What determines the fertility of the soil or how to care for the soil in the country

The soil is a living organism in which life must constantly boil. And the more bacteria, bugs, worms in it, the higher its quality, the better garden crops grow on it. The owners sometimes do not quite understand what kind of soil is considered healthy and fertile. They apply large amounts of chemical fertilizers, believing that they are improving the quality of the land. In fact, these dressings only affect plants, although they do not contribute to the restoration of soil fertility in any way. Moreover, it happens that the applied fertilizers remain in the soil, not being absorbed by the plants, because the depleted earth did not activate them, did not turn them into a form convenient for absorption. Consider what determines soil fertility and how to improve it if nothing wants to grow in the country.

For plants to live well in the earth, it must have moisture, oxygen and a lot of nutrients. In addition, the soil should warm up well and have normal acidity. Only in the presence of all this, there will be life in the earth – a lot of useful microorganisms that help plants to eat well. In order for the soil in the country to meet all of the above requirements, it takes a lot of work. So, let’s begin…

Most often, in summer cottages, you come across lands on which water either stagnates or leaves, as if through your fingers. Both options for plants are certain death.

If you are unlucky, and there is clay or a low place on the site, then the water in the soil will be constant. The only salvation for the lowlands is to drain. To do this, a three-meter strip, half a meter wide and a meter deep, is dug along the fence. During the summer, they throw there all the construction waste and stones that were found in the garden, and when they reach the level of the fertile layer (about 40 cm), they fill it with soil removed from the next three meters. As soon as the first trench is dug, a second is dug along the fence after it. And so – until they have passed the entire section. All the work will take about a season, but you will permanently get rid of excess moisture in the soil.

Drainage of beds

Any construction waste is laid out at the bottom of the trench: broken bricks, stones, remnants of blocks, and fertile soil is poured on top, on which vegetables will grow

You can also dig trenches and lay pipes, but in this case they think over where to bring the entire system. You may have to dig a pool to avoid drowning your neighbors.

If the site is clayey, then irrigation is not carried out, but only the composition of the earth is changed, diluting it with sand, peat and humus. Clay itself is very useful because it holds many of the necessary elements. But too much of it cements the earth during a drought, making it difficult for the roots to breathe, and during the rainy season there will be a lake in the garden. After filling, it is necessary to plow the soil several times with a walk-behind tractor, and then with a cultivator, in order to crush the lumps into small particles and mix the components.

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In clay soil, the percentage of nutrients is very high, but due to the increased density and moisture, the roots cannot receive normal nutrition.

If there is another problem on the site – sand, then you need to think about how to retain moisture, and not remove it. It is unlikely that it will be possible to completely change the composition of the land during the season. It’s a matter of time. Only timely watering will help here. There are seasons when the weather itself is not weak. And then the harvests will be excellent! To strengthen the soil, it is necessary to introduce humus, peat, clay, etc. into it. The so-called “beetroot soil” is very useful. If in your city there is a beet station where beets are brought from collective farms for delivery in autumn, then together with root crops a lot of soil from fields and beet fragments accumulates. If you agree with the workers of this enterprise and ship a couple of machines of the earth, your soil will be saved from dehydration. All the same, this soil will have to be put somewhere. So why not to your dacha ?!

Beet cleaning

After harvesting and loading beets, there is a lot of soil left from the fields, and it can be used to improve soil fertility

The second component that affects the development of plants is oxygen. If it is not enough, if the soil is clogged, then the roots will not be able to receive normal nutrition.

First, check if your beds are “breathing”. To do this, simply pour a bucket of water onto the soil and watch how it absorbs. If air bubbles immediately began to appear, then everything is in order with your land. If the water leaves without bubbles, then the pores of the earth are clogged and must be opened.

This is not difficult to do. In autumn, when digging the soil, do not break up blocks, but leave them sticking out in waves. During the winter, the earth will be deeply saturated with oxygen, and you will get rid of many pests that will freeze in these blocks.

Foot aerator

By pulling the aerator on your feet, you can improve the flow of air in flower beds, which are planted with perennials and cannot be digged.

A useful tool is an aerator (or hole punch). It was created to improve ventilation on lawns. Attached to the rear, metal rods pierce the topsoil and create a path for air to penetrate deeper. With such a device, it is good to improve the aeration of flower beds that are not dug up for the winter.

The owners themselves must regulate the temperature of the earth. The darker the color of the soil, the more it warms up. Not every culture loves a hot land, so they first determine what and where will grow, and then, taking into account the weather, they begin to regulate the thermal regime.

Straw mulching

The straw-mulched beds become 2-3 degrees colder than the others and protect the plant roots from overheating and weeds

Raises the temperature:

  • creation of ridges;
  • mulching with peat or black soil;
  • lining of black non-woven fabric with slots for seedlings;
  • weeding.

Reduces temperature:

  • watering;
  • loosening;
  • sawdust or straw mulch;
  • white non-woven fabric.

With use, the earth gradually acidifies. A rare plant can live in acidic soil. Most prefer slightly acidic earth, the acidity index of which is 5,5. Therefore, liming should be included in the annual maintenance of the soil.

First you need to determine how acidic the earth is. It is most convenient to collect a handful of soil from different parts of the site and take it to a special laboratory. But if it is not there, then the approximate acidity can be found out with the help of a simple operation: spread the soil in piles from several places on the site and pour vinegar on top. If your piles have started to “boil” with the release of air bubbles – the earth is normal. If there is no reaction, it is sour.

Acidity check

If you poured vinegar on the ground, and air bubbles began to appear on it, then the acidity of the soil is normal.

Why it is necessary to eliminate acidification:

  • Acidic soils dry for a long time in spring, and crust over in the heat.
  • Good bacteria do not live in them.
  • The acid binds phosphate fertilizers, preventing them from being absorbed into plants.
  • The acid retains heavy metals in the soil.

To eliminate acidification, you need to buy lime, extinguish it with water (50 kg – 2 buckets of water) and spill the earth before digging in autumn. Or apply in the spring, before plowing the land.

Lime

If “slaked” is written on the package with lime, it means that it can be immediately applied to the soil, evenly scattering over the beds.

You can sprinkle lime in the form of a powder, but before that, let it lie for about a week in the open air so that it is extinguished due to air moisture. To do this, just cut the plastic bag and leave it open on the street.

The approximate dose of lime is 500 g for clay soil, 300 g for sandy soil. If the exact degree of acidification is not determined, it is better to apply lime in small doses and observe the weeds. As soon as the plantain and horsetail disappeared from the beds, the acidity became neutral.

If all of the above procedures are carried out, beneficial bacteria will themselves appear in your soil, because you have created all the conditions for their free life. And yet, check how active they are. To do this, bury filter paper at several points on the site, and after a month and a half, dig it up and look at its condition.

  • If it has almost decayed – life in the earth is seething!
  • If it “melted” only partially, it means that the activity is average, and organic fertilizers should be applied.
  • If the leaf remains almost intact, it is time to apply nitrogen and organic fertilizers, and also give the soil a rest. Perhaps you planted the same crop for a couple of seasons, thereby creating a base for the reproduction of harmful microbes. They destroyed the useful biomaterial.

It is necessary to change the composition of vegetables in the beds every year so that the soil does not get tired of the isolation products of one culture.

Anna Evans

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