Determination of nitrates in cucumbers

Nitrates in cucumbers are a fairly common occurrence. No one is surprised by the presence of salts of nitric acid (nitrates), especially in the early fruits with which the markets are full. It is impossible to say with certainty that such cucumbers cannot grow on your site either.

Determination of nitrates in cucumbers

Nitrates enter plants not only from fertilizers, but also from the soil. Not harming the fruits themselves, nitrates (already in the form of nitrites) do harm directly to the consumer’s body.

Product Selection

Each of us was faced with buying cucumbers in the market or in the supermarket, without thinking about whether we choose good vegetables. The first signs of the naturalness of cucumbers are their shape, smell, skin color and spikes.

Perfectly shaped, resilient and with a deep-green skinned fruit – only a hoax for our eyes. In fact, this is the first sign that they have a huge amount of chemistry. On such such fruits, most likely, various spots and signs of decay will soon appear.

These fruits have far from perfect shape, but at the same time they smell very naturally. On the skin of such fruits, the color of which should have a grassy hue, there should not be very rough thorns.

Decreased nitrate levels in cucumbers

The nitric acid salt content for cucumbers on open ground is 150 mg per 1 kg. For fruits grown in greenhouse conditions, this norm is much higher – 400 mg per 1 kg.

It is almost impossible to completely avoid the use of chemistry, but it is quite possible to reduce it if you follow simple rules and tips.

• Thoroughly wash the vegetables and, preferably, peel them and remove the place of attachment to the stem, as it contains the most harmful substances.
• When growing at home, make sure that the soil there was a sufficient amount of potassium, which prevents the accumulation of salt in the fruits nitric acid.
• Soaking the fruit for 10 minutes in cold water also reduces nitrate levels well, since they tend to dissolve.

Using a nitrate meter

The nitrate level can be determined

Nitrate meter ( tester) – an indispensable thing in the household, although quite expensive. It will make it possible to determine not only the presence of nitrates in the fruits, but also their quantity.

This device is quite simple to use: you need to stick it in the pulp, preferably closer to the skin, and all indicators will be recorded and displayed .It must be remembered that the norm that is safe for health is 5 mg per 1 kilogram of weight.

Test strips

Using this method of determining the presence of chemistry in fruits is quite a budget option. Strips can be purchased at the pharmacy and can be tested at home. To do this, cut the cucumber into two parts and attach a strip to one of them.

The amount of chemistry will determine the degree of blueing of the dough strip. The brighter the color, the greater the number of substances.

Liquid reagent (diphenylamine)

The verification method is also based on obtaining more or less saturated blue color, which will help determine the level of content chemistry in the fruits.

To do this, use a solution of hydrochloric acid, which is dripped onto a section of the fetus and get an instant result. You can buy diphenylamine in almost any pharmacy, and besides, it is completely inexpensive.

Conclusion

To know how to determine the amount of nitrates in cucumbers, or other vegetables and fruits, it is necessary for every person who cares at least a little about their health. Unfortunately, finding fruits without chemistry, especially among the early varieties, is almost impossible. But using some tricks will help you avoid getting an excessive amount of harmful substances into your body.

There are also a variety of methods for checking the presence of chemistry in the fruits: from budget to fairly expensive, among which everyone can find a suitable option for themselves and preserve their health.