Green manure is a green fertilizer. Green manure

"Green manure" refers to green manure plants, which are temporarily grown in open, unoccupied areas of soil or as an adjacent crop. The functions of siderats are to improve the soil structure, prevent the leaching and erosion of nutrients from it, suppress the growth of weeds, and also enrich the soil with nitrogen. The process of sowing, growing and preserving in the soil "green fertilizer" is called green manure.

One of the important rules organic farming - should not remain unused and open. For a long time (for weeks or longer), open areas of soil are subject to a significant deterioration in structure and depletion. The ground in the garden, left aimlessly open, hardens over time, sticks together and becomes covered with a dense crust, through which moisture hardly penetrates deep into. The organic composition is deteriorating, nutrients are washed out and weathered. In the complete absence of control and competition begins a massive dominance of weeds, which also use nutrients from the soil, without giving her anything in return. Subsequently, the gardener added work, because now it will take a few weeding, digging and fertilizing to make the site again suitable for use. Obviously, it was better to initially take care that the soil did not remain open.

Here gardening comes to the aid of the gardener - a technology known to farmers from deep antiquity. According to the results of their impact on the soil, green manure crops can compete with manure, so they are simply indispensable for those farmers who fundamentally do not want to use animal waste for fertilizing vegetables and fruits.

How do siderats work

Sideral crops develop dense, rapidly closing foliage that suppresses weed growth. Some of them (for example, rye) have an interesting feature to delay the germination of other seeds and, thus, suspend the process of the emergence of new weeds for several weeks. The siderates have a well-developed and strongly branched root system, which improves the structure and permeability of the soil: penetrating deep inside, it loosens and enriches heavy clay soils with air and supports light, sandy soil from disintegration. Developed roots also help deliver nutrients from the deeper layers of the soil upward, closer to the roots of edible or ornamental crops, between which they grow green fertilizer. Siderates have the peculiarity of enhancing the effect of other fertilizers and accelerating microbiological processes in the soil.

Siderats planted among vegetable crops, partially take over the impact of garden pests, and partly discourage them from planting, simply confusing. At the same time, bright and nectar-full flowers of most sideral crops — magnificent honey plants — are capable of attracting bees and bumblebees, which also pollinate fruits and vegetables growing in the neighborhood, to be planted. The most effective "green fertilizer" are plants from the legume family. Special bacteria that live in their root growths have the ability to accumulate nitrogen, which they receive directly from the air and deposit in the soil.

Where and when is green fertilizer applied?

Between other edible or ornamental plants, in voids
As an adjacent early ripening crop among long-ripened (for example, parsnip, celery root, leek, etc.).
Between harvesting old crops and new plantings.
In the off-season, at the end of the summer or in autumn in the winter
For the rest of the soil from intensive use for a whole year

Selection of sideral cultures

The choice of a particular crop for planting as a “green fertilizer” depends on factors such as the composition and structure of the soil in your garden, how long you plan to use siderat, etc. If you use rotation (alternation) of vegetable crops, then each season is next with vegetables, sow siderata from the same family. Thus, the "green fertilizer" will partially take over the possible attacks of harmful microorganisms and insects that affect this family, and will save your vegetables from them. The choice of suitable green manures also depends on whether there is a need to enrich the soil with nitrogen at the given moment. The table below provides more detailed information about the various sideratah and their features.

Sidereal culture	Preferred soil type	Nitrogen retention	Vegetation cycle / planting time
Alfalfa blue (Medicago sativa)	In addition to sour and wet	Yes	By year
Alfalfa choke (Medicago lupilina)	In addition to sour	Yes	From 3 months
Horse beans (Vicia faba)	Heavy	Yes	Before winter
Vika, peas planting (Vicia sativa)	Besides sour and dry	Yes	2-3 months
Red clover (Trifolium incarnatum)	Lungs	Yes	2-3 months before winter
Meadow clover (Trifolium pratense)	Rich loam	Yes	3-18 months
Fenugreek hay, greek hay (Trigonella foenum-graecum)	Moisture permeable	Yes	2-3 months
Lupine narrow-leaved and other species (Lupinus angustifolius)	Light sour wet	Yes	2-4 months
White clover (Melilotus albus)	Any, incl. poor	Not	Before winter
Sandy Esparcet (Onobrychis arenaria)	Any, incl. poor	Yes	By year
Rank sown (Lathyrus sativus)		Yes	2-4 months
Horned horse * (Lotus corniculatus)	Any	Yes	By year
Seradella sowing campaign (Ornythopus sativus)	Any wet	Yes	2-4 months
Buckwheat edible (Fagopyrum esculentum)	Any, incl. poor	Not	1-3 months
Phacelia pizhmolistnaya (Phacelia tanacetifolia)	Any	Not	1-3 months
Rye sowing ** (Secale cereale)	Any	Not	Before winter
White mustard (Sinapis alba)	Any, incl. poor	Not	1-2 months
Comfrey (Symphytum)	Any	Not	By year
Radish oilseed (Raphanus sativus)	Heavy clay	Not	2-3 months
Rape (Brassica napus)	Heavy clay	Not	Before winter

* N only and empty land

** Only after the emergence of the main culture

Recently, very decorative cultivars of meadow and red clover have appeared, which, in addition to being useful as a green manure, will serve as an excellent decoration of the garden. With modern garden fashions, modest meadow, field and forest plants, ornamental clovers will perfectly fit into the natural design.

Use of "green fertilizer"

When you are ready to use the empty plot of land again, slightly dig up or plow through the soil along with the green manure to a depth of 15 cm. The “Green Fertilizer” will be slightly crushed and remain in the soil or on its surface. Decomposing faster than conventional crops, green manure serves as an additional source of humus, fertilizer, moisture, and baking powder for the soil.

If you grow vegetables on elevated ridges uninterruptedly, then simply cut or tear green manure and leave them here, covered with another layer of mulch.

You can further increase the efficiency of the use of green manure crops. In areas where the "green manure" will spend several months or even a year, make a few haircuts. The green manure will quickly grow back, and you will be in the hands of an excellent natural fertilizer that can be buried in the soil or spread on the surface in another place, or added to garden compost. The role of green manure crops in compost cannot be overestimated: because of the high nitrogen content, they are accelerators of the composting process, increase the content of beneficial substances and improve the structure of the finished compost.

The use of "green fertilizer" is an excellent natural, ecological method of improving the quality of the soil and increasing the yield of any crops with low cost and relatively low labor costs. Valuable tool in the organic gardener's arsenal!

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In order for the soil to be fertile, it should be “fed” with organic matter, i.e. for it, we must grow special plants, leave plant residues or apply organic fertilizers. The quality of soil fertility depends on the energy of the buried organic matter.

Experienced agronomists understand this pattern well, and try not to leave the field without "food." The organics buried in the soil will be processed by microorganisms, and in subsequent years its energy will be used by new plants. Thus, the soil is a kind of energy depot for future harvest.

In agronomic practice, sidereal plants are grown specifically for “feeding” the soil. They are sown in any free intervals of the growing season, when the site does not grow the main crops.

Not a single day the soil should not “walk” without plants: on a bare bed, humus burns out in the sun. To protect against this adverse phenomenon, experienced gardeners use post-harvest, plant and crop crops of siderats.

Siderats, especially perennial (clover, alfalfa, sylphs), are sometimes grown in a separate section, where they are mown, ground, and then delivered to the desired area. So it is recommended to use and mowed lawn grass - to bring in the garden and prikopat, resulting in green fertilizer.

Green fertilizers include any fresh grass (it may be young shoots and leaves after cutting shrubs), mowed and transferred to a bed. Green manures also belong to green fertilizers, but they are specially sown and dug up at a certain stage of development at the place of their growth.

If we compare the siderates with prikopannoy green mass and manure, then the effect of them is the highest, as there is an additional beneficial effect of the root system.

Pros and cons of sideratov

Growing any culture has its pros and cons. This applies to green fertilizers in general and sideratov especially. TO positive properties should include such:

the soil becomes a habitat for beneficial microorganisms and earthworms that feed on plant debris;
the permanent shelter of the soil surface protects it from degradation;
protection from erosion, especially under perennial plants and on slopes;
rye and other plants left for winter contribute to snow retention;
many siderats (mustard, oats, annual ryegrass, alfalfa, clover) have a deep root system that extracts calcium, phosphorus, magnesium, and other macro- and microelements from the depths into the upper soil layers;
regulate the ratio of nutrients, and legumes also enrich the soil with nitrogen;
when rotting green fertilizers, a large amount of carbon dioxide is formed, which vegetable plants use for photosynthesis;
green manure are competitors for weeds that do not withstand their shading and allopathic influence (i.e. do not withstand the effect of chemical excreta);
some plants (mustard, radish, tagges) regulate the number of nematodes;
eventually fertility is restored and increased;
practically do not require chemical protection from diseases and pests (only in very hot and dry weather, cruciferous flea attacks on the seedlings of mustard and radish).

Naturally, in the long-term work with green mans, some of their negative properties, namely:

some sidereal plants have common pests and pathogens. This is especially true for cabbage plants (for example, cruciferous flea, kila, bacteriosis), legumes (weevil, aphid) and oats (nematode species common with root crops);
when late with embedment into the soil, some siderats have time to seed and clog the bed;
in case of delay with the incorporation of green mass and its lignification (for example, rye left before flowering), additional nitrogen fertilizers are required;
there are no universal siderates with respect to acidity and grain-size (sandy or clayey) soil composition;
there are no universal siderants for planting, care and planting dates in the soil;
green manure is also a plant and requires watering and additional fertilization;
additional costs for soil preparation, purchase of seeds and their incorporation into the soil;
the visible positive effect does not manifest itself explicitly, and often stretches over several years.

General secrets of sideral technology

The use of green manures in the garden has common agrotechnical principles, regardless of the type of plants and soil. It should be noted that the technological methods recommended in the scientific and industrial literature for use in large farms are not always suitable for the gardener and gardener.

The use of siderats should begin with careful planning of the alternation of vegetable plants in the garden, so that after digging them up to the next sowing, 2-3 weeks remain. If the weather is dry, then watering is done before sowing, and after sowing the soil is rolled.

The seeding rates are regulated according to this principle: if the green mans are planned to be dug up at a younger age, then the seeding rate should be higher. Different sowing methods are used: manually and manually with a seeder, in rows or randomly. Tagetes appropriate to grow seedlings.

Perennial sidereal plants (alfalfa, clover, sweet clover, sylphs) should be grown for green fertilizers in perennial crops, and the green mass should be transferred to the bed, but in this case the effect of additional loosening of the upper layer of soil and nutrients from the lower soil layers is excluded .

Perennials become siderats in the last year after regrowth afterwards. Sideral plants do not require special seed preparation, except for treatment with legume nitragin. The rotting of the green mass is facilitated by its processing before the preparations of beneficial microorganisms (for example, Baikal EM).

Siderats do not require chemical protection against pathogens of diseases and pests, except cruciferous flea, against which effective watering and spraying with cold water are effective. The addition of sideratov carried out manually or motoblock.

If the plants are not high, it is convenient to work manually with forks. Tall plants first bend, chop and drop with a sharp shovel. When using a tiller, it is advisable that tall plants be first rolled up.

Bean Siderats

A very valuable group of sideratov, which gives a large green mass and due to nodule bacteria absorbs atmospheric nitrogen. This is a large group of plants differing in biological features.

Among them are annuals and perennials, demanding to heat and cold-resistant, with a different range of demands on the acidity of the soil and its moisture. Before sowing, the seeds of legumes should preferably be treated with bacterial preparations of nodule bacteria, which are developed for each species.

Bean siderata do not use before growing vegetable varieties of peas, beans, cowpea, tetragon, and soybeans and other legumes.

Lupine . For sideratov use different annual types of lupine: narrow-leaved, or blue, yellow and white. For green fertilizers, you can use and young plants of perennial lupine.

Different species of lupine exhibit different heat requirements: the most demanding are white, and the least narrow-leaved. They withstand frosts down to minus 5-6 ° С, and the perennial winters well. All species are demanding of moisture and easily tolerate high acidity of the soil, but react poorly to salinization, high calcium content and waterlogging.

The method of sowing is narrow. Seeding rate: yellow up to 1.75 kg / 100 m2, narrow-leaved - up to 2.0, and white - up to 2.3 kg / 100 m2. Lupins belong to leguminous plants that carry cotyledons to the soil surface, and therefore the seeding depth, despite their fineness, should be up to 5 cm. When deeper seedling shoots are thinned.

It is added in the period of the start of the formation of beans. Green mass yield up to 3-4 kg / m2.

Peas . Annual For sideratov use varieties of grain and fodder, or pelyushki. Excellent green fertilizer are post-harvest residues of vegetable and sugar varieties. If the grain, vegetable and sugar peas have white flowers, the pelyushka - red-purple flowers and speckled angular seeds.

Pea - a plant cold-resistant with a short growing season. Demanding on moisture, but does not tolerate waterlogging and acidic soil. In the initial phase of development is weakly competitive with weeds.

Sown from early spring to early September. The sowing method is narrow, with a width of between rows of 15 cm. Sometimes it is sown together with oats, barley or mustard. The seeding rate in clean sowing is up to 3 kg / 100 m2. The depth of seeding is 6-7 cm, and on dry soils it can withstand up to 8-9 cm.

The beans are added to the mass formation phase or after harvesting the vegetable shovel and sugar varieties. The yield of green mass - up to 2 kg / m2, and tall varieties - even up to 3 kg / m2.

Broad bean. Annual For sideratov use small-seed feed varieties. The green mass of vegetable varieties with large seeds is also used in the same way, i.e. crushed and added dropwise only after harvesting the shovels.

Beans are cold-resistant and moisture-demanding plants. Reacts negatively to soil acidity Sowing dates - from early spring to early September. The sowing method is wide-row - up to 40-45 cm. The seeding depth is 6-8 cm. The seeding rate strongly depends on the seed size, therefore 40-50 pieces are sown. / m2.

Care consists in loosening between rows and watering. Close up in the soil after the formation of beans on the first tier. The yield of green mass is up to 3-4 kg / m2. In addition to clean crops, it is excellent in mixed crops with peas, vetch and corn.

Vegetable beans . Demanding to heat and moisture annual plant. As sideratov usually use the green mass of plants after harvesting beans on a shovel. In the gardens they grow beans on a spatula, after harvesting which the green mass is crushed and added dropwise. The yield of green mass - up to 1.5 kg / m2.

Vigna or cowpea. For sideratov use grain varieties with small seeds. Vegetable varieties are also used after harvesting beans shovels. Demanding to heat. Drought-resistant annual, which allows it to successfully use the southern horticulture. Methods of growing cowpea, like a bean. Sown from early May to mid-July. The seeding rate is up to 0.5 kg / 100 m2. The yield of green mass - up to 2 kg / m2.

Vika Spring and winter or shaggy. In order to enrich the cereal sideratov (barley, oats and rye) experienced gardeners with them always sow vetch. Spring vetch is sown from early spring to the end of August, and the winter vetch together with winter rye. Vico-oatmeal mixture is added at the beginning of flowering. On the roots of the wiki, nodule bacteria develop excellently and enrich the soil with nitrogen.

Depending on the availability of seeds, different ratios of seeding rates are selected. Usually, 1 kg of spring wiki and 0.5 kg of oats are used per 100 m2. Excellent yields, up to 5 kg / m2, are provided by the wico-oat-ryegrass sidereal mixture (1.4 kg of wiki, 0.7 kg of oats and 0.3 kg of ryegrass per year per 100 m2).

The peculiarities of joint planting of wiki of winter and rye include a certain discrepancy between the phases of development of these plants. Therefore, winter vetch is sown 15 days earlier than rye (seeding rate - 1 kg / 100 m2), with a seeding depth of 3-4 seeds. After germination of the vetch, rye is sown across rows, reducing the seeding rate to 0.8 kg / 100 m2 . Vico-rye mixture winters well, and it is dropped on siderat in the first half of May, before the beginning of earing rye.

Seradella or ptsenozhka. On light sandy soils for sideratov this annual, very valuable legume plant is perfect. The advantages of seradella include the ability to withstand shading, which allows it to be sown in between the rows of sweetcorn and garden. After cutting quickly grows.

It is not demanding to heat and can withstand freezing to minus 8 ° C. Excellent honey plant, giving bribes until late autumn. Flowering begins 40 days after germination. The sowing method is narrow-row (inter-row spacing - 15-20 cm) with a seeding rate of 0.5 kg / 100 m2. The yield of green mass - up to 2.5 kg / m2.

Mushroom grass, fenugreek . Use two types - fenugreek hay and blue. The first type is short, with long beans (up to 15 cm) and large seeds, and the second is tall (up to 70 cm), with small beans (only up to 0.5 cm) and small seeds.

These two annual species are grown to obtain the spice "mushroom grass", medicinal raw materials and feed. In the garden, they can be successfully used to obtain green manure. These species are relatively drought resistant. Do not tolerate acidic soil.

Sown in April-July. The sowing method of fenugreek is blue, wide-row, with spacing up to 40 cm, and hay grass is somewhat narrower, up to 30 cm. The seeding rate of fenugreek is hay - up to 0.5 kg / 100 m2, and blue - 0.3 kg / 100 m2. The depth of seeding is up to 2 cm. The yield of green mass is higher in fenugreek blue and up to 2 kg / m2, and in hay fescue it is up to 1 kg / m2.

Alfalfa . Like other perennial species, it is advisable to grow alfalfa on the site for 2-3 years. In the first years it is mown, and the green mass is transferred for green fertilizer to another area, and at the end of use it is dug up as a siderat.

High heat and drought resistance allows it to form a high yield of green mass without irrigation. Salt-tolerant and saline saline soils. It is demanding to the light and can not withstand shading. Does not tolerate swampy and acidic soils.

The seeding rate under conditions of moderate moisture to 150 g / 100 m2, and in the steppe zone - up to 120 g / 100 m2. The depth of seeding is no more than 3 cm. The method of sowing is randomly or wide-row, with a row spacing of 25-30 cm. It will grow well after cutting. Gives up to five cuttings during the growing season. The total yield of green mass for all hauls is up to 7 kg / m2.

Different types clover . Usually, perennial red clover is used, although annual species for southern horticulture are quite suitable: Sabdar, Alexandria and Incarnate. Red clover is used like alfalfa, and annual species are dug up in the year of sowing.

All types of clover require moderate moisture. More shade-tolerant than lucerne. The optimal soil reaction is neutral and slightly acid. Clover is sick when re-grown in the same place. Sowing is repeated after 4-5 years.

Cultivation techniques are the same as those of alfalfa. The yield of green mass in the second year of cultivation - up to 4 kg / m2. For southern irrigated areas, annual types of clover are perfect. sabdar and bersim, and for northern and western incarnate cloverbut the latter grows back badly and gives one cut.

Clover white, or creeping, which is used to decorate some types of lawns, is not used specifically for green fertilizers, but grass transported on lawns is transferred to beds for green fertilizer.

Clover white and yellow . Biennial plants that are distinguished by frost, drought, and salt tolerance. Can not withstand bogging and acidic soils. The stem quickly becomes wood, therefore they mow at the beginning of flowering.

The clover is a great meliorator. Its roots penetrate up to 3 m, loosening the subsoil layers and transferring useful nutrients from the lower layer to the upper one. Seeding rate - up to 250 g / 100 m2.

In the first year of life and from the first cut to the second, the green mass is used for green fertilizer, and then they dig it out for siderat. The yield of fresh, non-timber green mass suitable for green fertilizer is high and amounts to 4 kg / m2.

Cereal siderata

Winter rye . Favorite plant gardeners for late autumn and early spring sideration. Cold and frost-resistant plant with a well-developed surface root system, which perfectly loosens the upper layers of heavy soils. Excellent bush, which contributes to the suppression of weeds.

Features that should be considered for gardeners: very rapid growth in height in spring, which can cause the green mass to grow. Excellent predecessor for all vegetable crops. For sideratov rye begin to be sown in August and continue until mid-October.

Summer rye crops are used for autumn digging, and autumn for spring. Seeding rate for green manure up to 2.5 kg / 100 m2. The depth of embedding on heavy and wet soil - up to 4-5 cm, and on sandy and drying - up to 5-6 cm. Deeper embedding of seeds weakens young rye plants.

The yield of green mass varies up to 1.0 kg / m2 in the fall and up to 3 kg / m2 during earing. Rye is an excellent predecessor for all vegetable plants, but in case of late planting in the spring, the green mass quickly becomes coarser, which requires additional nitrogen fertilization when digging.

Barley . Usually, spring varieties are used for spring greening, and winter crops for autumn and spring, like rye. Cold resistant, but spring varieties freeze. Compared with other cereals drought-resistant. Poor tolerates sour and sandy soil. The root system is not sufficiently developed and uses poorly accessible reserves of phosphorus and potassium, therefore phosphate-potassium fertilizers are desirable for it.

Growing fast. Perfectly loosens the top layer of soil. Spring barley is sown in early spring. Dig up at the end of May. Garden beds are used for summer crops of root crops, green crops, sugar corn, zucchini, summer planting of potatoes, various types of cabbage. Sometimes they are sown in August for receiving autumn siderates.

It also thrives well in autumn sowing, but due to the long day it does not go to the earing. You can leave on the garden before winter. In this case, the spring varieties freeze, but perfectly hold the snow.

The seeding rate for green manure production is 2-3 kg / 100 m2. The sowing method is narrow. The depth of seed placement on heavy soils is up to 3-4 cm, and on sandy ones up to 6 cm. The yield of green mass depends on the phase of plant development: in the tillering stage, up to 1.0 kg / m2, in the earing phase, up to 2.5 kg / m2.

Oats . Cold-resistant and demanding of moisture, but does not tolerate high summer temperatures. Sow in early spring. Often used in mixtures with peas and Vika spring, this approach contributes to the enrichment of the soil with nitrogen.

It features a very rapid development of the root system, which extracts nutrients from insoluble forms and deep layers of soil. Insensitive to the acidity of the soil solution.

The technology of growing and using is close to the technology of growing barley, but it should not be sown either before or after the root crops with which it has common types of harmful nematodes. In addition, the sowing depth should be somewhat less.

Westerwold annual ryegrass . Excellent siderat for different soil types with a wide range of acidity, except for very light and quickly drying sandy. By the speed of growth has no analogues among the cereals. The best time for sowing is early spring.

The seeding rate is 0.3 kg / 100 m2. The sowing method is narrow. The depth of seeding is up to 3 cm. It grows well after cutting, which allows it to be grown in a separate area with the subsequent transportation of green mass to the right place. Productivity - up to 3 kg / m2. An excellent predecessor for all vegetable plants. Planting should not be allowed, otherwise contaminating self-seeding is possible.

Cabbage and other siderealnye plants

Mustard . For sideratov use two types of mustard: blue-gray and white. Their biological features are very close. White mustard has small pale yellow seeds (weight of 1000 seeds - 5-6 g), and gray - large dark brown (weight of 1000 seeds - up to 25 g).

The root system is deep and characterized by a strong digestible ability. Does not tolerate very acidic, heavy and waterlogged soils. Due to the increased drought resistance, we recommend to grow gray mustard for green manure in more southern areas, and white for rather moist northern and western areas.

Sowing dates: from early spring to mid-September. The seeding rate of white mustard is 200 g / 100 m2, and gray-gray - up to 150 g / 100 m2. The seeding depth is 2-4 cm. After sowing, the soil is rolled. In dry and hot weather, young plants are severely damaged by cruciferous flea.

The yield of green mass in the period of mass flowering - up to 4-5 kg / m2. Due to common diseases and pests, mustard cannot be a precursor for all types of cabbage, radish and radish.

Buckwheat . Great siderat. Seeds quickly germinate and inhibit weeds. After 25-30 days, it begins to bloom and attracts pollinators to the garden. Demanding to heat and moisture. Develops a deep root system and removes poorly soluble nutrients from the deep layers of the soil, but does not tolerate high acidity of the soil solution.

Does not fix nitrogen, but turns insoluble phosphoric compounds of soil and fertilizers into readily available forms for subsequent vegetable plants. Sowing dates for siderats: from late April to early September.

They are added in different phases of growth, but preferably before mass flowering, when the stem is not woody yet. After digging, it inhibits the germination of carrot, parsley and parsnip seeds, but does not affect the transplanted seedlings of other vegetable plants.

The seeding rate is 1 kg / 100 m2. The seed embedment depth is up to 5 cm, and on light and dry soils it is increased to 6-7 cm. The yield of green mass at the beginning of flowering is up to 2.0 kg / m2, later it increases, but prikannaya green mass decomposes more slowly.

Phacelia pizhmolistnaya . Demanding to heat. Plant height in the period of mass flowering - up to 80-90 cm. Excellent honey plant. The seeding rate is 100 g / 100 m2. The seeding depth is 2-3 cm. The sowing method is narrow-row (15-20 cm) or wide-row (30-45 cm).

Crush and dig in the period of mass flowering. The deadline for planting is 60 days before the first autumn frosts. It quickly rot in the soil. The yield of green mass - up to 2 kg / m2. An excellent predecessor for all vegetable plants.

Tagetes or Chernobrivtsy. Demanding to heat and moisture. Requires neutral soil. Excellent phytosanitary, cleansing the soil from nematodes. The only green manure that requires planting through seedlings. Usually use tall varieties that give a large green mass.

Seedlings are grown on a separate bed, in a seedling box or greenhouse and are seated on the permanent place of the released beds. With a sufficient number of seeds taggetes can be grown and seedless way.

The depth of seeding is no more than 1.5-2.0 cm. The plantation for planting seedlings depends on the height of adult plants and is usually 45x30 cm. Crushed and dredged as necessary or in late autumn. An excellent predecessor for all vegetable plants.

Sylphia pierced leaf . A frost-resistant perennial from the Astrov family, which is sown in the background of a plot with a row spacing of 70-90 cm. It grows well on various soil types, including and saline. Plant height - up to 2 m. Beautifully blooms with yellow large baskets.

It gives an exceptionally large green mass, the yield of which reaches up to 7 kg / m2. Mown during mass flowering, crushed and make the necessary areas. At one place grows up to five years. It grows well. To obtain high yields in the spring, fertilizing and watering are carried out annually. Very decorative. Green mass is a good fertilizer for most vegetable plants, except for the aster family (lettuce, chicory, scorzonera, oat root).

Weeds . All ground and chopped fresh weeds are excellent green manure. Two immutable rules apply to them. Firstly, they are crushed and dug up only before flowering (they quickly form seeds), and secondly, they avoid using perennials (wheatgrass, sow thistle, bindweed), remnants of rhizomes, which will clog the garden even more.

Post-harvest residues cultivated plants, as an addition to green manure fertilizers. After harvest, each vegetable plant leaves a certain amount of valuable organic matter in the form of roots, stems, and leaves. Of all vegetable plants, the highest yield of green mass is given by broccoli cabbage (7–9 kg / m2) and sugar corn (4–5 kg / m2).

No matter how many plant residues and whether they are dry or fresh, they must be returned to the soil. The soil is hard and long "digests" dry and lignified remains. When they are introduced into the soil, it lacks its own energy for the development of beneficial microflora.

Therefore, if straw billet, sawdust, crushed bark, and high-moor peat are added, then 30 kg of ammonium nitrate is added to each ton of organic matter, which can be replaced with an equivalent amount of fermented mullein or bird droppings.

Thus, having mastered the basic elements of the “magic” of fertilizing the beds with green manure, begin to actively maintain fertility at a high level and get pure organic products, vegetables and fruits, in any conditions. Help the soil renew force.

The word "sideraty" in recent times is increasingly heard in the conversations of gardeners. No wonder. Many owners of dacha plots, who have received a garden in their use, which has been a garden before this, have been thinking about restoring the fertility of depleted soil. And siderata or siderealnye plants - this is one of the best assistants in this difficult matter.

Under the name "siderata" hiding plants that can quickly rise and gain green mass. It is this ability that gardeners use to get “green fertilizer” in a short period of time.

As a rule, green manure plants are planted before or after the main crop. Although supporters of natural farming advise some vegetables (for example, cabbage and tomatoes) to grow in joint plantings with green manure.

Early spring sideration most often used on beds under heat-loving crops with a planting period from the middle or at the end of May, for example, cucumbers, pumpkins, zucchini, late cabbage, etc. In order not to leave the ground bare, immediately after the snow melts, fast-growing cover plants are planted or watercress). Before the planting of the main crop, siderats will have time to gather enough green mass, which they mow and use for mulching or compost. The roots of the green manure plants are left in the ground. In order for the soil microorganisms to at least partially decompose the plant residues, it is recommended to plant the main crop 2-3 weeks after mowing the green manure. To accelerate the bio-processes in the spring green seasonings are often used.

Autumn sideration - a great way to improve the soil and its preparation for the cold. In this case, cover plants are sown immediately after harvesting the main crops. Due to the fact that the ground is still warm in autumn and the air is already cool, the plants are trying to make the most of favorable conditions. So, for the period from August to October, siderats on average grow 20-40 centimeters of greenery and 30 centimeters of roots. With the onset of cold weather, the plants die, and worms, bacteria and other underground inhabitants enter into action. During the winter, all organic matter overheats, which means that even the earliest vegetables such as radish and salads can be sown safely.

Rules for successful greening

In order to use green manure as a green fertilizer on your site has the maximum effect, and all your efforts are not in vain, you need to follow a few simple rules for successful green manuring:

1. Sow the seeds in a loose, moist soil.

2. Plants will grow faster, if the seeds are slightly rolled, increasing the area of their contact with the ground.

3. Take care of the seeds from the birds, put a scarecrow on the sown areas. Birds can easily peck up the seeds scattered on the surface and negate all the work.

4. Do not use for planting plants of the same family as the main crop that you plan to plant. Plants of the same family suffer from the same diseases and consume the same substances from the soil.

5. Do not dig, do not embed the green mass in the soil. Digging violates the soil structure and destroys the beneficial microflora. It is better to mow or cut the green "tops" and use them for mulching, compost or.

6. When spring sideration or joint planting, cut off green sideratov before flowering, until a hard stem has formed. This stem slowly decomposes.

Useful properties of sideratov

Why is greening so useful? Why make so much effort to buy seeds, water, birds drive away? Maybe it is better to scatter a bag of mineral fertilizers on the plot and the matter is ready?

Soil fertilization with the use of siderats is the use of a natural, natural mechanism for creating a fertile layer. For centuries, plants have provided and sustained themselves. They germinate, develop, die and decompose, enriching the soil with nutrients for future generations.

Therefore, with the right greening, the soil in your summer cottage will quickly “revive” and turn into a full-fledged ecosystem. Well, no matter how much mineral fertilizer you put in it, the dead soil will remain dead - dried, clay, hard and depleted.

Sideral plants enrich the soil with organic matter, nitrogen, potassium, phosphorus and calcium in the usual form for microorganisms.

Plants-green fertilizers stimulate the development of beneficial inhabitants of the garden, creating favorable conditions for the life of small insects, worms, bacteria, etc.

Siderats perfectly suppress weeds. In case of continuous sowing, the ground part of the cover plants completely obstructs the access of the sun to the soil, preventing competing weeds from germinating.

Roots of green manure plants loosen the soil, improve its structure, increase moisture permeability, reduce acidity, and deliver nutrients from the depths to the upper soil layer.

Cover plants form a solid carpet on the bed, shading the soil, thereby protecting it from overheating in the heat. In addition, green manure prevents the evaporation of excess moisture from the soil.

Autumn sideration protects the ground from erosion by rains and blowing, contributes to less soil freezing in winter and retains snow on the beds for better moisture saturation in spring.

Some green manure plants contribute to the improvement of the soil, adversely affect pathogens and pests. When planted with garden crops together, they scare off harmful insects with their phytoncides.

List of plant sideratov

It seems it's time to finally find out what, in fact, plants belong to the green manure. Here is a list of the main ones:

Legumes (annual lupine, beans, espartret, soybean, lentils, seradella, peas, chickpeas, alfalfa, sotechechnik, tributary, spring vetch, clover),
Hydrophilic (phacelia),
Cruciferous (mustard, rape, oilseed radish, canola),
Cereals (oats, barley, rye, wheat),
Buckwheat (buckwheat),
Aster (sunflower, calendula),
Amaranth (amaranth).

In addition, in garden stores sometimes come across a special mixture of green manure seeds. For example, vikoovsyanaya mixture. And as sideratov can use some flowers and even weeds. For example, nettle, nasturtium or calendula. If you grow seeds yourself and every year overdue remnants of dill seeds, carrots, parsley, lettuce, etc. are found, use them for green manuring. All in the deal!

In the following articles of the Country councils we will consider in detail the properties of green manure plants and learn correctly.

We wish you success and great harvests!

In order to improve the chemical and physical properties of the soil, to increase its fertility, resort to the help of phytomelioration.

Through the use of phytomeliorants, the soil can be cleared of diseases and pests, reduce the number of weeds, reduce pollution, etc.

Phytomeliorants include plants - siderats and concentrating plants.

Green manure is grown as a green fertilizer. This is one of the most effective ways to restore soil fertility.

As a green fertilizer, legumes and other plants or their mixtures are used. Legumes enrich the soil with nitrogen. As a green fertilizer, feed peas, fodder beans, narrow-leaved lupine, beans, phacelia, ceradella, vetch, clover, clover yellow and white are most often used.

Green fertilizer is able to heal the soil. In this regard, cruciferous plants are the most suitable - radish, canola, mustard, and rape. They inhibit the growth of weeds due to its rapid development. In addition, mustards do not like pests such as wireworms, and marigolds and spring rape are able to destroy several species of nematodes.

Cruciferous planting also prevents mineral elements from leaching out of the soil, and mustard helps plants to obtain poorly soluble phosphates.

If the soil is light, then phytomeliorants will increase its moisture capacity, and on heavy soil will improve the water regime.

Hub plants absorb large quantities of certain elements, i.e. are phytoremedians. They are planted in order to clear the soil of heavy metals. If you use these plants every year, the level of heavy elements in the soil will be significantly reduced.

➣ Legumes can accumulate 6 times more radioactive elements than cereals.

To clean the soil of radioactive elements, it is necessary to plant barley, alfalfa, mustard, sunflower, dwarf or fluffy birch.

Plants that go to the green fertilizer, crushed, and then buried in the soil. They are added during budding and at the beginning of flowering, because it is at this time that a large number of biologically active substances are present in them. On light soils, plants are buried to a depth of 12-15 cm, and on heavy ones, by 6-8 cm.