Siderata For Potatoes - Are They Needed And Why?

2024 Author: Gavin MacAdam | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-16 13:38

Without a doubt, potatoes are the most common crop in any summer cottage. And every summer resident knows very well that in order to avoid depletion of the soil, almost all crops, ideally, should be planted in a new place every year! Potatoes are also no exception, but it is extremely problematic for many to fulfill the requirement of planting them annually in new places - if a couple of cucumber beds are always found in any corner of the site, then find a new impressive area for potatoes even a good half of the site) is not always possible. Nevertheless, there is a way out of this situation - in order to grow a good harvest of "second bread" and at the same time prevent depletion of the soil, it will not hurt to resort to the help of green manure

What are siderates for?

Green plants, or siderates (it is customary to include rye, rapeseed, as well as mustard with oats, etc.) are endowed with a truly unique ability to almost completely replace the most common fertilizers, because during their growth these helper plants do not take nutrients from soil, and generously give her theirs! That is, in fact, green manures are planted to enrich the soil with a wide variety of nutrient compounds!

Regular use of green manure on the site helps to significantly improve the soil structure, making it looser, as well as saturate the soil with phosphorus, nitrogen and a number of other, equally useful microelements, which subsequently make it possible to ensure the full development of the crops grown. But that's not all: among other things, green manures perfectly cope with the difficult task of displacing weeds from the site, and also significantly reduce the likelihood of all kinds of ailments and allow you to get rid of a huge number of pests that damage the potato crop!

What plants are suitable for use as green manure?

The best siderates are cereals (corn with oats, barley, as well as wheat with rye), cruciferous (rape, turnip, rapeseed, oil radish, mustard, etc.) and legumes (sweet clover, clover, chickpeas with peas, lupine, etc.) etc.) culture. What kind of culture to choose - everyone decides for himself, however, it is worth noting that for potato plantings, experienced summer residents most often make a choice in favor of legumes.

When are siderates planted?

It is perfectly acceptable to plant them both in spring and summer, and even in autumn. For spring sowing, frost-resistant crops (phacelia, mustard, oats, etc.) are usually selected and sown approximately three to four weeks before planting the potatoes. And as soon as the time comes for planting potatoes, all siderates are cut off, but they are not removed, but left for another two weeks. Only after this time, with the help of a flat cutter, they get rid of plant residues and distribute them over the soil - the green manures cut in this way are an excellent mulch that will not only prevent the spread of weeds, but also provide the soil with reliable protection from excessive waterlogging or drying out.

In summer, green manure is usually planted only if the soil is too depleted. In June, it is best to plant vetch, radish is suitable for July planting, and with the onset of August, you can safely plant mustard. If you plant green manure in exactly this sequence, it will be possible to completely restore the lost nutrient content of the soil in just one single season!

As for the autumn sowing of green manure, it usually falls on the period from the end of August to October. The most suitable crops for sowing in this case will be oats and winter rye. When they grow noticeably, they are cut off and also left on the soil surface - rotting during the winter, they will enrich the soil with nutrient compounds vital for it, and then when planting potatoes it will be quite possible to do without fertilizers at all! By the way, many seasoned summer residents prefer the autumn sowing of green manure!

How to grow green manure correctly?

It is necessary to sow green manures in grooves with a depth of five to seven centimeters, and they are grown, as a rule, for five to six weeks. As for the mowing of siderates, this event in most cases begins only when their height reaches thirty to thirty-five centimeters. And only then the mown vegetation is spread over the soil surface. But the overgrowth of green manure is categorically not allowed - blooming green manure almost completely loses its usefulness!

And one more important nuance - just as in the case of garden crops, green manures should also be alternated: if oats were sown on the site in one year, then in the second year some other crop should be planted in the same place (mustard and etc.