How to feed cucumbers with chicken droppings in a greenhouse and open field
The composition of chicken manure puts it in first place among organic fertilizers. The question is whether it can be used as feeding for cucumbers, is associated with the presence of uric acid in fresh droppings, which inhibits the root system of plants. In addition, the high content of easily assimilable nitrogen becomes the reason for the too active growth of green mass, to the detriment of fruiting... Therefore, feeding of cucumbers with chicken droppings can be carried out only after special preparation and in very small doses.
Litter properties
Chicken droppings are comparable in impact speed to mineral fertilizers.
Pros and cons of chicken manure
In terms of its effect on the composition of the soil, it surpasses the more popular cow dung among gardeners. Contains a unique set of chemical elements necessary for the development and growth of vegetable crops.
It is often compared to complex fertilizers, in contrast to which, the effect of a single feeding lasts several years. In the first year, it works as a mineral supplement, in the next two years, the effect of its presence can be compared to the introduction of a good portion of manure.
It has a positive effect on the structure of the soil, perfectly dissolving in a moist soil environment, stimulates intensive growth and significantly affects the yield.
The disadvantages of using fresh chicken excrement include a high acid content, the presence of weed seeds, causative agents of unwanted infections, including salmonellosis, helminth eggs.
Homemade chicken droppings
Chicken droppings are not used fresh, but infusion, compost or dry extract are prepared on its basis.
- Fresh chicken droppings are diluted in water in a 1: 1 ratio and left to ferment for 5-7 days. Fermented fertilizer can be stored in this state for 2-3 months. For dressing, 1 part of the concentrate is diluted in 20 parts of water. This solution can be used to feed cucumbers by spilling earth along the perimeter of the root circle at the rate of 0.5-1 liter per bush.
- A good fertilizer, using manure, is compost, which is prepared from straw and peat, spilling them with poultry waste. The bottom of the pit, about a meter deep, is sprinkled with sawdust, straw or fallen leaves. Bird excrement, peat, straw, dry foliage, weeds are laid on them in layers. The compost takes about 1.5-2 months to prepare. It is used in open ground, greenhouses and greenhouses for soil preparation.
- To keep fresh droppings until spring, it is applied in a thin layer on sheets of plywood or iron and dried in sunny weather in the open air for about 3 hours.Next, the dry substance is ground through a fine mesh and a powdery fertilizer is obtained, which greenhouse plants love very much. It can be stored in this state in bags or barrels all winter. You can fertilize the ridges with powder, adding 200 g of powder per 1 square meter for digging the soil in the spring. m area.
When working with poultry droppings, especially in powder form, you should always remember about safety measures. Protect the mucous membranes of the eyes and upper respiratory tract. Always use goggles, mask or respirator and rubber gloves. In addition to the fertilizer prepared by yourself, you can purchase a ready-made industrial fertilizer.
Granular bird droppings
It should be borne in mind that the chemical composition of the droppings largely depends on the way the birds are kept and the composition of the feed. Therefore, industrial droppings may differ in their effect from domestic fertilizers.
This type of fertilizer from poultry manure has undeniable advantages:
- it is made by fast drying in a vacuum, which allows you to preserve all the useful properties of the feedstock;
- under the influence of high temperatures, harmful bacteria, larvae of flies, helminths die, weed seeds lose their germination;
- granules, in contrast to the feedstock, practically do not have an unpleasant, specific odor;
- they are compact, have a long shelf life, which makes them easy to transport and store;
- methods of application and dosage are always indicated on the package;
- in addition, the ratio of chemical elements is precisely known, which allows you to observe the exact dosage when feeding cucumbers.
This is important, especially for fertilizing cucumbers, because during the growing season, feeding is carried out about three times, trying to supply the plant with only the most necessary nutrition. For top dressing, 1 kg of fertilizer is poured with 3 liters of warm water. After a day, the resulting concentrated solution is diluted in 20 liters of water. This liquid fertilizer can be used to feed cucumbers, spending up to half a liter per plant. You can also prepare the soil during the digging period. In this case, 1 sq. m consumed about 100 g of granules fertilizer from chicken manure.
Feeding and growing cucumbers
Chicken droppings are used in pre-sowing preparation, as a top dressing when growing vegetables in open ground and greenhouses.
Features of dressings
Chicken manure contains nitrogen in a fairly high concentration. When fertilizing cucumbers with chicken droppings, the plant's need for nitrogen should be taken into account, mainly at the initial stage of development. The first feeding is carried out half a month after germination. The second feeding of cucumbers in the greenhouse coincides in time with the flowering period. This is quite enough for full development.
Depending on the state of the plants, the last dressing is carried out during the fruiting period, if there are signs of a suspension of the growth of cucumbers.
It is important to use the fertilizer in dosage... An excess of it can simply destroy the plant. The most common way is to use a liquid infusion of chicken manure, which can be used to water the soil around the plant. Liquid fertilizer can be prepared in several ways.
- This option is prepared quickly and used immediately. You need to take one part of dry droppings and dissolve in 20 parts of water. The cucumbers in the greenhouse must be pre-watered. The finished solution should not come into contact with green parts of plants and foliage. The consumption of liquid fertilizing for one adult bush is 1 liter. Half the norm is enough for young plants.
- When using a concentrated infusion, it is pre-diluted in a 1: 1 ratio, and left warm for a week to ferment. A liter of this concentrate is diluted in 10 liters of water and the aisles are watered. It is impossible to water cucumbers with bird manure under the root, even at a lower concentration.
- This recipe is also suitable for fertilizing plants in the open field. All fertilizing is carried out after watering or rain. Liquid top dressing should fall on well-moistened soil. If during the watering process the solution gets on the plant, it is advisable to rinse the leaves with clean water to avoid burns.
Growing features
Before using chicken manure, you need to consider the composition and structure of the soil. In clay soil with a dense, heavy structure, chicken manure with litter or compost is embedded in the fall. Light soils are fertilized in spring, applying fertilizer immediately before plowing, at the rate of 3-4 kg per 5 sq. m area.
In the fall, you can add dried droppings mixed with ash and evenly distribute over the soil surface. With atmospheric precipitation, a highly soluble composition will penetrate into the upper soil layers during the autumn and winter periods. You can also use chicken droppings in a greenhouse as a substitute for mineral fertilizers. It is evenly distributed on the straw shafts and regularly moistened with water or a mash on the manure. After 10-15 days, when ammonia ceases to be released, and the temperature evens out to 30 degrees, you can plant cucumber seedlings.
Another option for the pre-planting method of using chicken manure is to make a self-heating substrate from the bark of beech, pine, sawdust of coniferous trees. 10% of the volume of dry chicken manure is added to a mixture of bark and sawdust and placed in a pyramid, which is watered with water. After 4-5 days, the composition is laid out in ditches inside the greenhouse. This composition heats up more slowly, but requires less water and mineral fertilizers.
With this method, you don't have to decide how to feed the cucumbers. The whole complex of necessary fertilizers is already present in the unusual soil.
In the greenhouse, chicken manure should be used carefully, observing the proportions and dosages of liquid feeding. According to experienced gardeners, it is better not to feed the plants than to overfeed.
