Are you avid fan of baking soda? We understand you, it’s a “miraculous” powder that we all must have at home! Both versatile and multifunctional, this natural product is popular not only in cooking to spice up our cakes, in the household world to simplify an infinite number of tasks and even in the world of cosmetics for our skin and hair care. But, what many people don’t know is that baking soda also works wonders in the garden. Quickly find out why you need to have some on hand to sprinkle your tomato crops.
Do you grow fruits and vegetables in your garden? Very good idea ! But if you want to take good care of it and have a fruitful harvest, you can count on the enriching properties of baking soda. To keep your tomatoes beautiful, healthy and stored for longer, this is the ideal ingredient you need. As a bonus, as it is economical and ecological, it is a perfect alternative to chemical substances purchased in nurseries or supermarkets.
Why is baking soda beneficial for growing tomatoes?
Sprinkling garden tomatoes with baking soda helps crops fight leaf diseases. By mixing this white powder with water, you obtain a solution that you can apply throughout the vegetation period of the plants, insisting well during the summer if there are rainy periods.
This solution directly prevents and combats certain very common tomato diseases, notably downy mildew or powdery mildew which are extremely harmful in market garden crops. You should know that the main pathologies that affect this fruit arise from bacteria, viruses and fungal infections. Some of them can cause violent diseases that dangerously damage the inside of tomatoes, especially during the rainy season, both in the garden and in the solarium. Powdery mildew is manifested by the appearance of yellow spots on the leaves and by a fine white powder which signals the rapid formation of mold on the plants.
NB : if you don’t have baking soda, you can replace it with a solution of baking powder mixed with water.
How to use baking soda for a successful tomato harvest?
So, baking soda remains a beneficial solution for tomato crops. However, to better protect the plant leaves, you can also add milk. Some gardeners even add vegetable oil to make a thicker, stickier solution.
Here are two recipes using baking soda to take care of your tomato crops:
Bicarbonate and milk
- Mix one teaspoon of baking soda in 250 ml of water and 250 ml of milk in one liter of water. Then, combine all the ingredients well before applying this mixture to your plants.
Bicarbonate and water
- Mix eight teaspoons of baking soda with seven liters of water and six tablespoons of vegetable oil. All ingredients must be thoroughly mixed to obtain a homogeneous consistency before application.
How to sprinkle tomato crops with baking soda?
The mixture is placed in a spray bottle and applied to the leaves of the tomatoes, paying particular attention to those that have already been affected by powdery mildew. Also apply it to the underside of the leaves. It is important to defoliate the plants before application, that is, remove all leaves affected by the disease. After treatment, the foliage will gradually come back to life.
Warning: Be very careful because these treatments are powerful and can damage crops. It is recommended to test the concentration of the solution on one or two leaves before applying it to all plants.
