Content
Today on sale there is a rich assortment of chemicals for feeding tomatoes and controlling their pests and diseases. However, instead of expensive and toxic substances, it is better to pay attention to affordable natural products that are no less effective. One of them is onion peel, the beneficial properties of which were known in ancient times. Onion husks, as a fertilizer for tomatoes, are successfully used by gardeners for feeding tomatoes and other vegetable and fruit crops.
With regular use, onion flakes will become an excellent fertilizer for tomato seedlings, due to the content in them of a large amount of nutrients.
Chemical composition
The amazing properties of onion skins are due to its unique chemical composition. The organic and mineral compounds contained in the flakes are characterized by high biological activity.
Provitamin A
The carotenoids that are part of the onion peel have several important functions:
- they are indispensable as a source of vitamin A, which has protective properties in the fight against fungal diseases;
- these compounds are known to be good immunostimulants;
- their antioxidant effect is explained by the ability to bind atomic oxygen formed during photosynthesis.
Antimicrobial volatiles
Phytoncides secreted by onions are highly effective in combating pathogenic microorganisms that multiply in the soil layer and fungal diseases that affect tomato seedlings. The concentration of phytoncides is especially high in onion scales. These volatile substances are better preserved in its aqueous infusion.
B vitamins
Interacting with phosphoric acid, thiamine forms cocarboxylase, a coenzyme that accelerates metabolic processes in plant cells. Due to this, when feeding tomatoes with onion peel infusion, the growth rate of seedlings increases, their root system is strengthened, and the fruiting stage begins faster.
Vitamins PP
Nicotinic acid, contained in onions and their integumentary scales, promotes the development of the root system of tomatoes, even on unfavorable clay soils. The combined action of vitamins B1 and PP increases the rate of assimilation of nitrogen, phosphorus and other minerals, accelerates the formation of chlorophyll in tomato leaves.
Quercetin
Onion peels contain a high content of one of the natural flavonoids with strong anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties - quercetin. It is especially abundant in the scales of red onions. It is useful for the health of young, still weak tomato sprouts.
Vitamin C
The effects of vitamin C are still not well understood, however, it has long been known as a powerful antioxidant. And recent studies by scientists have found that ascorbic acid promotes the production of a special enzyme necessary for plant growth.
Top dressing of tomatoes with onion peels
Infusions and decoctions made from onion scales are a universal fertilizer for tomatoes. They have many beneficial properties.
Their advantages
Onion flakes are a natural product that has a number of characteristics that distinguish it from others:
- it will never harm young tomato sprouts;
- attracted by its availability and lack of need for material costs;
- it is non-toxic and does not require the use of chemical protection means;
- recipes for the preparation of onion peel infusions are simple and easy;
- the concentration of trace elements and vitamins in the husk is higher than in the bulb itself.
Why is this fertilizer useful?
Regular feeding of tomato seedlings with onion scales is useful at any time, from the moment they are planted to the period of fruit ripening:
- if the leaves of tomatoes turn yellow, they can be treated with a diluted infusion of onion peels;
- light spraying of seedlings every week will help speed up the formation of ovaries;
- watering and spraying will increase the yield of tomatoes and contribute to the improvement of microflora;
- the absence of nitrates in the onion peel ensures their safe disposal.
The watering rate for each tomato bush is 0.5 liters of liquid in the first weeks after planting, and after a month it triples.
Onion scales as a medicine for tomato seedlings
Due to its anti-inflammatory properties, onion peels are an excellent remedy for combating various diseases affecting tomatoes and harmful insects:
- an infusion of a glass of dry raw materials per liter of water, aged for 24 hours, helps against black leg disease;
- to get rid of aphids and spider mites, tomato bushes are sprayed with the same solution with the addition of shavings of laundry soap;
- spraying and watering with water infused on onion scales will help prevent bacterial cancer of tomatoes and fight tobacco thrips;
- watering with a diluted infusion will protect from the appearance of black or gray rot, 5-6 days after planting the seedlings, as well as when it blooms.
Features of the use of bulbous scales
Onion husks are indispensable for feeding tomatoes in any form - decoctions, infusions or dry crushed raw materials.
The decoction is very simple to prepare:
- onion scales are poured with water in an enamel bowl;
- the mixture should be boiled and cooled;
- having filtered the solution and, if necessary, diluted, you can use it.
With this tool, you need to water tomato seedlings up to three times a week or spray the leaves to destroy pests. A stronger broth is used to disinfect the soil under the bushes. Such watering will be a good top dressing and will strengthen the root system of tomatoes, contributing to their better growth and fruiting.
To prepare the infusion, you need to pour dry onion husks with a double amount of boiling water and stand for two days. Before use, it must be diluted with three or five times the amount of water, depending on the purpose of use. Tomato seedlings must be watered with infusion already three days after planting. During growth, it is also necessary to process tomatoes with it to prevent diseases or pests. Spraying should be carried out during the period of fruit ripening. First, you should dissolve a small amount of laundry soap in the infusion for better adhesion to the leaves.
Onion peel as fertilizer for tomato can be added to the ground before planting seedlings or sprinkled under tomato bushes. When watering, useful substances will be washed out of dry scales and saturate the soil under the plants. Previously, the material must be prepared as follows:
- after sorting out the raw materials, select healthy onion scales;
- dry them using any available method - in the oven, microwave or in the fresh air;
- grind and add to the soil, while loosening it.
They will be an excellent top dressing for tomatoes.
Infusion recipes
The concentration of the infusions depends on the purpose of the application. For spraying tomatoes against harmful insects, it is made more saturated - two glasses of dry scales are poured with a glass of boiling water. The infusion is kept for up to four days, and then diluted with a double volume of water. Before processing, you should dissolve the shavings of laundry soap in it. Spraying three times should be repeated after a week break.
To disinfect tomato seedlings and the soil around them, an infusion is prepared from one bucket of water and a glass of dry raw materials. The mixture is brought to a boil, then infused for several hours. The resulting solution is used to water the tomatoes and process their leaves on both sides.
You can process tomato seedlings from aphids by filling a glass of scales with a bucket of boiling water. After standing for 12 hours, it is necessary to strain the solution and process the affected bushes with it. The procedure should be repeated every four days. The recipe is also suitable for preventive processing of tomatoes.
Top dressing of tomatoes with onion peels is popular with gardeners due to the two-in-one effect it provides. Processing it with infusion is not only an excellent fertilizer for tomato seedlings, but at the same time disinfects the soil and the plants themselves from the effects of harmful microorganisms.
