If the sled needs to be prepared in the summer, then the garden is better in the fall. Proper tillage during this period includes soil preparation (digging and applying various substrates to improve its physical characteristics), fertilizing, and for some crops, mulching and covering winter plantings. Such actions significantly increase the next year's harvest. It is best to prepare the beds in the fall for various crops, taking into account the requirements of each of them.
How to prepare beds with strawberries for winter
Strawberries, or garden strawberries, accumulate resources for future fruiting in the fall. Therefore, if you want to get a rich harvest of berries, as well as protect them from frost, check out in advance how to prepare strawberries for winter in the garden.
Autumn is the time to prepare the garden for the new season.
Autumn care for strawberry plantations
The main activities for the care of strawberries are best done after the end of fruiting, at the end of July, in August or at the beginning of September. What to do during this period:
- carefully, so as not to damage the growth points of young leaves, cut off old leaves and mustaches;
- remove weeds in the area;
- loosen the soil between the bushes, while spudding the plants a little (do not fill the growing point);
- apply fertilizer and, if necessary, treat with insecticides;
- water the plants abundantly, but not often, wetting the soil well.
Pruning old leaves
The root system of the plant is superficial, even with proper preparation of the strawberry bed, it is injured, therefore, the sooner you process the plantings, the more the bushes will get stronger and better endure the winter. In autumn, especially before frost, do not pull out weeds on the site, leave this activity until spring.
Top dressing of strawberry plantations
After the fruiting of strawberries is completed, do not forget to feed them. Before the onset of winter, you need to do this twice:
- Immediately after harvesting (late July - early September) - use nitroammofoska, scattering it around the bushes (consumption 25-30 g per 1 sq. M.), Or prepare its aqueous solution (2 tablespoons per 10 liters of water), pouring 0.5 liters for each bush. You can also use organic fertilizers such as mullein. Dilute it with water 1:3, soak for two days, add 1 glass of ash and add 0.5 liters for each plant.
- In late autumn (from the end of October), mulch the beds for strawberries with humus or rotted compost, consumption 3-5 kg per 1 sq. m. You can also add superphosphate.
Scatter fertilizer around bushes
When fertilizing the site, avoid getting fertilizers (especially dry mineral fertilizers) on the leaves and growing points of plants, this can cause burns and destroy the bushes.
Perfect shelter for the winter
Garden strawberries, in the presence of abundant snow cover, tolerate frost well, but cold winters with little snow can kill plants. To avoid such an outcome, do not forget to insulate the beds for strawberries in the fall after a stable sub-zero temperature is established. It’s not worth doing this before, slight frosts will benefit.
The list of materials that can be used for shelter is quite extensive, but each has its own advantages and disadvantages:
- Leaves, hay, straw are the most accessible materials, but they cake, in spring they are quite difficult to separate from plants, bushes under them can rot, and mice often hibernate in straw, damaging strawberry plantings.
- Pine needles, spruce branches - the best choice for shelter, has good air permeability, which eliminates damping, but at the same time retains heat well.
- Agrofibre - well protects crops from freezing, however, it must be pulled on pre-installed arcs (the so-called air-dry shelter) so that the material does not come into contact with plants, otherwise they will freeze even more than in the open air.
Shelter strawberries for the winter with straw
In regions with little snowy winters, pay attention not only to plants, but also to aisles, mulch them with leaves, straw, grass, and so on. So you will save the superficial root system of strawberries, because the earth will dry out less, freeze and crack.
Autumn preparation of beds
Plots for annual garden crops are also prepared in the fall. During the winter, the soil sags, is saturated with mineral and organic compounds, and by spring it is almost completely ready for new plantings.
Preparing a bed for onions
Preparing beds for onions in the fall begins with choosing a place. Equip them where cucumbers, tomatoes, cabbage, potatoes grew, these are the best predecessor plants. Avoid places where garlic, carrots and, of course, onions grew, it can be returned to its original place in 3-5 years. Compliance with sevosmen not only optimizes plant nutrition, but also protects them from pests and pathogens.
Basic requirements for a landing site:
- sunny, open territory;
- lack of weeds;
- non-acidic loamy or sandy soil;
- moderate soil moisture.
Fertilizers are evenly distributed over the plot
If the area that was planned to be allocated for the bow does not correspond to the ideal - it does not matter, everything can be fixed. So, acidic soil, lime two years before planting onions. In addition to slaked lime, you can use wood ash, chalk, limestone and other substances. Build high beds on waterlogged soils.
Now about how to properly prepare a bed for onions. Autumn events in this case are quite simple:
- remove weeds;
- apply fertilizer;
- dig the earth to the depth of a shovel.
Small sevok for autumn planting
How to fertilize a bed for onions? Before digging, apply organic fertilizers, optimally - 5 kg of compost or humus and 1 kg of wood ash per 1 sq. m. You can use chicken manure at the rate of 200 g per square meter. m. In addition, mineral fertilizers are applied in the fall. For example, 20 g of double superphosphate and 15 g of calcium chloride per 1 sq. m of territory.
The recommended width of the bed for onions is 45–90 cm, and the length is determined mainly by the size of the plot. When determining the optimal parameters for crops, keep in mind that the width between the furrows for planting onions should be about 20 cm, and the distance between the sets should be about 8 cm. Do not forget to leave wide passages between plantings, they will greatly facilitate the care of crops.
Some gardeners practice autumn onion planting. To do this, select the smallest set, less than 1 cm in diameter. Plant it in early October, about 2-3 weeks before the onset of frost. Deepen the bulbs into the ground by 3 cm, and mulch with leaves, straw, needles or spruce branches on top.
Preparing a bed for carrots
Do you want to know how to prepare a bed for carrots in the fall so that you can get a good harvest next year? The main activities during this period come down to choosing a place, digging and fertilizing the soil. Proper preparation will allow you to grow beautiful root crops and significantly increase productivity.
Choose a place in the garden, taking into account the compatibility of the culture with the predecessor plants. It is better if the bed for carrots is broken in the place where potatoes, legumes, cabbage, and tomatoes used to grow. It is desirable that carrots were not sown here for the previous 4-5 years. The following soil parameters are optimal for a root crop:
- high level of humus;
- pH (acidity coefficient) 5.6 - 7;
- easy permeability (loose loams or sandy soils).
Carrots grown on unprepared soil
Note that in heavy or stony soils, roots will grow small and twisted. A similar effect is observed when fresh manure is applied before planting.
Ideal preparation of beds for carrots should take into account the characteristics of the soil on the site:
- peat - per 1 sq. m of land, add 5 kg of river sand, 3-5 kg of humus, 6 kg of sod land;
- clayey and podzolic - per 1 sq. m - 1-2 buckets of peat and sand, 1 bucket of humus, 3-5 kg of sawdust (preferably not fresh);
- light loamy - the same as for clay soils, only without sand;
- black soil - per 1 sq. m - 0.5 buckets of small stale sawdust and 1 bucket of sand.
Preparing high ridges for carrots
In addition, add superphosphate from mineral fertilizers at the rate of 20 g per 1 sq. m (some replace it with wood ash), as well as potassium salt - 10–15 g per 1 sq. m. After adding all the substances, dig the area 1-2 bayonets of a shovel deep and level the surface.
The size of the beds for carrots largely depends on the size of the plot, but experts do not recommend making them too wide. Narrow beds 45-90 cm wide and wide row spacing will provide plants with maximum light. Keep in mind that planting should be placed at a distance of 25 cm between rows. The depth of the beds for carrots should be at least 30 cm.
Preparing the garden for garlic
A bed for garlic in the fall is prepared both for planting winter varieties in the open ground before the onset of frost, and for planting spring varieties in the spring. Site preparation usually begins in early September, and the basics of agricultural technology are the same for all types of plants. Answering the question: how to make a garden bed for garlic, there are several important steps:
- choice of location, taking into account the crop shift and soil characteristics;
- removing weeds and digging the soil to a depth of 25–30 cm;
- fertilization.
Winter garlic ready for planting
Place a bed for winter garlic where pumpkin, legumes, and early cabbage grew. It can be returned to its original place of planting no earlier than three years later, but if you still have to plant plants there again, pay attention to how to treat the bed after garlic in order to prevent diseases. To do this, water the soil with a solution of 1 tbsp. l. copper sulfate per 10 liters of water, the consumption is approximately 1 bucket per 2 sq. m. After watering, cover the ground with a film.
Garlic prefers light dry areas with light sandy soil. Other soils can be "improved" with simple additives:
- heavy clay soils - 1 bucket of peat and river sand per 1 sq. m;
- peat soils - 1 bucket of river sand and loamy soil per 1 sq. m of territory;
- sandy soils - 2 buckets of clay soil and 1 bucket of peat per 1 sq. m plot.
Garlic plantings mulched with humus
Garlic bed in autumn needs fertilizer:
- organic - preferably compost or humus (1 bucket per 1 sq. M), but in no case fresh manure, it significantly increases the incidence of plantings and the susceptibility of plants to various microorganisms;
- mineral - 2 tbsp. l. potassium sulfate, 1 tbsp. l. double superphosphate, 1 tbsp. dolomite flour and you can, but not necessarily, 2 tbsp. wood ash per 1 sq. m.
Do I need to close the beds for the winter? It all depends on the climate and the characteristics of winters in a particular region. Garlic is quite frost-resistant, but harsh winters with little snow can significantly thin out plantings, even despite mulching with peat or humus. Therefore, after the onset of frost, it is better to cover the beds with needles, leaves, sawdust, tops.
Preparing the garden for cucumbers
Cucumbers are plants that are not very demanding on the composition of the soil, but still the best crops are harvested on sandy and loamy soils with neutral (or close to that) acidity. It is important that the site for this crop is not swampy. Nevertheless, proper processing will help to grow a vegetable in any territory, the main thing is to carry it out in advance.
Perfect cucumber patch
Not sure how to prepare a garden for cucumbers in the fall? Follow the advice:
- Determine the location, preferably taking into account the shift schedule. Onions, legumes, cabbage, potatoes, and tomatoes are considered good predecessors of cucumbers. Do not plant them where other cucurbits have previously grown.
- Prepare a trench or put up a raised bed border. Lay branches, straw, sawdust, leaves at the bottom.
- Fertilize: mineral fertilizers are added during spring processing, and fresh manure is applied to the beds in the fall so that it “settles” a little over the winter. Although, the opinions of experts about when to put manure on the beds are divided. Some advise doing this only in the fall, while others argue that it is possible in the spring, adding 100 g of nitrophoska and 3 cups of wood ash to it for every square meter of land.
- Pour the manure with water and cover it with fertile soil by about 30 - 40 cm.
Cucumbers love manure fertilizer
The use of this technology will accelerate the germination of plants, the appearance of fruits and significantly increase the yield of vegetables. However, if there is no way to create them, use another technology:
- Dig up the beds in the fall and sow rye.
- In the spring, two weeks before planting cucumbers, distribute humus over the territory (3 buckets per 1 sq. M).
- If necessary, add a baking powder for the soil (stale sawdust, sand, etc.).
- Dig up the ground, planting green manure and fertilizers into the ground.
Working in the garden requires a lot of effort and time, but it pleases with high-quality environmentally friendly products. Proper preparation of the site in the fall, taking into account the individual needs of crops, significantly increases their yield, and helps perennials survive the winter without loss.
Autumn is just approaching and the harvest is not yet fully harvested. There is still a little time left and the beds will remain completely empty. So it's time to prepare the site for the upcoming season. This is done in order to prepare the soil, supply it with the necessary elements for better crop growth next year and, accordingly, for a rich and healthy harvest. But what kind of procedures and activities need to be carried out, we will describe in this article.
Preparing the beds in autumnThe soil loses its unique properties every year, allowing it to grow strong vegetation and harvest fruits at the end of the season. That's why she needs our help. Regular application of fertilizers with substances such as potassium, nitrogen and phosphorus help to make up for the lack of these elements. We do not see this deficiency, but we will be able to understand what it is, only by the condition of the plants.
Autumn is the optimal period to enrich the depleted soil with various top dressings and fertilizers, which will be absorbed and absorbed during the cold period. And when you start planting and sowing garden crops in the spring, they will be able to get good nutrition, since during the winter the fertilizers were processed by the soil into the form necessary for vegetation.
In order for organic matter to take the form necessary for perception by vegetation, it takes some time. That's exactly why, in order not to wait for spring and when everything is processed and it is autumn that needs to be introduced into the soil. Over a long cold period, the elements will decompose into components and will be ready to feed crops and seedlings by planting.
But fertilizers should not be applied thoughtlessly. It is necessary to take into account a number of nuances, namely the condition of the soil, the quality of the soil. And also plan ahead for future plantings, because the same complementary foods are not suitable for all plants, so take this into account and build on all of the above in order to choose the right nutrient medium.
Fertilizers should not be applied thoughtlessly Now let's go directly to the consideration of the proposed topic in more detail, consider each nuance.
Why is it necessary to prepare the ground in advance?
Gardeners often ask this question, because there is spring and then, before planting vegetables, you can prepare the land. But this is not quite the right way of thinking. Because, as we have already said, fertilizer needs time for cultivated plants to consume it for their growth. And in the spring there is already a lot of trouble: prepare the seeds, grow seedlings, prepare holes for planting and plan the days for planting seedlings in the ground. Agree, this is a very laborious process, and you can simply not have time to do everything.
Preparing the soil in advance That is why the autumn preparatory work is very important. Having spent a little more energy in the outgoing year, you can pay more attention to the planting work itself, because the site will be completely ready to grow a new crop. So do not be lazy, and you can slowly plan your actions with the advent of spring.
How to properly follow the order of preparation
Preparation should begin with clearing the site from the remnants of tops, weeds and other vegetation residues. If they are healthy, put them in a compost pit to rot, then you can use this to improve the quality of the soil. If necessary, chalk or slaked lime can be added to such fertilizers to normalize the acidity of the soil. If they show signs of disease, it is better to burn them outside the territory.
Preparation should begin with clearing the area from the remnants of the tops Pay special attention to weeds. They need to be removed with special care: root systems, creeping stems. The garden should be completely rid of them, so as not to waste time on this in the spring, when they grow faster than vegetables on the fed soil.
Now that you have cleared the entire area of weeds and their remnants. It is necessary to start enriching the soil with nitrogen fertilizers, potash and phosphorus - they are suitable for all plants. Since nothing will grow on the beds, urea can also be added in winter, it is not difficult to calculate: 20-25 g per 1 m 2; superphosphate complementary foods in the ratio of 18-20 g per 1 m 2; potassium chloride in a proportion of 15-20 g per 1 m 2. Do not be afraid to introduce chlorine, by the time spring comes, it will no longer be in the soil. In addition, it is good to put a layer of manure, already rotted, in the proportion of 5-6 kg per 1 m 2 or leafy humus, 3-4 kg per 1 m 2. Ash, wood or soot in the ratio of 250-300 g per 1 m 2 will also be useful.
To lighten heavy soil or clay soil in the garden, add 1 bucket of river sand per square meter, pre-mixed with compost. This will make the soil more loose and hang its fertile qualities.
And vice versa, if you have sandy soil, in which neither water nor nutrients are retained, you need to mix it with clay, also in a bucket per square meter, add compost in the amount of 5-6 kg per 1 m 2, humus from the leaves 3-4 kg per 1 m 2, as well as sawdust, 1 bucket per 1 m 2. Be careful with sawdust, as they can oxidize the soil, so make sure that when laying they are saturated with water and slightly damp.
Be careful with sawdust, as they can oxidize the soil Land with an acidity index below 6 units must be enriched with chalk or slaked lime. When the acid-base balance is less than 4.5, it is necessary to use limestone in the amount of 200-250 g per 1 m 2. With indicators in the range of 4.6-5.5, add chalk in a ratio of 250-300 g per 1 m 2.
All the substances described are introduced in the fall at the time of digging the garden. First, you distribute it over the top layer of turf, then we dig up the soil on a full bayonet of a shovel, mixing all the necessary ingredients with the ground.
You need to dig the beds correctly
There are two main ways to dig garden beds: moldboardless and moldboard.
You need to dig the beds correctly Consider first the non-moldboard method, it consists in the fact that the earth layer does not break and does not turn over. Thus, there is a complete preservation of the beneficial microflora of the soil of the lower and upper layers. The resulting clods of soil should also not be broken.
The dump method is completely opposite in action: clods need to be turned over and crushed. This method is most often used in the autumn preparation of the land. Only in this way can we place fertilizers in the soil, while evenly distributing them. But harmful insects and dangerous microbes that decide to spend the winter in the ground will literally be pulled out. It is not recommended to break up lumps of soil that are on the surface itself, because deep freezing will occur. But if you intend to prepare completely and clearly delineate the beds, grind all the lumps. Then it is necessary to level the soil over the entire surface, this can be achieved by layering the soil when digging, making them several centimeters higher than the rest of the soil. Thus, the sun's rays in the spring will warm such beds faster than other land on the territory.
We prepare beds for each vegetable separately
We examined the general features of how to prepare for planting in the winter: feeding, coating, moldboard digging, layering the soil in the plots with an increase in their level. But these are just general recommendations. But our task is not so much to find out the main recommendations, it is to competently cultivate a site for each individual type of vegetable crops. And all this is also carried out after the harvest, namely in the autumn.
Beds for planting beets
For sowing a vegetable, it is necessary to choose a well-lit place, with drained and light soil. Then you can safely expect a good root crop. Ideally, plots should be prepared on rocks or loam, with a neutral acid-base balance. Other types of soil are not well suited for growing this crop, even with normal nutrition. Do not plant in places infused with water. And it is worth refusing to plant in the ground of high acidity.
Beds for planting beets It is better to plant a vegetable in a vacant place from cucumbers, zucchini, potatoes of early varieties. And also good predecessors are varieties of early sweet pepper, eggplant and tomatoes. And it is absolutely impossible to sow table beets in place of spinach, carrots, rapeseed, Cabbage and chard.
Be sure to lay a layer of compost during the autumn preparatory work or leafy humus at the rate of ½ bucket per 1 m 2 of one plot. As a fertilizer with minerals, potassium chloride in the ratio of 12-14 g per 1 m 2 and ammonium nitrate with superphosphate in the proportion of 22-25 g per 1 m 2 will be good.
Please note that in no case should fresh manure be introduced into the soil during preparation, as you risk growing a crop with a high content of nitrates in the coming year.
Prepares a plot for zucchini and pumpkin
These vegetable crops are not picky at all and are good with almost all fertilizers that we apply to the ground. They will also like almost completely rotted manure, at the rate of 3-4 kg per square meter of plot, but no more. It is laid down for digging.
Prepares a plot for zucchini and pumpkin The soil should have a neutral acid-base balance. If your kidney is acidic, do a chalking or add limestone.
It is optimal to plant cultivated plants in places from under potatoes, cabbage, onions, root crops in general and after legumes. But you should not populate the area left over from cucumbers, squash and zucchini.
Pay attention to the type of soil, with a high content of clay, you need to add ½ bucket of humus and 1 bucket of river sand per 1 square meter and dig everything well. The same measures are necessary for general preparation in the autumn for pumpkins and zucchini. Fertilizers with a mineral base are also needed: superphosphate 10-15 g, ash 250 g and potassium phosphate 15 g - this will be enough.
Sandy lands can also be equipped for growing zucchini and pumpkins; for this, add clay and ½ a bucket of leafy humus per 1 m 2 of a bed to a bucket.
Preparing a place for planting herbs
Dill and other greens also cannot be planted anywhere to get a good harvest. They will successfully grow in a place freed from cabbage, tomatoes and onions. But do not plant spicy herbs on the plot from under carrots, parsnips and celery.
Place for planting herbs Good illumination of the sowing area is also important, it will also be well warmed up. In autumn, cover the place planned for greenery with coniferous branches so that the snow lies there longer, so the land will be more fertile. Check the pH balance of the area. After all, vitamin bushes grow poorly on high acidity. Add lime or chalk to normalize the acidity level.
These plants do not require special preparation. Dig up the bed no deeper than 23 cm, be sure to add 2-3 kg of rotted manure per 1 m 2, 25-20 g of ammonium nitrate, 8-10 g of potassium sulfate, 10-12 g of superphosphate for the same 1 m 2. With the advent of spring, you will just need to loosen the soil well and arrange holes for sowing. It is also necessary to thoroughly shed the plots with water at the rate of 2-3 liters per 1 m 2 and compact the soil a little so that the seeds do not “drown”. Sowing holes should be 2 cm deep.
Land preparation for tomatoes
Tomatoes should be planted in the ground instead of table beets, cucumbers, onions, legumes, carrots, lettuce, herbs, corn and zucchini. Late ripening cabbage, potatoes, eggplant and sweet peppers are considered bad predecessors.
Land preparation for tomatoes After the chosen place, you should proceed to the selection of the type of soil. The soil must be fertile. Excessively acidic soil should be fed with lime in a proportion of 150-200 g per 1 m 2, but this will not work with any acidity. If the soil consists of sandstone or loam, then you will need to add 250 g of limestone per 1 m 2 for digging, with medium or heavy loam, you will need to add 350 g, also under a shovel.
Do not rush to fertilize the site. Prepare superphosphates, tomatoes love it, and simply distribute it throughout the garden without digging up the top layer.
Since tomato bushes are tall, you should not make a bed for them with an increase in level. Limit yourself to 23 cm wide and 100 cm long, you don’t need to do more in volume.
Plots for planting cucumbers
And of course, we allocate a plot for this vegetable crop. There are few places where you can find a garden where cucumbers do not grow. It is better to plant them after tomatoes, potatoes, eggplants, legumes, spinach, onions, early varieties of cabbage, as well as cauliflower, carrots and greens. And you should beware of places after cucumbers, melons, watermelons, pumpkins and squash.
Plots for planting cucumbers Try to prepare the soil in the fall and make it light. For cucumber seedlings, loamy or sandy soil is most suitable. Clay and heavy soils require the addition of sand: 1 bucket per 1 m 2 under a shovel. The soil can be slightly acidic, cucumbers feel calm there, so if there is only such a piece of land left, do not worry.
And note that it is also necessary to bring in 5-6 kg of weathered manure, and then dig it up with a full shovel.
We lay lure for warm beds
Autumn is also very suitable for the construction of insulated beds. To do this, you will need boards to mount a box or box, as a rule, they are made 1 m * 2 m. In the bottom layer we lay large branches, bark, thick stems of plants, for example, corn, it can also be cut logs and pieces of hemp or boards. Then a layer of sand, sawdust, chains, peelings of vegetables and plant residues is poured, even a layer of fallen leaves, humus and ash is distributed. When laying these layers, take into account the fact that soil mixed with compost, up to 30 cm high, must still fit on top, in which plants will be planted.
Food for warm beds Is mulching necessary?
If you have a question about the need to mulch the beds that you have so diligently prepared, then yes, of course this event should be carried out. Created on the basis of pure organic substances, it will in no way harm or affect the active vital activity of all beneficial bacteria in the plots you have created. At the beginning of spring, you just need to remove the spent mulch from the surface. Now the site is ready to accept new plants, and fertile land will help to grow them.
The volume and sequence of autumn work in the garden depends on many factors: from the size of the plot to the mood of the gardener. Nevertheless, one must clearly know the mandatory list of work to prepare the beds in autumn for winter, otherwise next year may not please with a rich harvest.
Certain types of plants are especially demanding on the quality of the soil and its composition. For their growth and fruiting, it is necessary to prepare the site in advance.
Raspberries quickly deplete the soil, remaining in one place for many years. Before planting young plants in the soil, it is necessary to fertilize it. To do this, organic fertilizers are applied to the soil, mixing them with ash and compost. In autumn, the soil is dug up, removing the roots of weeds, then a layer of fertilizer is distributed over its surface and the site is dug up again.
To get a good potato crop, you need to loosen the ground as much as possible. This can be achieved not only by adding sawdust, compost and sand, but also by deep digging the site.
When preparing the soil for growing cucumbers, you must first disinfect the earth with copper sulphate. A week after processing, compost is introduced into the soil and closed up to a shallow depth.
Autumn fertilizers for the garden
Fertilizers that are used in the garden in the fall contain a minimal amount of nitrogen. Agronomists advise paying attention to the packaging with the drug: the manufacturer indicates the seasonality of use on it. Autumn fertilizers contain potassium, phosphorus and calcium. Exceeding the dosage of the introduction of drugs is unacceptable.
A popular autumn fertilizer is superphosphate. It decomposes slowly and is suitable for use in rainy autumn weather. The drug is applied in the amount of 40-50 g per 1 sq.m.
The classic autumn fertilizer is potassium chloride. Its dosage is small and amounts to 10-20 g of the drug per 1 sq.m. It is necessary to work with potassium chloride in a respirator.
You can also fertilize the soil with organic compounds. It is recommended to make rotted manure or compost 1 time in 3-4 years. This will require 3-4 kg of organic matter per 1 sq.m of beds. If bird droppings are used as a fertilizer, the amount of the applied composition is reduced due to its high concentration. It is enough to take 2 kg of litter per 1 sq.m of land.
For a bed on which cabbage will grow, ash will be the best fertilizer. It is also suitable for potatoes, carrots, beets and other vegetable crops. Wood ash is rich in minerals, it reduces the acidity of the soil. With annual top dressing of the soil with ash, it is enough to use 1 glass of fertilizer per 1 sq.m of beds.
What is planted in the autumn before winter in the garden?
The traditional crop for autumn planting is onion sets. It is recommended to plant it before the first hard frost, so that the plants have time to take root. Seed material is chosen small, not more than 1 cm in diameter. The depth of planting onions before winter is minimal - about 1 cm.
In the first half of October, garlic is planted before winter. Unlike onions, garlic cloves are buried 5-10 cm into the ground so that the plant does not freeze. After planting, the bed is mulched with fallen leaves, needles or covered with spruce branches.
Spicy plants get along well on the same bed and are suitable for autumn planting. Dill, cilantro and parsley can be planted after the first night frost. A bed with sown furrows is covered with slightly frozen soil and mulched.
For autumn planting, you can use a salad. So that its greens appear on the table as early as possible, the seeds are sown in a greenhouse. At the same time, they do not need special covering material or mulching.
In regions with cold and long winters, beets are planted before winter. Cold-resistant varieties are suitable for such planting. Winter stratification ensures early spring shoots. If not all seeds have overwintered, beets can be planted in the spring.
How to treat the garden in the fall from pests and diseases?
The first stage of pest control is cleaning the garden from organic residues. Pests and bacteria can multiply in rotting fruits and diseased foliage, so healthy carrion and leaves are used to make compost, and diseased and rotten ones are destroyed.
You can spray the trees in the garden with special preparations. A solution of vitriol helps fight pests and rot. Bordeaux liquid destroys pathogens of powdery mildew and scab on apple or pear trees. Fruit-bearing shrubs are treated with a solution of soap and soda ash to avoid powdery mildew damage. Spraying with a solution of urea prevents damage to trees by leafworms, aphids, and flower beetles.
Soil preparation in the open field
Proper soil preparation allows her to rest in the winter, get rid of pests and prepare for spring planting. The garden must be dug up in the fall, improve the structure of the soil, prepare the soil in greenhouses and greenhouses.
Soil structure improvement
The minimum required amount of work in preparing the beds in autumn for winter is the introduction of organic and complex mineral fertilizers enriched with phosphorus and potassium into the soil. If a plot of land is not used for planting garden crops every year, you can feed the soil every few years. For intensively sown beds, an annual top dressing is needed.
In areas with heavy clay soil, sand, compost or leaf humus with a small amount of wood ash is introduced. This allows you to make the soil more loose, improve its saturation with air and moisture. A good additive for sandy soils will be sawdust mixed with humus or compost. These components retain moisture in the soil. If the soil in the area is acidic, it can be neutralized by adding lime, chalk or dolomite flour to the soil.
Digging the soil in autumn
There are 2 ways to dig a garden and a vegetable garden in the fall:
- Non-moldboard - when an earthen lump raised with a shovel does not need to be turned over and broken. This method of cultivating the land allows you to preserve its natural microflora.
- The second method is dumping, when the raised clod of earth must be turned over and its upper layer embedded in the ground on the bayonet of a shovel. In this case, weed seeds will be deep in the ground and will not be able to germinate to the surface. The larvae of pests, on the contrary, will be directly on the surface of the earth and freeze.
You can dig up the ground with a bayonet shovel or a pitchfork. The recommended machining depth is per shovel bayonet. The beds that are being prepared for early crops are best dug to a shallower depth. In this case, they will dry out faster in the spring.
With any method of autumn tillage, agronomists do not recommend breaking the ground, otherwise the soil will freeze. By spring, large clods will be saturated with moisture and become crumbly.
Tillage in a greenhouse
The best option for autumn soil preparation in a greenhouse or greenhouse is a complete replacement of the fertile layer of the earth. To do this, a layer of soil about 10 cm thick is removed and replaced with fresh turf. Pest larvae live in the upper layer of the earth, pathogenic microorganisms and spores of various fungi remain here, so this operation heals the microclimate of the greenhouse.
It must be remembered that simple garden soil is not suitable for a greenhouse. Plant pests also live in it. The soil can be prepared independently by mixing humus, sand and sawdust. It is evenly laid out on the beds in the greenhouse and is additionally processed with copper sulphate or potassium permanganate. After cultivation, the soil is mulched, and the closed greenhouse awaits the start of the new gardening season.
The land that is removed from the greenhouse should not fall into the garden, as it is rich in pathogenic microflora. For its disinfection, a separate area should be allocated and the soil should be treated with lime. The following summer, it is carefully dug up and after a season returns to the greenhouse or garden beds.
Mulching
Mulching the soil provides the plants with the best conditions for overwintering. Sheltered soil retains more moisture and heat, while it continues to breathe. These works are carried out in late October or early November, when the autumn garden is already ready to meet winter.
Various materials are used for soil mulching:
- fallen leaves, which will rot during the winter and enrich the soil with minerals;
- needles, which prevent soil freezing and retain enough moisture in it;
- bark and wood shavings;
- stems of garden plants;
- partially rotted sawdust;
- hay.
You can mulch both adult plants (fruit bushes, flowers, perennial shoots), and beds with vegetable crops planted before winter. The mulch is laid out on the soil in an even layer and left until spring. Additional use of covering materials in this case is not required.
Sowing green manure
Green manures are an effective organic fertilizer and good care for the garden in the fall. Most often, they are planted on the beds in the fall, when the crop is harvested. Siderates not only enrich the soil with useful trace elements, but also protect it from weeds. To do this, use plants that have a powerful root system and quickly gain green mass.
As green manure plants are often planted from the legume family: lentils, lupins, alfalfa. It can also be winter rye or wheat, mustard, amaranth, buckwheat, etc. Plants planted as green manure not only increase soil fertility and make it loose, but also protect the earth from scab, various rot and insects living in the soil.
After mowing, the plants can be used as mulching material.
Winter siderates allow you to hold snow on the beds, which provides the soil with the necessary moisture.
When planting green manure in the autumn garden, it is necessary to remember the main principle of choosing crops: the same bed cannot be used several times to grow plants belonging to the same family. This means that rapeseed, which belongs to the cruciferous family, cannot be planted in the garden after or before cabbage.
When green manure grows up to 20-25 cm, they are mowed. This must be done before the seeds appear, otherwise useful plants in the next season will become uncontrollably growing weeds. Green stems close up in the soil. When decomposed, they, like the roots remaining in the ground, will enrich the soil with useful substances.
Green manure planted in the garden before winter and mowed in spring can be left in the beds for several weeks. Such soil mulching will accelerate the decomposition of the root system remaining in the soil.
Composting
In autumn, a lot of foliage remains in the garden, and mature leaf compost is the best way to saturate the soil with humic compounds and essential trace elements. It restores the fertility of mail and improves its structure.
Compost made from fallen leaves is suitable for any type of soil. It makes sandy soil more moisture-intensive, adds breathability to clay soil. Partially rotted foliage can be used for mulching shrubs, perennial flowers or plants planted before winter: garlic, onions, herbs.
To get fresh compost every season, agronomists recommend preparing 3 compost bins on the site. The first is used to lay a new batch of leaves, grass and plant residues. In the second compost bin, last year's mixture of leaves, grass and earth ripens. In the third container, a portion of fully matured compost is formed, which can be used to fertilize beds and feed garden plants during the season.
The device of warm and high beds
The decay of organic matter, which is used in the construction of warm and high beds, provides plants with nutrients and warmth. Since the process of decay of plant residues lasts for several years, all this time you can get a rich harvest of early vegetables from the garden: cucumbers, zucchini, etc. After the lower layers rot, the soil can be transferred to the garden, and new layers can be poured into the beds.
Winterizing the beds in the fall is a good time to build a warm bed, as there is a lot of organic matter left in the garden. The type of beds is chosen, focusing on the depth of groundwater. If they are low, the construction of a warm bed is buried in the soil. When the groundwater level in the area is high, equip a high bed. In both cases, the structure requires a fence. It can be made from boards, slate, plastic.
Large organic matter is laid at the bottom of the future warm bed: uprooted stumps, trimmed boards, sawn branches. The larger these components are, the longer the life of the beds will be.
The next layer is fine organics. For these purposes, the tops of vegetable plants, branches of shrubs, fallen leaves, mowed grass, straw, paper, etc.
A layer of immature compost or manure is laid on top of fine organic matter. It will stimulate the decomposition of the lower organic layers.
The top layer is a layer of turf cut and turned upside down along with grass. Ready compost is laid out on top of it.
Each layer of a warm bed is spilled with water. Moisture accelerates the process of decay of organic matter and increases the temperature inside a warm bed. To speed up decomposition, a warm bed can be watered with a biologically active preparation, but the regular use of such products shortens its service life.
Protecting the trunks of fruit trees
One of the stages of caring for the garden in the fall is the autumn whitewashing of the trunks. It is held in October. Covered with white lime, tree trunks will be protected from exposure to sunlight, which in frosty weather provokes cracking of the bark. To give the solution of lime bactericidal properties, special preparations are added to it, for example, Farmayod. When sulfur is added to the lime, the whitewash composition provides trees with protection from hares, which feed on the bark of garden plants in winter.
Another effective way to protect the garden from representatives of the rodent family is to tie trunks with spruce branches. It allows the bark of the tree to breathe, but repels animals. You can tie stems of wormwood to the trunks. Its smell repels both hares and mice.
autumn pruning
Autumn pruning of fruit trees involves 2 ways: shortening and thinning. These activities not only help the garden grow and bear fruit, but also protect the trees from branches broken under the weight of snow. Pruning the garden in the fall also has a sanitary focus. It is necessary to remove dried or diseased branches in order to maintain the health of the entire tree or shrub.
Thinning the crown will provide the plant with good ventilation and the opportunity to get enough ultraviolet light. Young trees are thinned out every year until their crown is fully formed. To do this, only a few main branches are left on the trunk, cutting off all the young shoots. After thinning, the seedlings are watered and fed with mineral fertilizers so that the plant recovers from stress faster. The crown of mature trees is thinned out no more than 1 time in 2 years. When pruning, it is necessary to remove all improperly growing shoots.
They resort to shortening the branches so that the crown of the trees has the correct shape and grows in the right direction. Branches are shortened to a bud, which will ensure the growth of the shoot in the right direction. Agronomists recommend forming the crown of trees so that their branches are parallel to the ground. This facilitates harvesting and further care of the plant.
All diseased and lichen-covered branches are subject to removal at the end of September or October. It is worth pruning them in the autumn, as diseased shoots are sensitive to cold. This can affect the health of the entire tree. After trimming, sections with a diameter exceeding 10 mm are treated with garden pitch.
Autumn pruning of trees is carried out only in regions with a temperate climate. It is not recommended to carry out it in the cold zone: the trees do not have time to recover before the onset of winter, and the bark on the cuts freezes. In the future, this leads to drying and death of the entire tree.
Cleaning of tools and inventory
When the preparation of the beds for winter is completed and there is no work left in the garden, it is necessary to drain the water from the barrels, and turn the containers themselves upside down. Thorough cleaning and washing requires all garden equipment, from shovels to buckets and secateurs. In autumn, you can sharpen working tools: bayonet shovels, flat cutters, scissors, etc. Then in the spring, at the height of the garden season, you will not need to waste time on preparatory work.
After cleaning and revision, you should make a list of necessary purchases: garden tools, seeds, fertilizers, biological products. Buying the little things and tools necessary for the garden in stages, you can save money and prepare in advance for the new summer and garden season.
Garden beds after harvesting need to be properly prepared for the spring sowing season, the best time for this is autumn. In addition to preparing the beds, it is necessary to remove and burn the vegetable tops left after harvesting, to carry out a set of necessary measures for the arrangement of warm beds. In this article - all the necessary activities on how to prepare the garden for winter. Proper preparation of the garden for the winter is a guarantee of a rich harvest.
In autumn, it is necessary to collect plant residues from the garden plot.
To ensure the harvest of vegetables next year, preparing the beds in the fall is a necessary and important event. Work in the garden should begin with the cleaning of tops and weeds from the beds. Old grass is a favorite wintering place for garden pests and rodents, so preparing the beds for winter begins with their thorough cleaning.
The tops of vegetable plants, plant debris and weeds can be destroyed in two ways:
- Burn - when plant residues are burned, pathogens and pests are destroyed. Ash can be used to fertilize garden beds and garden trees.
- Prepare compost - this method of weed disposal is longer than burning, but the resulting nutrient substrate will help to inexpensively and qualitatively increase the fertility of garden beds.
How to properly prepare compost
Winter compost should be prepared a little differently than summer compost. Plant residues that have not been removed from the summer cottage are suitable for composting, including not only vegetable tops, but also branches of trees and shrubs, weeds, household waste, animal manure, and bird droppings.
It is very important that in winter the compost heap does not freeze, is not eroded by precipitation and is not exposed to wind, so it must be done according to all the rules.
It is very important to ensure the decomposition of the ingredients in the winter, for which it is necessary to prepare a rectangular shallow hole in the ground, on the bottom of which the cut branches of shrubs and trees are laid. Then, weeds and waste are layered, layered with manure and bird droppings.
It is useful to add double superphosphate, potash fertilizers, ash, lime or dolomite flour to the compost heap. For better air exchange, the side and end walls are laid with narrow poles. The height of the compost heap should not exceed 1.2 meters from the bottom of the trench, while the penetration into the soil is taken - 0.5 - 0.8 m. The pile is shed with weed infusion diluted with slurry. Soil is laid on top with a layer of 30 cm, the dock sides are covered with a thinner layer of soil and sheltered from rain.
The components put into the compost rot by the beginning of summer, allowing you to get a nutrient supplement to the soil that doubles fertility, and also get rid of debris and weeds along the way.
Bed preparation
Tool for digging and loosening beds.
Preparing the garden for wintering includes digging up the beds, which can be done in the classic way, radically digging up the beds. In this case, large clods are not broken, leaving them until spring. With such an autumn digging, moisture is well preserved in large clods of garden soil, therefore, when leveling the soil in spring, the percentage of moisture remains high.
The second option for processing the garden in the fall consists in surface loosening of the soil to a depth of no more than 5 cm, for which Fokin's flat cutter is used. It is useful to mulch the loosened soil with sawdust and ash, sometimes it is practiced to sow green manure herbs, the seedlings of which are embedded in the ground when digging in the spring.
Preparing the soil for winter involves creating a balanced ecological system in the garden, closest to natural conditions using mulch and sowing green manure.
Siderates for winter sowing
Green manure roots penetrate deep into the soil, loosening it.
A reliable way to restore soil fertility is the sowing of green manure, which does not require large expenditures during planting. Green manure - one or more annual crops (mixture) that quickly increase their green mass and develop a powerful root system. The root system of grasses penetrates into the deep layers of the soil, loosening and enriching its composition. The ground part of the plants serves for snow retention, is used as mulch when mowing, is embedded in the ground (green manure).
Siderates are used based on the purpose and the desired end result:
- Soil loosening - rye, mustard, oats, rapeseed ideally loosen heavy soil in garden beds.
- Disinfection of soil from pathogenic diseases of vegetable crops - winter sowing of a mixture of crops is used, which includes rapeseed, mustard, marigolds, calendula and oats.
- Improving soil fertility - a mixture of vetch with oats or rye, mustard with legumes, alfalfa, sweet clover.
- Mulching - phacelia, vetch, alfalfa.
Sowing green manure grasses can be done randomly or in rows in prepared beds after the autumn harvest of vegetable crops. A properly prepared garden can provide a high yield next year.
Sowing vegetables before winter
For early ripening of some vegetable crops, their seeds can be sown in beds in the fall. The harvest of winter vegetables is characterized by early ripening and high vitamin value.
In autumn, you can sow many garden crops, good yields can be obtained when growing carrots, beets, radishes, lettuce, dill, root parsley, celery, spinach.
The beds for the winter planting of vegetables are chosen in a dry open area, where the wetting of the beds with groundwater and melt water is excluded. It is useful to protect crops from the directed north wind, as well as to mulch the beds with compost or peat. Seeds will be able to successfully winter under a reliable shelter, and in early spring they will give the first shoots.
It should be remembered that seed consumption during the winter sowing of vegetables can double.
Regardless of whether you are going to grow vegetables, flowers or shrubs and trees, the first step is to prepare the soil. In well loosened soil, the roots can develop optimally, rainwater and water from irrigation easily seeps into such soil, and exactly where it is needed - directly to the roots, and excess moisture is easily removed. Soil with small clods is the optimal cradle for yours.
If you didn't do deep loosening in the fall, you can do it in the spring. However, it must be carried out in a timely manner, when the soil is not frozen and is no longer too wet. After all, after loosening, the soil should settle a little more and compact - only after that you can plant it in it. Try not to trample loosened soil as much as possible. For example, work mostly in reverse and lay a board if you still need to step into the garden.
Preparing beds and other areas for planting
Compost provides nutrients slowly but for a long time and generally improves soil properties. And the plants after planting begin to grow well. But it is necessary to use mature, mixed with the ground and sieved compost, which was “ready” last fall (especially for seedlings). It is best to apply it a couple of weeks before sowing. First spread the compost with a shovel or bucket over the area to be planted in a layer of about 1 cm, and then mix it into the soil, but do not bury!
Prepare the beds - loosening in the spring: give air, weeds away
If deep loosening of the soil was carried out in autumn, light loosening is enough in spring to ventilate its upper layer:
- To do this, use a grubber, cultivator or ripper.
- In dug up soil, you first need to crush large clods of earth with a pickaxe.
- At the same time, carefully collect the roots of weeds - these efforts will pay off in any case.
It is best to loosen a couple of days before planting, so that the soil has time to settle again.
How to get loose soil - an important point in preparing beds for sowing and planting seedlings
The rotary cultivator, or star roller, is a practical tool for breaking up clods and clods and removing weeds. It will be especially useful on soils prone to clumping; in other cases, you can get by with a rake.
Expert Tip: Put large clods of earth on top - they'll serve you well.
Level the ground well
Some soils are sometimes very difficult to level. To do this, you have to work with a rake up and down on the surface and rake large clods to the side. The fact that the soil is again slightly compacted does not harm the plants at all, on the contrary, it provides the seeds and roots of the plants with better contact with the ground.
Expert Tip: Level holes that get waterlogged because they can damage seeds and seedlings.
Paths and borders between beds
If the aisles are not paved with anything, then it is best to trample them down well, and then cover them with bark mulch or rubble. To keep the edges of the beds clear, use a rope stretched between the pegs, or a piece of hose. A simple and flexible border for beds can be durable plastic border tapes or vertically dug plates. The wooden palisade looks, of course, more beautiful, but it outlines too rigidly.