2024 Author: Gavin MacAdam | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-16 13:38
Green manure plants are very valuable and incredibly useful garden helpers, allowing summer residents not only to noticeably increase yields, but also to make the soil more fertile, and also to abandon the use of a wide variety of chemical fertilizers. As a rule, siderates are sown in the garden in early spring, and after some time their juicy green tops are plowed into the ground, as a result of which the soil begins to be saturated with organic matter, and the yield becomes more impressive. What green manures are best suited for planting in the garden, and what kind of useful properties can they boast of?
Clover
This perennial green manure is endowed with a huge number of useful properties - it not only helps to saturate the soil with nitrogen, but also contributes to its strengthening in every possible way. And the hay from this honey plant is excellently fed to livestock. In gardens, clover is usually planted in the shade between trees, but in the beds it is best to plant it where it is not planned to grow anything for a couple of years - this will allow the soil to properly rest and gain new strength. Mowing the clover is recommended before the nitrogen-rich buds bloom - most often in May. And already in a couple of weeks after the green clover mass is embedded in the ground, you can safely plant vegetable seedlings in this area!
Phacelia annual
A well-developed root system of this plant contributes to an almost ideal loosening of the soil, which can significantly increase its air permeability. The annual phacelia can grow on absolutely any soil, while it is not at all afraid of cold weather and does not need a lot of light. Such green manure will be an excellent predecessor for the vast majority of vegetable crops! Phacelia nectar attracts beneficial insects to the site, destroying leaf rollers, apple flower beetles and moths. The area with phacelia and wireworms with locusts will quickly leave, and this amazing plant also helps to destroy nematodes!
Mustard white
This green manure is extremely important for a full-fledged crop rotation, because its roots are endowed with the ability to produce organic acids, which begin to release difficultly soluble phosphates after they enter the soil. This allows not only to replenish potassium reserves in the soil, but also to provide the crops grown with unhindered access to various difficult-to-extract useful elements. And white mustard also boasts a unique ability to drive the voracious wireworm out of the beds and effectively suppress the development of weeds - it is these properties that are due to the fact that it is often planted in front of potatoes (the yield of potatoes planted after white mustard is really impressive!).
Lupine
It not only blooms amazingly, but also boasts the ability to accumulate nitrogen in the soil. Most often, lupine is planted in poor soils (it is especially suitable for sandy soils), and, as a rule, this is done with the onset of early spring. Lupine is an excellent precursor for both strawberries and a variety of other nitrogen-hungry crops. However, it is quite permissible to plant this bright green manure in mid-August - this is usually done in areas from which cabbage and potatoes have literally just been harvested.
Rape
This is such a useful and valuable melliferous plant that people have even adapted to produce biodiesel fuel from its seeds! Rape will be no less good in the role of green manure: it perfectly inhibits weeds, provides the beds with excellent protection from gluttonous pests and all kinds of ailments, and also perfectly helps to saturate the soil with phosphorus and sulfur. It is especially useful to plant rapeseed in front of eggplants, peppers and tomatoes. The good news is that there are two types of rapeseed - spring and winter (the second can be safely planted in August).
Alfalfa
This most valuable forage crop can grow in one area for several years, and its roots reaching three meters in length perfectly loosen the soil. Alfalfa also helps to quickly get rid of numerous weeds, scare off nematodes, and also increase the level of both nitrogen and phosphorus in the soil. It is perfect for peppers with potatoes, as well as for eggplants with tomatoes or various berries (strawberries with strawberries and cherries with gooseberries).
What green manure do you prefer to plant?
Recommended:
Which Stove Is Suitable For A Country House
A country house is simply unthinkable without a good stove. And if it is planned to live in it throughout the year, then even more so without a stove. The stove in the country house is not only a cozy decor element, but also performs a heating function. In short, it organically combines aesthetic appeal with practical functions. Stoves of various types help to heat the country house, but most often these are still wood stoves. The most common of these are Russian and Go
Green Crops In The Garden. Part 3
A vicious weed or forage plant can take a worthy niche in the diet if you get acquainted with their nutritional and medicinal qualities. Having enriched your table, they will not require large financial investments, but at the same time they will provide an invaluable service to the well-coordinated work of all bodies
What Fertilizers Are Suitable For Gooseberries?
Despite the fact that these berry bushes are very unpretentious, they still require proper care and regular fertilization. Accordingly, in order to become the happy owner of a rich gooseberry harvest, it is important to learn how to fertilize it correctly! Only in this case will it actively bear fruit for several decades, giving eight to ten kilograms of juicy berries from each bush
What Roses Are Suitable For Outdoor Use?
Bright fragrant roses by their very appearance can transform any area. But which variety should you choose? Indeed, today in the world there are more than three hundred types of roses and about 10 thousand varieties. Let's take a closer look at their classification, features and advantages
What Flowers Are Suitable For Winter Sowing?
The warm, sunny summer is left behind again, and now it is time to think about winter crops. But before winter they plant not only greens or vegetables, but also some representatives of the amazing world of flowers! Of course, not all flowers are suitable for winter crops, however, there are also not so few options suitable for these purposes. So what kind of flowers can you try to plant before winter?