Why do you need siderates for potatoes
Surely, many gardeners know that almost any agricultural crop must be planted in a new place every year (this is necessary so that the soil does not deplete). 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, then it is problematic for potatoes, because usually most of the garden is allocated for planting it. So how to grow a good potato crop without damaging the land? The correct 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 siderates?
- reduce the likelihood of various diseases in plants;
- saturate the earth with nitrogen, phosphorus and other useful microelements, which in the future will ensure good development of vegetable crops;
- significantly improve the structure of the soil (make it loose);
- displace weeds;
- allow you to get rid of many pests that spoil the potato crop.
What crops can be used as green manure crops?
As we said, siderates are plants that are planted in order to enrich the soil with various nutrients. The following crops perfectly fulfill this function:
- Legumes: lupine, peas, chickpeas, clover, sweet clover and others.
- Cruciferous: mustard, rapeseed, turnip, rape, oil radish other.
- Cereals: rye, wheat, barley, oats, corn and others.
Which culture to choose depends on the summer resident himself. We only add that experienced potato growers most often use legumes.
When to plant 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
For spring sowing of siderates, it is customary to use crops that are resistant to frost. These include oats, mustard, phacelia, etc. Sowing should be done about 3-4 weeks before planting potatoes. When the time comes for planting the root crop, the siderates are cut off and left for another two weeks. After the time has elapsed, the plants are removed with a flat cutter (or other handy tools) and spread over the ground. The mown green manure will function as mulch (protect the soil from drying out, excessive moisture, prevent weeds from sowing).
Sowing in summer
Sowing of green manure in summer occurs only when the soil is severely depleted. In this case, vetch can be preferred in June, radish in July, and mustard in August. By planting green manure in this sequence, you can completely restore the nutrient content of the soil literally in a season.
Sowing in autumn
In this case, the optimal period for sowing green manure is from late August to October. Oats and winter rye are usually chosen at this time of the year. The grown crops are cut and left on the ground. During the winter, the plants will rot and enrich the soil with the necessary elements.After that, you can safely start planting potatoes - no additional fertilizers are required.
Add, in the opinion of many gardeners, the autumn sowing of green manure is an ideal option.
We grow green manure correctly
It is important not only to know what crops can be used as green manure, but also to be able to grow them. This process can be divided into several stages:
- North siderates. Siderata are sown in furrows, the depth of which should be approximately 5-7 cm.
- Growing. Green manures are grown for 5-6 weeks.
- Mowing. Cutting green crops occurs when the plants are approximately 30 to 35 cm tall.
- The last step is to evenly distribute the cut grass over the ground.
When growing siderates, you need to remember that they also need to be alternated, that is, if oats were sown one year, then the next year you need to resort to using some other crop, for example, mustard. Remember not to allow the siderates to overgrow. If they bloom, they will become unusable.
In general, siderates are very important when growing potatoes. 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 root crops.