A budget-friendly remedy that experienced gardeners use to treat tomatoes: calcium nitrate for blossom end rot.

Tomatoes are susceptible to a wide variety of diseases, and one of them is blossom end rot: a dark spot appears on the tops of the fruit, the tomatoes stop growing, rot and disappear. It is important to catch yourself in time and protect your crop from such a problem. In the article we will look at how calcium nitrate for tomatoes helps fight blossom end rot.

What is calcium nitrate

This is a fertilizer that is used in gardening and gardening. It is a crystalline salt that quickly dissolves in water. The composition includes 13% nitrogen and 19% calcium.

Calcium nitrate is used for tomatoes to prevent the appearance of blossom end rot. It has a positive effect on soil acidity and is useful on soddy-podzolic and acidic soils.

What does it give to tomatoes?

Calcium nitrate has been used for growing tomatoes for a long time. The calcium it contains helps tomatoes absorb nitrogen, which affects plant growth.

If there is a lack of calcium, the root system of the plant does not receive the necessary nutrition, develops poorly, rots, and the bushes disappear.

Benefit:

• accelerates photosynthesis, promoting green growth;
• improves seed germination;
• influences the formation of the root system of bushes;
• helps tomatoes tolerate temperature fluctuations;
• increases yield;
• strengthens plant immunity.

What kind of disease is crown rot?

A small depressed dry spot appears on the tops of the fruit. Over time, it increases, darkens, the tomatoes stop growing and disappear. The defeat begins on unripe fruits.

Apical rot – physiological disease of tomatoes.

It appears in greenhouses and open ground for the following reasons:

1. Incorrect care.
2. Calcium leaching from the soil due to excessive watering.
3. Soil drying out in hot weather.
4. Irregular watering.
5. Lack or excess of calcium in the soil.
6. Excess nitrogen.
7. The acidity of the soil exceeds the norm.
8. Sudden changes in temperature.

Why is it dangerous for tomatoes?

The disease is dangerous because it does not appear on tomatoes immediately. In the initial stage it is invisible, the symptoms are similar to late blight. Subsequently, the fruits darken and rot en masse.

Symptoms and external signs

A dark spot forms at the top of the fruit, which gradually increases. Over time, a depression appears, the tomatoes become watery and stop growing.

Then the stain dries, and a dark brown depression becomes visible. Such fruits are not suitable for food.

Does calcium nitrate help against blossom end rot?

Calcium nitrate is an indispensable remedy for the fight against blossom end rot of tomatoes. Its main advantage is that it saturates tomatoes with calcium, which helps tomatoes absorb nitrogen. Plants develop, the root system strengthens, and the green mass increases.

By strengthening the immunity of tomatoes in this way, you can get rid of the problem.

How to use

To achieve an effect when processing tomatoes, it is important to follow several recommendations:

• apply fertilizer in the spring when digging the soil;
• make 2-3 foliar and root feedings per season;
• spray in the evening in calm weather;
• treat the plant from the outside and inside;
• maintain an interval between treatments of two weeks.

Reference. To achieve maximum effect and enhance the effect of calcium, a solution of boric acid is added to nitrate. Dilute 1 g per liter of water in a separate container. Then the solutions are combined and diluted with ten liters of water.

Instructions for preparing the solution

Let's look at how to properly prepare a solution of calcium nitrate for treating tomatoes against rot.

Attention! When using this product, remember that increased doses may harm the plant.

A solution for treating tomatoes against blossom end rot is prepared as follows:

1. Dilute a tablespoon of calcium nitrate in a liter of water.
2. Mix thoroughly until the crystals are completely dissolved.
3. Add water to make 10 liters.
4. We feed a liter per bush or spray it.

Main rules of use:

• Use glass or plastic containers to prepare the solution;
• Apply root dressing after abundant watering;
• carry out foliar treatment in the evening;
• Apply the solution immediately after preparation.

Instructions for processing tomatoes

The fight against blossom end rot should begin before planting tomatoes in the ground. Calcium nitrate contains nitrogen and calcium, which are used as fertilizer during flowering and ovary formation.

The product improves soil structure and helps enrich plants with oxygen. If there is a lack of these components, flower buds fall off and fruits do not set.

The processing rules are extremely simple:

1. Scatter crystals in the garden and dig up the soil. Use a tablespoon of saltpeter per square meter of land.
2. Having discovered the first signs of disease on tomatoes, immediately remove all affected fruits and leaves.

Precautionary measures

Use calcium nitrate with caution as it is a nitrate fertilizer. If you follow the instructions, dosage, and processing times, this product will not cause harm to your health.

Attention! You only need to add saltpeter to the soil in the spring when digging your garden. When applied in autumn, the nitrogen contained in the fertilizer disappears, being washed out with precipitation. Calcium left without nitrogen is harmful to humans.

Nuances of use

Calcium nitrate is used in the garden when growing tomatoes to combat blossom end rot.

In the open ground

In open ground they are used in early spring in two ways:

• when digging the soil, scatter a tablespoon per 1 square meter. m;
• add a teaspoon to each hole when planting seedlings.

In the greenhouse

Methods of combating the disease in a greenhouse and open ground are largely similar.

Recommendations for processing seedlings in a greenhouse:

• spray the ground after planting seedlings with a 1% solution of calcium nitrate;
• treat the seedlings on all sides with the following solution: 10 g of saltpeter per 10 liters of water.

Can the solution cause harm?

The solution is beneficial for plants, but if used incorrectly it can be harmful.

Spraying times:

1. The first feeding is carried out on the tenth day after planting the seedlings.
2. Subsequent times the plants are treated after two weeks.
3. Spraying stops after the ovaries appear so that the fruits do not accumulate nitrates.

Tips and tricks

To avoid problems with the appearance of blossom end rot, follow these recommendations:

• choose varieties that are resistant to disease;
• disinfect seeds for 30 minutes before sowing in a 3% solution of potassium permanganate;
• prepare the soil by adding slaked lime to reduce acidity;
• add a glass of ash to each hole;
• Water in a timely manner, preferably in the evening;
• mulch the ground using hay, straw, and pine needles.

Reviews from vegetable growers

Experienced gardeners share their advice on the Internet and talk about how calcium nitrate helps against blossom end rot of tomatoes.

Konstantin: «I have encountered blossom end rot of tomatoes more than once and realized that it appears from a lack of calcium in the soil. I started using calcium nitrate, sprayed it only twice and the results were obvious. The tomatoes were healthy this year.”

Maria: “I’ve been planting tomatoes for a long time. This summer was hot, dark spots appeared on my tomatoes, the fruits stopped growing and began to fall off the bushes. I found out that this is apical rot. They advised to use calcium nitrate. I picked off the affected fruits and sprayed the tomatoes. The harvest ripened on time.”

Love: “Blossom rot started in my garden several years ago. At first it was not clear what kind of disease it was. Gradually more affected fruits appeared. They recommended calcium nitrate. I started processing from the ground, scattered fertilizer in early spring and dug up. I sprayed it a couple of times in the summer. The tomatoes began to hurt less. I will continue to fight rot with saltpeter next year.”

Read also:

Why gray rot appears on cucumbers and how to deal with it.

High-yielding hybrid tomato "Alhambra".

Champion in beta-carotene content: Klondike tomato.

Conclusion

Calcium nitrate is a strong and effective remedy for combating blossom end rot of tomatoes. It is recommended to use it annually to prevent the disease. Subject to the rules of agricultural technology, saltpeter is not dangerous to human health.

Using our recommendations, you will forever get rid of the problems associated with this disease and get a bountiful harvest of healthy tomatoes in your garden.