Autumn is a good time to feed the berry bushes, which have given all their strength to the formation of a rich harvest. At the end of the season, you can apply special, ready-made, nutrient mixtures for berry crops that have the “Autumn” index. If desired, fertilizer for shrubs can be prepared independently, but let’s talk about everything in order.
Raspberries: top dressing in the fall
In order for the yield of raspberries to remain at a high level, after harvesting, the plants should be fed with nutrient compounds. It makes no sense to apply nitrogen fertilizers, because they stimulate the growth of green mass, and in autumn this is not the time.
Raspberry bushes are fertilized in autumn with compounds containing potassium and phosphorus. Potash fertilizers help redirect nutrients to the ripening shoots. Raspberries, when absorbing potassium, lay flower buds more actively and endure wintering better. Phosphorus compounds stimulate the growth and strengthening of the root system, which will also have a beneficial effect on wintering.
Phosphorus fertilizers are applied in the fall in the following dosage:
- Double superphosphate — from 10 to 15 g per 1 m2.
- Simple superphosphate — from 40 to 50 g per 1 m2.
From potash fertilizers, potassium sulfate can be used for autumn feeding of raspberries in a proportion of 15-20 g per m2.
You can use other fertilizers:
- Kalimag — from 30 to 40 g per 1 m2.
- Potassium monophosphate — take 10-15 g per bucket of water.
Raspberry roots absorb nutrients at a depth of 30 cm, so it is necessary to make grooves at a distance of 40 cm from the base of the berry bush, and already sprinkle fertilizers in them.
Important! It is recommended to fertilize raspberries 1-2 days after watering.
Raspberry care in the fall consists not only in feeding berry bushes, but also in competent timely pruning.
Blueberries: top dressing in the fall
Blueberry is a rather exotic plant, it is not often possible to find bushes of this berry in amateur gardens. In the fall, in the first year after planting blueberries in the garden, the bushes do not need to be fertilized. Young plants are not recommended to be heavily cut in the autumn period in the first years of life. Care for blueberries in the fall consists in uniform watering of the bushes and the introduction of mineral compounds. Organics for this berry crop should not be applied in the fall. Blueberries need nitrogen fertilizers only in spring.
Important! It is strictly forbidden to apply nutrient compositions containing fresh manure for blueberries.
So how to fertilize blueberries in the fall? From ready-made dressings, you can use fertilizers for heather, azaleas or rhododendrons. The berry shrub prefers slightly acidic soil, and the composition of ready-made fertilizers for azaleas is completely balanced for these plants. Excellent results were noted when using Fertika Leaf Power or Organic Mix Elixir No. 1 autumn preparations for feeding blueberries.
From the second year of life in the autumn, phosphorus and potassium are introduced under blueberries, 50 g each.
Gooseberries: top dressing in the fall
You need to think about how the gooseberry will bear fruit in advance. Even when planting plants in a permanent place, it is worth avoiding areas where currants have grown before — these plants have common nutritional needs, quickly deplete the site, so they should not grow next to or after each other.
How to plant gooseberries in the fall so that they take root well? It’s simple — prepare fertile soil for planting and hold the roots in biostimulants for 4-6 hours, so the gooseberry will take root in a new place in a matter of days. The site should be high, with fertile loose soil, preferably loam.
A gooseberry bush is considered to be young, if the plant is not yet 3 years old, such plants are fed differently than adults.
The first time top dressing is applied under gooseberry seedlings during planting. One bucket of rotted manure and 200 g of ash are mixed with the soil. In addition, 2.5 kg of peat chips are added. Young plants also need mineral fertilizers, which are applied under the bush in the amount of 70 g.
Starting fertilizer should be enough for gooseberries up to the age of 3 years. But sometimes the plant signals that it lacks certain trace elements. It’s easy to find out — watch the berry bushes and inspect the berry bush more often.
- Nitrogen deficiency — the growth of the berry bush slows down, the leaves become covered with a dull coating, become smaller and fall off. Very few flower buds form on the shoots.
- A lack of potassium can cause early yellowing of the leaves. The shoots become brittle, and the berries become sour.
- Phosphorus deficiency — red leaves appear on the bushes, there are very few flowers, the ovaries fall off.
These problems can be corrected by the timely introduction of trace elements.
Gooseberry care in the fall includes timely watering, pruning shoots, fertilizing. Full fertilization is carried out when the plant reaches the age of five.
In autumn, superphosphate in the amount of 1 tbsp. spoon per bush. This top dressing stimulates the development of flower buds.
Ashes are applied under gooseberry bushes every 3-5 years, depending on the condition of the plant.
It is useful to feed gooseberries with potash fertilizers in the fall using zinc sulfate. The need is up to 20 g per 1 plant.
Gooseberries — fall care will not be complete if the plant is not watered, but moisturizing is carried out according to the weather, if rains are expected, it is better to skip the planned watering.
Currant: top dressing in the fall
You can’t do without currants in the garden, red, black, white or pink vitamin berries have great healing power, so you can find bushes of this plant in almost every area.
Caring for currants in the fall involves timely watering, fertilizing, weeding, getting rid of pests and diseases. It is especially important to apply balanced fertilizers on time so that the next year’s harvest will exceed expectations.
Fertilization under currant bushes begins in mid-September. It is advisable to exclude the introduction of nitrogen from the autumn fertilizing scheme — the growth of green mass from an excess of nitrogen before wintering is not needed at all.
The priority in autumn remains with potassium-phosphorus top dressing, 15-20 g of potassium sulfate and 25-30 g of superphosphate are added under each bush.
By mid-October, you can feed the bush with rotted manure; when the temperature drops, the currant will not continue to grow green mass.