a dry crust does not form on the ground.
Additionally, you can use such a useful substance as milk whey for watering strawberries, which experienced gardeners use as a fertilizer and fungicide (a means to protect plants from various fungal diseases). This whey contains beneficial potassium and phosphorus, which have a beneficial effect on the quality and health of the berries. Another type of strawberry watering is drip. Just like the hose method, it is easier than walking through the beds with a watering can. Experts approve of this method and say that with drip irrigation, the required level of moisture is maintained in the beds (the soil is not waterlogged, but not dry either). With the drip irrigation of strawberries, moisture does not fall on the berries and leaves, but focuses on the sub-root space of the bush. This reduces the risk of flushing the beneficial pollen and sunburn.