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Surely, many gardeners know that almost every crop each year should be planted at a new location( it is necessary that the soil is not depleted).Potatoes are no exception. True, to fulfill this requirement you need to show incredible ingenuity. After all, if it is not difficult to find a new territory for a small garden of carrots, it is problematic for potatoes, because usually most of the vegetable garden is allocated for its planting. So how to grow a good potato crop without damage to the ground? The right choice from the current situation is the use of green manure( plants that enrich the soil with useful trace elements).
What is the function of siderats?
In fact, siderats can completely replace the usual fertilizer for potatoes. During the growth period, green plants( they usually include oats, mustard, rape, rye, etc.) do not pick up, but rather, give their nutrients to the soil. In connection with this circumstance, siderats help gardeners to cope with many tasks:
- reduce the likelihood of various diseases in plants;
- saturate the earth with nitrogen, phosphorus and other useful microelements, which further allow vegetable crops to develop well;
- significantly improve the soil structure( make it loose);
- squeeze weeds;
- can get rid of many pests that spoil the crop of potatoes.
What cultures can be used as green manure?
As we have said, siderats are plants that are planted in order to enrich the soil with various nutrients. The following crops perform this function perfectly:
- Legumes: lupine, pea, chickpea, clover, sweet clover and others.
- Cruciferous flowers: mustard, canola, turnip, colza, oil radish and others.
- Cereals: rye, wheat, barley, oats, corn and others.
On which culture to stop the choice depends on the gardener himself. We add only that experienced gardeners most often use legumes for potatoes.
When to land a green manure?
Siderata can be sown in spring, summer and autumn. Each option differs from each other in a number of nuances and certain subtleties. Now we will tell about them.
Sowing in spring
It is common to use crops that are resistant to frost for spring planting of siderats. These include oats, mustard, phacelia, and others. Sowing should be done about 3-4 weeks before planting potatoes. When the time comes for disembarkation of the root, the siderats are cut and left for another two weeks. After the time, the plants are removed using a flat cutter( or other handy tools) and spread on the ground. The sloped siderats will perform the function of mulch( protect the soil from drying out, excessive moisture, do not let the weed sow).
Sowing in the summer
Sowing the green manure in the summer occurs only when the soil is very depleted. In this case, in June, you can give preference to vetch, in July radish, and in August mustard. Having dropped the siderates in this sequence, you can literally restore the nutritional value of the soil in just one season.
Sowing in the fall
In this case, the optimal period for planting siderats is from the end of August to October. At this time of the year, oats and winter rye are usually stopped. Grown up crops are cut and left on the ground. Over the winter, the plants will rot and enrich the soil with essential elements. After that, you can safely start planting potatoes - no additional fertilizer is required.
Add, according to many gardeners, autumn sowing of sideratov - ideal.
Properly growing siderats
It is important not only to know which crops can be used as green manures, but also to be able to grow them. This process can be divided into several stages:
- Sev sideratov. Siderats are sown in furrows, the depth of which should be approximately 5-7 cm.
- Growing. Grow siderorates for 5-6 weeks.
- Beveling. Cutting of green crops occurs when the plants reach a height of about 30-35 cm.
- The last stage is the uniform distribution of the cut grass on the ground.
When growing siderats one should remember that they should also be alternated, that is, if oats were sown for one year, then in another one one should resort to using some other culture, for example, mustard. Remember that you should not allow siderats to outgrow. If they bloom, they will become unusable.
In general, the green manures when growing potatoes are very important. This is especially true when this crop is cultivated in large areas. If all of the above actions are performed correctly, the yield of potatoes from 1 hectare will increase significantly. In addition, you can forget about the pests that affect the roots.
