Content:
Soil quality is one of the most important conditions for a good harvest this season. Therefore, it is very important to monitor its condition and fix problems in time.
First you need to understand what type of soil you will have to work with. Soils are different: clay, loamy, sandy, sandy loam. Each type has its own way of improving.
Determination of soil type
It is very easy to find out what the soil consists of in the garden. To do this, you need to mix a lump of earth with water and try to shape it.
- Sandy soil does not hold its shape at all. It will not make a ball or cord.
- Sandy loam can be turned into a ball, but a cord cannot be made from it.
- Loamy can create a cord, but if you try to make a ring out of it, it will crack and break.
- A soil with a lot of clay will easily turn into a perfect ring without cracks.
Improvement of sandy and sandy loam type
The main problem with sandy areas is the inability to retain moisture. This is the first thing to work with. The easiest way to solve this problem is by increasing the frequency of watering, while the volume of water is reduced.
You can also cover the soil with foil, and pour soil on top. Thus, moisture from the bowels will rise to the top, but will not evaporate.
Rotten manure, humus, rotten fallen leaves are well suited as fertilizers. They need to be mixed well with the ground at different depths, and not just poured on top. Such fertilizers are applied in spring, summer and autumn.
Improvement of clay and loamy type
The problem with these types is that they are poorly permeable to water and air, they are difficult to warm up and form a crust on the surface. These types must be loosened.
For this, manure is suitable, necessarily rotted, one and a half buckets per square meter. It is introduced in spring or autumn at a shallow depth, about 10 centimeters. Fresh manure is only suitable in the fall because it can burn the plant roots.
Lying sawdust is also a good baking powder. The optimal amount is 1 bucket per square meter. Before adding them, they must be soaked in urea so that they do not take all the nitrogen out of the soil. Fresh sawdust can acidify the area, so they are not used for fertilization.
The previous methods of loosening are good, but it will take some time until they work. To speed up the process, you can add river sand to the ground together with fertilizers, it will loosen the area instantly. The ideal amount is a bucket per square meter.
General recommendations
The most inexpensive way to improve any land is to top up fertile agricultural soil. Then, if desired, you can add sand, compost or peat to it.
It is possible to improve the air and water regime in the soil by adding about 20% of peat to the ground.
