Infusion of tomato leaves application. The use of tomato tops in the garden, ways for all occasions. haulm mulch

Features of the chemical composition of tomato tops

The demand for the vegetative part of tomato plantations is due to the presence in its composition of such components as vitamins of groups B, C, PP, organic acids, potassium, sodium, nitrogen, essential oils. Using simple ways preparation of top dressing, it is possible to produce a worthy alternative to chemicals with a triple benefit:

  • there is no excessive vegetation on the site;
  • the process of forming bushes is carried out on time;
  • there are no costs for the purchase of effective and safe fertilizers.

Tomato tops are a complete nutritional complex that sufficiently satisfies the need of a vegetable crop for useful elements. In addition, products based on it help protect plantings from the invasion of harmful insects.

Applications and recipes

The use of tomato tops in the garden and in the garden allows you to grow strong plants that differ high level resistance to adverse factors environment, pathogenic microorganisms. In addition, it is also good to use tomato tops as a mulch layer, a nutrient mixture, an ingredient for making compost.

Against pests

Recipe for making an infusion of tomato tops from pests:

  1. Grind 2-2.5 kg of tomato greens, including leaves and stepchildren.
  2. Put raw materials in a suitable container and pour 10 liters hot water.
  3. Let the infusion brew for 5-6 hours. To speed up the process, the mixture is boiled over low heat (20-30 minutes).
  4. Then the working solution is filtered and diluted with water in a ratio of 1:4 before use. In order for it to better adhere to the leaf plates of damaged agricultural plants, laundry soap (50 g) is added to the mixture.

Use green medicine for treatments of all vegetable crops, and not only for medicinal purposes, but also as preventive measures from the attack of most pests, in particular as a remedy for slugs. For example, ticks die after spraying during the first day. Repeated manipulations are carried out after 7-10 days, both affected plantings and healthy specimens are processed. You can make a harvest of useful raw materials by drying the collected tops of tomatoes and stepchildren. They are good to use for decoctions and infusions.

A decoction of tomato leaves is prepared taking into account 400 g of raw materials per 10 liters of water. It is boiled for 30 minutes on low heat, then filtered, and diluted with water 3:10 before use. Also grated soap (40 g) is added to it. The decoction is popular against caterpillars and aphids.

Despite the effectiveness of natural insecticide from the tops of tomatoes, there are some nuances that should be observed when using it:

  1. To avoid the appearance negative consequences in the form of burns on the root system of plants, solanine concentrate is recommended to be used in strict accordance with the dosage. It is better to first make a control treatment of one bush and in the absence of occurrence allergic reaction move on to spraying the rest of the plantings. Side effects look like spots, swelling on the leaf plates.
  2. Optimal time for spraying with infusion of tomato greens - morning or evening hours. If the weather is cloudy outside, then there are no time limits. The main thing is that the plants that have undergone processing are not under the scorching rays of the sun. Otherwise, burns will appear on the sheet mass.
  3. It is noteworthy that the poisonous plant remedy does not concentrate in the soil, and therefore does not pose any threat to either the bushes themselves or the human body. Products are ready for use after one day.

As a fertilizer

Tomato bushes respond gratefully to the nutrient mixtures introduced, especially if they are made on herbs. Leaf-based liquid top dressing has a high percentage of nitrogen, which is so necessary for plants to build green mass. In addition to cut stepchildren, leaves and others vegetative organs Experienced gardeners add a bush to the mixture and weeds. But only raw materials without signs of disease should be used.

To prepare fertilizer for feeding a tomato, you must:

  1. Put chopped tops in a container.
  2. Pour 20 liters of water and cover the container with a lid.
  3. Let it brew for a week.
  4. The signal that the mixture is ready will be bubbles on the surface, indicating the release of methane.

Before use, the concentrated product must be diluted with water at the rate of 1:10. Watering is done under the root, preventing the working fluid from getting on the leaves of tomatoes. If there is a need for foliar top dressing, then the solution is prepared in a reduced concentration. Plantings are sprayed with a strained composition. Thanks to such procedures, it is possible to quickly deliver useful components to the plant and get rid of harmful insects.

Another tops of tomatoes are burned, mixed with ordinary ash and used as organic fertilizer when planting young seedlings. A handful of this nutrient composition is added to each well.

Composting

Tomato tops are recognized as an excellent component of the compost mixture. But it is recommended to use only young and succulent vegetation, with no signs of disease damage. If there are traces of late blight on the tops, it should be immediately destroyed in a fire, otherwise a dangerous disease in short time will infect all vegetable plantings.

Not only the vegetative part of the tomatoes is used to make compost, but also the darkened fruits. They are placed in a large container and mixed with a small amount of soil. To disinfect the substrate, it is recommended to treat it with blue vitriol. To speed up the process, mullein or urea, previously diluted in water, is added to the compost heap. As an option, specialized preparations such as Sanex are used. It will be possible to use such a fertilizer for the next season.

After all the ingredients are laid, the compost is covered with a black film on top, small holes are made in it through which air will flow. In the spring, it is good to pour complex fertilizer diluted according to the instructions into the pile. The resulting crumbly humus is great for mulching beds under fruit trees and shrubs. It is effective to add it to the soil before digging the site. But it is optimal to leave the compost to be prepared for three years. During this period, all spores of pathogenic microorganisms remaining on tomato leaves will die.

Each gardener on his site wants to have healthy fruits, berries, vegetables, and I want to use pesticides less. Your assistants in this will be the plants themselves, animals, insects. When planting in the garden and garden, it is necessary to adhere to satellite crops, that is, those that protect one another from pests.

Engage Companion Cultures

  • Cabbage. The sweet vegetable is attacked by many pests. By combining planting cabbage with dill and onions, you will protect it from pests.
  • By planting onions in cucumber beds, you will protect cucumbers from spider mite.
  • Onion sets (batun) protects strawberries from nematodes and slugs.
  • Garlic and onions will help tomatoes from phytophthora.
  • Carrots will help the onion from the onion fly. Onions, in turn, will help the carrots from the wireworm.

So watching the plants, you can find green defenders in the garden and in the flower garden. Many plants in the garden are affected by aphids. Cabbage, beans, cherries, sweet cherries and other crops are severely affected. Spider mite harms cucumbers. Treat these crops with an infusion of garlic, and the pests will die in three to four hours. Plant dill next to them. It will attract hover flies. And onions repel many pests and butterflies. They will not be able to lay eggs on the plant.

Batun onions will help in protecting strawberries from gray rot. Onion phytoncides destroy the pathogens of this disease. It will protect potatoes and tomatoes from diseases and pests.

Plant marigolds (chernobrivtsy) in the garden. They protect the soil from nematodes and are the best predecessors for strawberries.

Mustard, dill, parsley blooming in the garden attract beneficial insects.

Use herbal infusions

In addition to the use of satellite cultures, in the garden, in the garden, it is necessary to process crops and plantings with vegetable infusions.

  • At the first signs of illness, tomato late blight and for the prevention of diseases, treat the plants with an infusion of garlic.
  • From anger (a pest of gooseberries and currants), a meadow moth (a pest of potatoes and vegetable crops), a sawfly, a cabbage scoop - nocturnal butterflies use an infusion of tomato leaves.
  • From pests such as thrips, small caterpillars, an infusion of potato tops and a tomato will help.
  • From such a pest as a wireworm that gnaws through carrot roots and potato tubers, fight by digging potato slices to a depth of five to ten centimeters (marking them with twigs), checking daily and destroying pests.
  • An infusion of dandelion leaves will help in the fight against aphids, mites.
  • Some gardeners grow burdock. He has importance not only in traditional medicine but also the control of major pests. Freshly cut burdock leaves - one and a half kilograms are put in a tank, poured with five liters of water, insisted in a dark place for three to four days and filtered. With severe damage to plants, add twenty grams laundry soap and mix. Use an infusion for spraying against cabbage moths, voracious caterpillars of cabbage whites, scoops and many other harmful insects. A good effect is given by a mixture of burdock and mustard leaf(one to two). Use it against meadow bugs and aphids.
  • An infusion of burdock is also effective against spider mites. Pour half a bucket of crushed mass with warm water to the top, leave for ten days and strain. You can spray the trees with this infusion at intervals of ten days. After spreading the burdock leaves overnight, collect the slugs hiding under them.
  • Infusion from chamomile will save plants from ticks, aphids, mice.
  • From powdery mildew- diseases of cucumbers, pumpkins, melons, squash, gooseberry bushes and currants - use an infusion of rotted hay. Processing is best done in the evening.

On the household plots you can use not chemical methods pest control using traditional methods.

Grows in nature in the wild and in culture a large number of plants, containing toxic substances. They are harmless to people and not as dangerous as pesticides but are capable of killing pathogens and insects.

Plants in pest control

Let's bring plant description and pest control recipes. However, in the manufacture of infusions, decoctions and powders hands should not touch the face, eyes. Bury the rest of the decoctions in the ground.

Burdock infusion

Burdock leaves are finely chopped, put up to one third of a bucket, poured to the top with water. Infuse the resulting mass for 3 days, then strain through cheesecloth. used burdock against caterpillars of cabbage whites and scoops. Spraying is carried out 3-4 times in 6-8 days. The cabbage will be saved.

Infusion of potato tops

Growing potatoes, we also benefit from the tops. 1.2kg of unaffected fresh or 800g. chop dry potato tops, pour 10 liters of water and let it brew for 3-4 hours. After filtering and spraying any melons and vegetables against spider mites and aphids which die after 3-4 hours. If you increase the amount of potato tops in the infusion, then it will be effective against leaf-eating pests.

Decoction of tomato

400g. cut into pieces tomato tops pour 10 liters of water, cook over low heat for 30 minutes, strain after settling. Before use, add 3 liters of decoction and 40 g to 10 liters of water. soap. Applies against caterpillars and aphids.

A decoction of the tops of black nightshade

A decoction of black nightshade tops is prepared in the same way as from tomato tops. It is used against larvae of various pests and caterpillars. Against younger ages, the effectiveness will be increased.

Decoction of hot pepper

1 kg. chopped fresh or 500g. dry pods of bitter pepper are boiled for 1 hour in 10 liters of water in an enameled bowl, closed with a lid, insist for two days. Then grind the pepper, squeeze and strain. The resulting broth is stored in sealed bottles in dark place. For spraying against caterpillars, slugs and aphids prepare a solution in the following composition: add 100 g to 10 liters of water. concentrate and 40g. soap.

Infusion of garlic

50g. pass the garlic through a meat grinder. Dilute in 10 liters of water. During the day it is infused, then filtered. An infusion of garlic is used against late blight on potatoes and tomatoes, mites and aphids on cucumbers and cabbage. Spraying is repeated after 10-12 days.

Lime and tobacco dust

Lime and tobacco dust the soil is sprinkled along the rows of onions and garlic against onion fly. Consumption 1-2kg per 100m2. Recurrence in 7-8 days. You can also use wood ash.

Marigolds and chicory

Chicory and marigold(calendula) secrete phytoncides that suppress onion, garlic nematodes, and also repel harmful insects. These plants are planted among the beds of onions and garlic.

Onion infusion

200g. onion scales in 10 liters of hot water, infused for a day. Onion infusion is effective against aphids and mites.

Yarrow infusion

800g. grind dried yarrow plants and steam in boiling water for 30 minutes. Top up then 10l. and insist 2 days. This infusion is sprayed against aphids and mites.

Decoction of wormwood

1 kg. wormwood boil for 10 minutes and add water to 10 liters. An infusion of chicken manure is added to this composition. used against leaf-eating pests of cabbage.

mustard solution

Dissolve 100 g in 10 liters of water. mustard powder and sprinkled against caterpillars and aphids. Dry powder dusting in dry weather against slugs. Against them, you can sprinkle the soil with a consumption rate of 100g. per 1 m2.

Coriander and castor beans

Coriander and castor beans publish strong odors. The first one repels mice, the second - flies, including the melon fly.

Infusion of hay and straw

An infusion of rotten hay, straw and mullein is used against powdery mildew on cucumbers, pumpkins, watermelons and melons, an infusion of these materials is used. 1kg of any of them is filled with 3 liters of water and infused for 3 days. Then it is filtered and diluted with water three times. Spraying is repeated after 5-7 days.

The use of birds

Birds are reliable helpers in the fight against harmful insects. It is very useful to attract birds. Therefore, it is desirable to have bird houses in individual gardens, and in winter to organize bird feeding. It is good to entrust this work to children.

Using these tips, you can effectively lead pest control vegetable crops in household plots.

Folk ways to protect plants

What are folk ways plant protection, without pesticides and other chemicals.

With pests and diseases vegetable plants fight can be waged not only chemicals, which are sometimes scarce or not available, but also using some wild and cultivated plants containing toxic substances.

Most of the plants listed below are poisonous, so precautions must be taken when harvesting, processing and using them. After working with these plants, you need to thoroughly wash your hands and dishes in which decoctions and infusions were prepared. This utensil is not recommended for other uses. Waste from infusions and squeezed plants should be buried deep in the ground.

Such means of controlling pests and diseases of vegetable plants are either not at all harmful to humans, animals and beneficial insects, or less dangerous in comparison with some chemicals, but have a detrimental effect on pests and pathogens of agricultural crops.

Tobacco dust and lime

Onions and garlic are damaged by onion fly larvae. To combat it in the spring (at the beginning of cherry and dandelion flowering), you need to sprinkle the soil along the rows with a mixture of tobacco dust and lime at the rate of 1-2 kilograms per 100 square meters square or pollinate wood ash. It is necessary to treat the soil with these substances 2-3 times with an interval of 8 days.

Chicory and marigold (calendula)

When onions and garlic are affected by the onion nematode, the leaves of these plants turn white, wither and dry out. On the bulbs, if you pull them out, even without a magnifying glass you can see many thin round larvae. To combat them, it is recommended to plant chicory or marigolds among the ridges of onions and garlic. These plants repel the pest, promote the healing of plants damaged by the nematode and the disappearance of the pest itself.

potato tops

Vegetables and gourds (cabbage, cucumbers, watermelons, melons), great harm bring aphids and spider mites. When forming and ripening the fruits of these crops, it is forbidden to use chemicals, substances, therefore, it is recommended to spray these crops with an infusion of potato tops. It is prepared as follows: 2 kilograms of fresh potato tops are crushed and poured with 10 liters of water, then insisted for 2-3 hours, filtered and used for spraying. After treatment with this infusion of vegetable plants, aphids and mites disappear after 2-4 hours. An increase in the amount of haulm in the infusion can cause leaf burns. This infusion can also be used against leaf-eating pests by spraying plants in the evening.

Decoction of mustard

Gorchak is a well-known malicious weed that grows everywhere. It must be harvested during the flowering period and used to combat aphids and mites on vegetable and melon crops. For 1 kilogram of mustard, take 10 liters of water and boil for 30 minutes. Then the broth is cooled, filtered, 30 grams of soap are added to it and used for spraying.

Infusion of horse sorrel and dandelion

Horse sorrel roots and dandelion leaves can be used to control aphids and mites. To prepare the infusion, take 300 grams of finely ground horse sorrel root or 400 grams of chopped dandelion leaves, pour 10 liters warm water and insist 2-3 hours. After filtering, the solution is used for spraying.

tomato broth

For the preparation of a decoction, waste from the pinching of tomatoes and tops that have fruited is used. Tops with leaves and roots washed from the ground and green unusable fruits are finely chopped and poured with water at the rate of 400 grams of green mass per 10 liters of water and boiled over low heat for 30 minutes. The broth is filtered and poured into a glass bottle, which is tightly closed. To kill aphids, mites, caterpillars and other pests, take 2 liters of decoction per 100 liters of water, add 30 grams of soap and spray the plants. tomato broth it can even be made from dried tops harvested in the fall after harvest.

Infusion of garlic

For 10 liters of water, take 30-50 grams of garlic, after passing it through a meat grinder. Having stirred well, they insist for a day. Then filter and apply against phytophthora at the beginning of flowering of potatoes and at the beginning of fruit set, treating the area 2-3 times in 10-14 days. This infusion can be sprayed with cucumbers, cabbage and other crops against ticks, aphids and other pests.

Onion infusion

Bucket onion peel pour two buckets of hot (60-70 degrees) water and insist for 1-2 days. After that, filter and dilute twice with water. Used for spraying cucumber plants against spider mites, thrips, aphids and other pests of vegetable crops. Onion infusion must be used on the day of preparation.

Burdock infusion

Burdock leaves should be finely chopped, filled with one third of a bucket and filled to the top with water. You need to insist for three days, then strain and apply for spraying cabbage against caterpillars. This infusion gives good results during the flight of moths - the beginning of the appearance of caterpillars. Spraying 3 times with an interval of 6-8 days can save the cabbage from damage.

Decoction of wormwood

Take 1 kilogram of dried wormwood and boil for 10-15 minutes in a small amount of water. After cooling and filtering, 10 liters of water are added to the resulting liquid. The action of the decoction is enhanced if an infusion of bird droppings is added to it. To do this, 1 kilogram of dry litter is infused for 1-2 days in a small amount of water, filtered and mixed with an undiluted wormwood decoction, adding up to 10 liters of water to this mixture. Apply this decoction against leaf-eating caterpillars, which die 2-3 days after spraying.

Tops of tomatoes for summer residents are not garden garbage, but valuable raw materials that are found useful application in the garden and as a fertilizer, and for the treatment of plantings from pests and diseases. The main thing is to know how to properly prepare healthy infusions, at what time to apply.


The aerial part of plants contains a whole range of different elements, including vitamins, minerals, essential oils. It is irrational to throw away such wealth, it is more expedient to prepare top dressing, infusions, decoctions from the stems and leaves.

The composition of the tops of tomatoes contains:

  • B vitamins (B1, B2, B3, B4, B5);
  • vitamin PP;
  • vitamin P;
  • vitamin C;
  • nitrogen;
  • potassium;
  • sodium;
  • organic acids;
  • essential oils.

Simple processing techniques (infusion, composting) of tops make it possible to obtain new compositions that are useful for enriching the soil and preventing plant diseases. Correct Application"green" fertilizers is an alternative to the use of mineral additives, the ability to grow crops without "chemistry". This results in a triple benefit:

  • the formation of tomato bushes is carried out in a timely manner (especially indeterminate varieties);
  • there are no heaps of leaves and other plant debris on the site;
  • budget savings (no need to spend money on the purchase of expensive fertilizers, fungicides).

The overall result is an excellent crop of tomatoes!

What tops are used


The leaves and stems of tomatoes are used for laying in compost heaps, preparing infusions, decoctions, and for mulching. Suitable side shoots, harvested during planting, cut tomato leaves, as well as bushes collected from the ridges after harvesting.

Early undersized varieties and hybrids finish fruiting by the beginning of August, late-ripening indetes in greenhouses bear fruit until the first cold weather. Therefore, the bushes are removed from the beds in different dates, Considering varietal features tomatoes, the completion of fruiting.

In any case, only healthy tops are used, without damage, traces of phytophthora, powdery mildew. Leaves and stems are only green, all wilted and yellow shoots are removed. You can not take tops with mold, rot, black and brown spots. Such plants are destroyed.

Green stepchildren and leaves are used for infusions or compost immediately after breaking off, it is advisable to dry the tomato bushes torn from the ridges in the fall before laying in the compost in the sun.

On a note! Tops for infusions are harvested for future use, dried and then applied as needed.

Ways to use tops in the garden

Tomato tops are the basis for various nutrient mixtures and infusions, a natural insecticide and fungicide, and mulch. The green mass of tomatoes is pre-prepared, and only then used on the site.

Fertilizer

Garden books from the early 20th century contain many tips and tricks for using tomato leaves as nutrient infusions for plants. Modern summer residents adopt old recipes, apply their best practices.

Tops of tomatoes - a source of nutrients for plants (primarily tomatoes themselves), effective fertilizer popular with gardeners.

Ash


To obtain ash, tomato tops are dried, collected in a tank or barrel and burned. Then large charred residues are crushed to a powder state, mixed with ordinary wood ash. Fertilizer is ready!

How to use:

  • adding ash to the wells when planting eggplant, tomatoes, peppers, potatoes (handful each);
  • the introduction of ash in the fall, when digging the beds on the site, in the greenhouse (3-4 cups per 1 square meter);
  • top dressing with an ash solution of seedlings (3 tablespoons of ash per liter of water, insist, gently water the plants);
  • dusting plants during the growing season (2-3 times per season);
  • preparation of infusions with ash (a liter of ash per bucket of water, insist for two days, water tomatoes, cucumbers, peppers under the root).

An ash solution (1:10) is applied before preparing plants for wintering: under perennial flowers, berry bushes.

Store prepared ashes in wooden boxes with tight covers, in a dry place (basement, barn). Do not put ashes for storage in plastic bags (condensation forms). When moisture enters during storage, potassium is washed out of the valuable fertilizer, which impoverishes the ash.

liquid fertilizer


Effective top dressing - an infusion of tomato tops, which allows you to saturate the soil with nitrogen and contributes to rapid growth plants.

The standard recipe for the preparation of "green" fertilizer:

  • a barrel or a large tank is filled with chopped leaves, tomato stalks (2/3);
  • fill the container warm water to the very top;
  • mix the contents;
  • cover with a film on top;
  • insist within 8-10 days.

The infusion will “roam”, releasing a specific pungent odor, so the barrel is placed at a distance from the house, the dacha. For top dressing take a liter of the mixture per bucket pure water, mix and water the vegetables under the root.

On a note! Liquid fertilizer is useful for foliar applications. To do this, the composition is diluted in the same proportion (1 liter of infusion per 10 liters of water), poured into a sprayer, and tomatoes, eggplants, and peppers are processed in the morning or evening.

Another recipe:

  • a bucket of hot water;
  • 4-5 kg ​​of fresh tomato tops.

The green mass is placed in a tank, steamed with boiling water and infused for 4-5 hours. The solution is cooled, carefully filtered. The resulting infusion is diluted with water in a ratio of 1: 5, young tomatoes planted on the beds or in the greenhouse are watered. Top dressing begins to be carried out no earlier than three weeks after planting the seedlings, the interval is once every two weeks. It is enough to carry out 2 top dressings with green fertilizer from the tops.

Pest control

Tops of tomatoes are used for the preparation of infusions and decoctions that help in the prevention and treatment of diseases. It is also effective in pest control, as it contains the poisonous glycoside solanine. This element is present in all plants of the nightshade family, has a fungicidal, insecticidal effect.

Infusions on tops of tomatoes are used against a number of pests:

  • spider mite;
  • colorado potato beetle;
  • leaf-eating caterpillars;
  • herbivorous bugs.

Use the product on all plants of the cruciferous family (cabbage, radish, turnip), nightshade, any other vegetable crops.

Cooking


To prepare the infusion, take tomato leaves, freshly cut stepchildren, plant stems. Greens (2-3 kg) are carefully crushed, poured into a tank or barrel, poured hot water(10 liters).

Insist the contents of 6-7 hours.

On a note! If there is no time to infuse the composition, you can stand it for a couple of hours, and then boil for half an hour over low heat.

The resulting mixture is cooled, filtered, then diluted in a ratio of 1:4 with water. In order for the composition to stay on the plants longer after treatment, it is recommended to add 200-300 grams of laundry soap chips to it.

The resulting infusion is used to treat plants from pests (healthy - for prevention, affected - for protection and destruction of insects). After the first treatment, the second is carried out after 8-10 days.

The preparation of an infusion from dried tomato tops will be slightly different. A bucket of water will require 1 kg of dry herbs, infusion time - up to five hours, boiling - 2-3 hours. The resulting composition is diluted with water in a ratio of 1: 3, soap is added, the plants are treated.


  1. The resulting infusion can be stored in an airtight glass container for up to 8-9 months. A decoction prepared in summer is used in autumn and winter to protect flowers from pests indoors, for seedlings of vegetables.
  2. Do not exceed the amount of tops for the preparation of solutions. Accuracy in recipes reduces the risk of plant burns and leaf damage.
  3. Processing is carried out in the morning or afternoon on a cloudy day to avoid sunburn on plant leaves.

Decoctions of green tomato tops used as a prophylactic against pests, as well as with a small number of insects. With massive invasions of aphids or caterpillars, they are ineffective, and there you will have to use chemicals.

Apart from liquid formulations, gardeners protect plants from pests by laying chopped tomato tops in the furrows and around the bushes. Such a "green shield" protects garden crops, berry bushes (gooseberries, currants) from pest attacks.

Tomato leaves for compost


Leaves and stepchildren torn off in summer are best suited for making "green" liquid fertilizers. Healthy, undamaged tomato bushes after harvesting are recommended for composting.

In a barrel, plank lari stack tops, pouring it with a small amount of soil. Seal, shed with special solutions to accelerate decomposition, suitable:

  • bred mullein;
  • EM drug (for example, Baikal)
  • Sanex EcoCompost.

The compost pit or barrel is placed in the shade, the preparations are used according to the instructions so as not to kill the beneficial bacteria.

Even better, if the preparations are used during the composting process, to irrigate each layer of the mixture.

From above, the compost is covered with a film with holes. The optimal time for “preparing” valuable fertilizer is three years, since during this period the tops will completely rot, possible fungi and dangerous bacteria will die, and the mass itself will turn into crumbly nutritious humus.

Using haulm compost

Ready-made fertilizer is used for mulching the soil under all garden crops, for application in autumn or spring when digging ridges.

Mulching


If there is no need to prepare a nutritious infusion or decoction to protect against pests, tomato tops find another use. It is great as a mulch for trees and berries in the garden, vegetables in the beds.

Use dangling stepchildren, tomato leaves, stems. It is advisable to grind the green mass so that it is more convenient to lay out the mulch on the surface of the earth.

The benefits of mulching:

  • retaining moisture in the soil;
  • suppression of growth of weeds on ridges;
  • simplification of care for garden crops (no need to loosen the soil after watering);
  • protection of plants from pests;
  • Rotten mulch is a good fertilizer.

The specific smell of the tops, as well as the solanine contained in it, repel insect pests. Such mulching is useful for fruit trees(in trunk circles), since the smell from the leaves and stems of tomatoes is not tolerated by many pests of apple, pear, and cherry. The probability of overwintering of pests in the soil near trees, as well as in the bark on trunks, is reduced.

As the mulch dries and rots, new tops are added, but the leaves and shoots are green and undamaged.

The modern agrochemical industry offers gardeners and gardeners a variety of preparations for feeding plantings and pest control for every taste. However, you can make fertilizer and protective equipment for plants on the site with their own hands. Moreover, weeds are used, and even tops from different cultures that have already brought the harvest with the onset of autumn. There is no need to rush to throw it away - such a green mass will be useful in the household.

Article outline


After the potato tubers have been dug up, the question arises of what to do with the green mass of plants left in fairly large volume. It can be used as a top dressing for future plantings on the site and as an insecticidal agent that protects against various pests.

Potato tops are a valuable material. Such raw materials are used mainly in three forms:

  1. receiving effective feeding when using composting technology;
  2. incineration followed by the use of ash to fertilize the soil;
  3. preparation of special infusions with which plants are treated to destroy and repel harmful insects.

Adding Potatoes to Compost

First of all, it is necessary to mention that the tops of potatoes as a fertilizer after rotting in compost heap will be ready for safe use as top dressing only after three years. This is a method that will take time and patience.

Such a long period of composting is explained by the fact that during its decomposition, during the decomposition of potato tops into substances, the activity of pathogenic fungi does not stop, the introduction of which into the beds can cause a lot of harm.

Along with a long wait, you will also need to treat the compost heap with a disinfectant solution: 2 tablespoons of copper sulfate crystals, diluted in a 10-liter bucket of water.

It helps destroy harmful microorganisms. Not all gardeners are ready to wait so long, so this method has not received much popularity.

This method saves time because it is extremely simple. The tops, which have already dried up by the time of harvest, are collected in a pile and set on fire. The resulting ashes are applied to the beds as top dressing.

Potato tops as a fertilizer in the form of ash are valuable because they contain a high content of potassium and phosphorus. These are substances without which no plant can successfully develop in the soil. Their deficiency negatively affects the taste and quantitative characteristics of the future harvest.

In addition, the ash contains a whole list of macro- and microelements that are valuable in the cultivation of crops. The introduction of ash will also be to the taste of flowers and fruit and berry plants - it is enough to evenly distribute it over the surface of the soil.

Insecticide solution from potato tops

In potato tops, the concentration is quite high toxic substances. For example, corned beef. Therefore, it is forbidden to use it as feed in animal husbandry: use leads to a serious disorder. gastrointestinal tract in cows and horses. The only exception to this rule are sheep.

And here harmful insects, affecting plants in the garden, products based on potato tops will definitely not be to your taste.

An aqueous solution using potato tops helps to cope with:

  • fleas;
  • caterpillars various kinds(including codling moth and cabbage);
  • spider mite
  • moth;
  • scoop;
  • aphids and others.

There is only one requirement for the tops suitable for making insecticidal infusion: it must be completely healthy. It is excluded to take shoots with signs of defeat various diseases. Otherwise, there are no restrictions. You can use both raw tops and dried tops. This allows the owner of the site to procure raw materials for pest control for future use in large quantities and use them on next year with the onset of spring.

To prepare an effective insecticidal solution based on potato tops, you will need:

  • 0.6 kg fresh leaves or 0.4 kg dried
  • 5 liters of water;
  • a bucket of 10 liters;
  • soap (you can use any, for example, liquid and laundry).

Cooking method:

  1. With a cutter or sharp knife(You need to be careful and take precautions so as not to get hurt!) Raw materials are carefully crushed.
  2. The cuttings of the tops are placed in a bucket and poured with 5 liters of water, tightly closed with a lid and put in a warm place.
  3. After 4 hours, the composition is filtered through a sieve or gauze.
  4. The tool is ready to use!

For the treatment of plants, you can use a spray gun or sprayer. When pouring a solution into it, it is recommended to add grated soap (for convenience, you can take liquid). This will provide better adhesion of the insecticidal agent to the green part of the plants, and will also produce an additional disinfecting effect.

It is necessary to carry out such a procedure in dry weather so that precipitation cannot wash off the solution from the greenery, as well as in the evening, when the sun has already leaned towards the horizon.

The frequency of use of the product is once every 2-10 days. It depends on how many pests live on plants. It will also be useful to carry out preventive treatments once every 2 weeks - the landings themselves will not suffer.

The use of such methods for processing potato tops does not require cash costs and allows you to refuse chemicals. These are environmentally friendly methods that do not harm plants and future crops. The only rule is that spraying is recommended no later than 2 weeks before it is harvested so that the substances do not appear on the surface of the fruit.


Tomato leaves as fertilizer can also be used as compost, but, as with potatoes, you have to wait 3 years before you can use it on your site. This is due to the high risk of the spread of fungi, in particular, phytophthora, across the territory. Therefore, most often it is simply thrown away.

But tomato leaves can be used as effective remedy against pests. This is due to the presence of solanine - the same substance that is present in the composition of the green part of the plant. This poisonous glycoalkaloid has a mild, but very effective insecticidal and fungicidal effect, on the basis of which special solutions. Anyone can do this in their garden.

You can use both dry tops left after harvesting, and fresh. In this case, any part of the plant will come in handy. For example, those left after pinching or plucking unwanted leaves. The main thing is that they do not have signs of fungal and infectious diseases.

Water extract from tomato tops is effective against:

  • Klopov;
  • Spider mite;
  • fires;
  • Moth;
  • Various larvae;
  • Leaf-eating caterpillars and other pests.

To prepare an insecticidal agent from a fresh green mass of a tomato, you need to take about 4 kg of tops and pour it with 10 liters of water. Then leave to infuse for at least 4 hours. Next, the solution is boiled under a closed lid for half an hour.

After that, the natural preparation is almost ready for use - it remains only to strain it, dilute it with water in a ratio of 1: 4 and wait for it to cool.

Preparation of an insecticidal agent from dried tomato tops: finely chop dry raw materials and pour 10 liters of water. Close the lid and leave to simmer over low heat for about 3 hours. If the liquid boils away, then add new water. Then strain and cool to room temperature. It is used by diluting 1 part of the broth to 2-3 parts of water.

It is noteworthy that such products retain their insecticidal properties for up to a year. Thanks to this, they can also be used in winter (for example, for processing indoor plants from pests), and during spring-summer. It is enough just to pack them well in a glass container and store them in a dark, cool place.

It's versatile and environmentally friendly safe drug, which is suitable for spraying any crops: agricultural, fruit and berry, flower and ornamental. To make the solution adhere more strongly to the leaves, 30–50 g of soap are also added to them before use. The effectiveness of such a tool is still somewhat inferior to chemicals, but still remains quite high.

Also, the tops of tomatoes as a fertilizer can be used as an ingredient for grass-based starter cultures, which are then used as an organic top dressing. They provide plants with the nutrition they need. nutrients and elements, simultaneously performing the function of a protective drug. It is only important that the raw materials used do not have signs of disease. Also, tops are sometimes laid out on the ground under gooseberry or currant bushes.

How to use tomato tops on the soil

Tops of other crops

The tops of beets and beans can be used as a fertilizer with high content nitrogen. The complexity of this application lies in the fact that the need for this element in all cultures exists during their period. active growth, while raw materials appear after harvest.

The tops of almost all vegetable crops, corn, legumes, sunflower can be used as a fertilizer as a content compost pit. This allows you to independently create an effective fertilizer that does not contain chemicals on your site.

How to use carrot tops

Nature is conceived in such a way that some plants help others cope with serious ailments caused by improper care, adverse weather conditions or the invasion of voracious insects.

Plants - saviors emit the so-called phytoncides, substances that can destroy microorganisms and uninvited insects. The recipes for their preparation were known to our ancestors, but, unfortunately, not all of them have survived to this day. Among them there are those that gardeners like, because their use is beneficial and has an obvious result. They allow you to get environmentally friendly products, which cannot be said about other plant protection products. One of these effective "vegetarian" recipes is an infusion of tomato leaves and tops.

Let's take a look at the secret of the popularity of this remedy and how to prepare it correctly.

Why tomato infusion is considered a panacea

An infusion of tomato tops is recommended to be used against pests of cabbage leaves and cucumbers - caterpillars, aphids and spider mites. An infusion of leaves, tops and stepchildren scares away even the most formidable potato pest - the Colorado potato beetle.

Our ancestors also knew the peculiarity of tomato tops - it is poisonous, so they treated it very carefully. Scientists, having studied the composition of the tops and tomato leaves, came to the conclusion that they contain the alkaloid solanine, a poisonous organic compound.

Of course, a big role for growth and development horticultural crops(especially tomato, cabbage, cucumber, beet, pepper, etc.) play preventive measures. If they are not carried out on time, most of the crop can be lost. To avoid this, the effective folk remedy- infusion of tomatoes.

Preparing an infusion of tomatoes

Remedy for aphids, Colorado potato beetle and spider mites:

  • We need about two kilograms of chopped green and juicy tops, or leaves and stepsons of tomatoes. It can be poured with a bucket of hot water and let it brew for four hours, or bring to a boil and simmer for half an hour.
  • If you need less volume, try this method. Pass 40 grams of tops or stepchildren of tomato through a meat grinder, fill it with a liter of warm water, after three hours the infusion will be ready.

The resulting infusion must be filtered and thirty grams of soap should be added as an adhesive.

Processing of potato tops, cucumber leaves and cabbage can be repeated every 10 days.

It is known that during the first twelve hours after treatment, 90% of the mites die and crumble under the leaves.

In addition to fighting insects, the infusion of stepchildren and tomato tops does an excellent job with diseases of tomatoes, peppers and potatoes.

  1. The infusion of stepchildren, tops and tomato leaves is not as harmless as it seems at first glance, therefore, before using it better remedy test. Spray part of the bush or a few leaves of the plant and wait a day. If no spots appear on it, the leaves will be as juicy and green as before processing, feel free to start spraying.
  2. It is better to treat plants early in the morning or in the evening when the heat subsides, otherwise the plants may suffer.
  3. Strictly adhere to the recommendations, in this case it is dangerous to overdo it.
  4. Don't Forget Funds personal protection, protect skin covering, eyes and respiratory organs from toxic particles.

Gardeners have long preferred organic plant protection products against pests to pesticides, because they are absolutely safe for the health of people, animals and birds. Plant poisons do not accumulate in the soil, and their toxic properties disappear in the light, therefore, for example, cabbage treated with tomato tincture can be eaten as early as 12 days after treatment.

More details on how to make an infusion from the video:

Tincture of leaves and stepsons of tomato

Tomato tincture is well known to gardeners and gardeners as a means of controlling insects, but not everyone knows it. healing properties. It can significantly improve health, as it helps to stabilize blood pressure, cope with bowel problems and solve other problems.

Stepson tincture is made of two types:

  • in the form of a water decoction;
  • like an alcoholic solution.

Recipe 1.

An aqueous decoction of leaves, tops or stepchildren for rheumatism. To prepare it, you need to take a kilogram of chopped greens and pour three liters of boiling water. Insist for 20 minutes and drink in small sips after meals or add to water for water procedures.

Recipe 2.

Alcohol tincture from the tops. Alcohol tincture can be prepared from dry or fresh leaves or tops. Dry leaves are poured with alcohol in a ratio of 1: 1, in the second case, the proportion is preserved, but the leaves are ground with a blender or meat grinder.

To normalize the pressure, it is taken 10-20 drops three times a day, if there are problems with the stool, the tincture is taken thirty minutes before meals three times a day, 10 drops.

As we can see, not only fresh tomatoes, leaves and tops serve indispensable assistant to humans in the cultivation of crops and are used as medicines.