To reap a rich harvest, the gardener must pay attention not only to plant care and disease prevention, but also to the composition of the soil. If crops, despite competent agricultural practices, begin to turn yellow and weaken, the reason is most likely due to inappropriate soil acidity. Before starting gardening work, you need to find out which cultivated plants love acidic soil, and which, on the contrary, prefer alkaline soil.
How to find out if the soil is acidic on a site
The acidity of the soil in a personal plot depends on the amount of free hydrogen ions accumulated in the soil. Most cultivated and ornamental plants do not like too acidic soil and do not develop well in it. Therefore, before sowing seeds or planting seedlings, it is necessary to conduct a soil analysis; for this it is not necessary to go to the laboratory; there are methods that can be used at home.
How to determine that the soil on a site is acidic:
- Visual inspection. The simplest method for determining acidity, in which it is enough to take a close look at the soil. The copper-red hue of the soil indicates a high degree of soil acidification.
- Weeds. Certain weeds prefer high acidity, so conclusions can be drawn based on their presence on the site. For example, these are plants such as pike, horsetail, nettle, buttercup and sorrel.
- Litmus strip. Such strips are purchased in garden supply stores; they give a high reliability result. To carry out the analysis, you need to take 20 grams of soil from a depth of 25 cm and pour it into a fabric bag. Immerse the sample in distilled water for 10 minutes. After this time, lower the strip into the solution and remove it after 2 seconds. Using a special scale you can determine the degree of acidity of the soil.
- Table vinegar. Take some soil taken from a depth of 20 cm and water it with ordinary table vinegar. If bubbles or hissing appears on the ground after exposure to vinegar, this means that the soil in the area is neutral or alkaline. If no changes are observed, the soil is acidic.
- Tea brewing. Place a pinch of soil from the area in a glass of a drink brewed from whole leaves and stir.If the liquid becomes lighter, this means that the soil in the garden is acidic. The absence of changes in the color of the drink indicates an alkaline or neutral reaction.
Any available method has a small degree of error and depends on the correctness of the procedure; accurate results can only be obtained in laboratory conditions.
Flowers that love acidic soil
Ornamental plants that bloom throughout the summer also have their own requirements for the soil on which they are grown. Of the crops that prefer acidic soil, it is worth highlighting the following varieties.
Lupine
For the full growth of these flowers, soil with weak acidity is ideal. At elevated rates, the soil must be limed by adding 5 kg of dolomite or lime flour per square meter of land.
Hydrangea
In slightly acidic soil, varieties of hydrangea such as tree, paniculate and ashy develop well. But for large-leaved species, soil with a pH of 4 is ideal.
Peonies
For the full development of these flowers, soil with a pH of 6.0-7.0 is suitable. In addition, plants prefer moist soil, and in this case they delight with lush flowering. You should not use peat as a fertilizer, so as not to reduce the acidity of the soil.
Garden poppy
The first thing you should pay attention to when planting garden poppies is the depth of groundwater. If they are too close to the surface of the earth, the plant will die fairly quickly from root rot. Increased acidity does not prevent the ornamental plant from developing, but care must be taken to timely apply fertilizers, to which the crop responds well.
Nasturtiums
Nasturtiums are planted in early June, and throughout the summer the crop pleases the eye with rich green foliage and beautiful buds. To provide the plant with suitable conditions, it is necessary to choose a place that receives sunlight for most of the day, with slightly acidic and fertile soil.
Roses
The choice of soil for planting roses must be approached responsibly; these flowers develop well and delight with large buds only in soil with indicators from 6 to 6.5. Therefore, before planting, be sure to carry out a test using a litmus strip. If the indicators do not meet the recommended values, substances are added to deoxidize the soil.
Sunflower
This ornamental plant not only serves as a decoration for a personal plot, but also produces a harvest of fragrant and tasty seeds. The culture prefers moist and slightly acidic soil with clay. On saline soils the plant develops poorly and does not form large flowers.
Purslane ground cover
Over the course of a season, the bright sunny inflorescences of the ground cover purslane can cover the entire accessible territory and become a decoration of the site. However, for this it is necessary to provide the plant with suitable conditions - a sunny open area, slightly acidic soil and minimal soil moisture. When water stagnates, the crop begins to die.
Other
Of other flowers that prefer acidic soil, it is worth noting the following:
- Begonia, tradescantia and azalea grow well in slightly acidic soil.
- In soils with an average indicator, camellia and monstera take root.
- Cornflower, magnolia, fern and forget-me-not love increased acidity.
Bushes and trees
Shrubs and fruit trees also make their own demands on soil acidity, and under unsuitable conditions they reduce the volume of flowering and yield.
The list of crops that grow well in highly acidic soil includes:
- Fruits - raspberries, Japanese quince, blueberries, apple trees, dogwoods.
- Decorative - juniper, buckthorn, rhododendron, birch, maple and acacia.
Indicators should be between 5.5 and 6.5. If you plant these crops on alkaline or neutral soil, they will develop slowly and will not please you with a rich harvest and decorative appearance.
List of vegetables
Most vegetable bushes develop poorly in acidic soil and die very quickly under the influence of pathogens. When planning to plant such crops in the garden, they must first carry out an analysis and determine the pH of the substrate.
There are several groups of vegetable plants, representatives of each of them react in their own way to the quality of the soil:
- Spicy greens and potatoes develop and bear fruit ideally in soils with high acidity.
- Crops that require average indicators are pumpkin and carrots, tomatoes and radishes.
- They prefer soil with a slightly acidic reaction: melon, all legumes and eggplants.
- Crops such as cabbage and beets absolutely cannot tolerate this soil composition.
