Evgeniy Sedov

When your hands grow from the right place, life is more fun :)

Content

After all the harvest has been harvested, you need to put the beds in order. Some summer residents are interested in the question of whether it is necessary to completely dig up the garden in the fall, and what is the best way to dig up the earth before the onset of winter. Correct execution work largely depends on the type of soil and the type of tools with which the process will be performed.

When is it better to plow the garden, in spring or autumn?

According to gardening experts, deep digging of the soil in the autumn is much more effective compared to spring procedures. The procedure helps eliminate most problems, especially for regions with poor soil. This method is called “fall plowing”, when after digging the weeds, turned upside down, become chilly and freeze. It is recommended to carry out this treatment annually, then the result will be noticeable.

What benefits does cultivating the land in autumn provide?

If you dig up the soil regularly in the autumn, after the entire crop has been harvested, the quality of the soil will improve. Gardeners with many years of experience advise performing the procedure at this time because:

• the surface layer is disinfected, harmful larvae and microorganisms are eliminated;
• the soil becomes looser;
• ventilation of the lower layers occurs;
• easy application of fertilizers is ensured;
• the roots of the weeds freeze, their number is personal plot decreases;
• the fertile layer is deepened by placing compost from weeds removed from the beds onto the lower layer of soil;
• The land is being prepared for spring planting.

After the snow melts, the soil dries, the beds will be ready for planting seeds. You just need to loosen the lumps. Such processing, carried out in the autumn, has ancient roots, because it greatly facilitated the work of the farmer when there were no modern devices that would help with mechanical digging.

Digging up the earth for the winter

During digging, the soil is prepared for winter. This period is good for adding manure, humus or compost to the site. In farms where plants suffer from wireworms, mole crickets, Colorado potato beetles, and other pests, digging up the soil for the winter will help get rid of larvae and adult insects that lie in the lower layers of the soil. In this case, you need to turn it over into the ground to a depth of 20-25 cm.

Dependence on soil type

In order to understand whether it is necessary to dig up the garden in the fall or in the spring, you need to find out what type of soil is in the garden. On summer cottage, located in a region with heavy clay soils, fertility can be increased mechanically. However, you need to dig the soil without breaking up the lumps. After snow falls, pieces of soil will begin to become saturated with oxygen. In spring, the soil will be more loose and supplied with nutrients. For wet soil, fertilizers are not so important, so with this type of soil it is better to dig the beds in spring months so that any remaining moisture evaporates.

When to dig a garden in the fall

It is important to consider the timing in which the garden will be processed in the autumn. In different regions, the time when gardeners dig up their garden may vary slightly. After all the beds have been removed, the tops should be chopped, evenly distributed over the surface of the earth and plowed manually or mechanically. It is advisable to plan all work for mid-to-late autumn before severe frosts. Therefore, experienced gardeners answer positively the question: is it possible to dig the ground after covering.

What's the best way to dig?

The method of autumn processing depends on how much area needs to be dug. If we are talking about a small area, then you can loosen the soil in the fall using a plow or shovel. This method is called “manual” because it is performed without the use of mechanized equipment. The advantage of this treatment is that the fertile layer does not suffer serious damage, but plowing may not be effective enough and will take a lot of time and effort from the gardener.

If you choose a mechanical method for digging, you can dig up the soil in the garden in the fall with a walk-behind tractor with adjustable plowing depth. It is not recommended to turn the soil more than 25 cm. In this case, beneficial microorganisms may be damaged. Now there are small tractors with rotary plows that allow you to process the soil without destroying the lower layers.

It's deep autumn outside, the last root crops have been harvested, and the earth is preparing to rest. At such a time, summer residents often wonder whether it is necessary to dig up the garden in the fall, because after harvesting all the vacant plots are already dug up.

Purpose of digging

Why should you dig up soil in your garden at all? For example, in the fall it increases in volume by almost one and a half times due to porous air ducts. When loose, carbon dioxide and oxygen help plant residues to quickly decompose and create nutritious humus. In such soil root system crops easily penetrate deep into the soil, find moisture and food, thanks to this, plants can withstand frosts and dry periods.

So, when is the best time to dig up your garden? There are a lot of arguments on this matter, arguments and conclusions too, and diametrically opposed ones.

Digging in the fall

The work ahead is hard and not everyone enjoys it, but, according to experts, the turnover of the earthen layer in the autumn is necessary and for the following reasons:

• to saturate the earth with beneficial microorganisms (and their number has already been calculated - ten kilograms per square meter), it is necessary to add organic matter - compost, humus, manure, rotted sawdust, ash, and all these useful things are added only during autumn digging

• allow microorganisms and the earth to breathe, because air helps the process of their reproduction

• weed seeds will fall to a depth from which they will not be able to germinate in the spring

• weeds moved deeper will rot and fertilize the soil

• pests that are in the ground and prepared for hibernation(Colorado beetles, caterpillars, various wireworms), once on the surface, will die from the wind, sun or be eaten by birds

• in the soil loosened in autumn, nitrogen-containing microorganisms are activated and fixed; they saturate the soil with plant forms of nitrogen

• a layer of earth that reaches the top, saturated with fertilizers, minerals, that is, it seems to be useful for future plants

• if there are trees on the site, their leaves are buried and become useful humus

• After a dry summer and dry autumn, inverted clods of earth retain moisture, which is created by air, dew, and condensation. And it, in turn, results from differences in warm daytime and cold night temperatures.

Without waiting for the autumn rains, you can immediately dig up the vacated areas of the bed. Then nutritious organisms will begin to cultivate and improve the soil earlier.

Digging in the fall saves time, which will be useful when preparing gardens in the spring, and this is probably the strongest argument in solving the problem of when to dig up a garden in the fall or spring.

Controversial aspects of autumn gardening

Autumn digging is a controversial issue today, and experienced gardeners who prefer spring tillage also justify it:

• when turning over a layer of soil in the fall, beneficial worms may die, but according to statistics, there are only ten percent of them; most of them are in clods, which are not broken up in the fall

• during spring digging, all processes are actively renewed, the soil at this time is able to give all its useful substances to new plants and grains

• To avoid weathering of food and moisture, the dug up soil is immediately harrowed in the spring. Its structure allows this to be done, but in the fall this process is in no way possible, because during the summer the earth becomes so compacted that it has to be crushed

• fallen leaves - ideally healthy trees on the site are now a rarity, therefore, with the fallen leaves of fruit trees, their pathogenic microbes can get into the soil during autumn digging; they are preserved and waiting in the wings. So, regarding fallen leaves, the answer is obvious - they need to be removed from the garden.

Regarding the depth of digging, agricultural technicians have proven that it is the top five to ten centimeters of the soil layer that are 100% useful; the further in depth, the poorer the soil. By turning the layer over onto the bayonet of a shovel, we bury beneficial microorganisms in the fertile soil, but the top layer turns out destroyed, lifeless, and infertile. By nature, biological soil changes from active to passive, and it needs time to recover, which, out of annual habit, we simply do not give it.

It also happens that suddenly in the area allotted for a vegetable garden, the fertile layer is small and during deep digging, the subsoil comes to the top. And it can consist of sand, podzolic infertile soil, clay. They, mixing with already cultivated soil, reduce its fertility, and this area will constantly need additional fertilizer.

Do you need to dig up your garden in the fall?

And this depends on the composition of the soil. After all, each soil has its own density, and for our crops we need the optimal one.

For example, marshy soil is favorable for vegetables because it is light. It is not necessary to dig it up in the fall, and it is useless. After the autumn digging, in the spring it will have to be treated with a roller in order to regulate the humidity and create conditions for the beneficial development of the planted crops.

Chernozem is a mechanically heavy composition, moisture-intensive, very dense. The mandatory depth of plowing is up to thirty centimeters. It is especially necessary to work in heavily clogged areas, and it is necessary to apply fertilizers.

Sandy, sandy loam and peat soils do not need digging. And here, if you consider that only the top layer is useful, you can cultivate such land with a small cultivator. You should not apply fertilizers to the entire area; this is a difficult and impractical task, because the nutrition is quickly washed away by precipitation and watering. It is more convenient and beneficial to apply it exactly to the planned plots separated for vegetable crops or directly into the holes during spring planting.

You should also not adapt to your neighbors. Areas located very close may differ greatly in type and humidity. Lowland ones are damp, wet, they are well suited for arranging high beds, which will dry out faster and be better warmed up by the spring sun.

Light soil is soddy-podzolic, sandy loam is dry and not suitable for high beds. Double drying out will cause the plants to suffer and will have to be watered more often. In this case, conventional planting is used, at ground level, and this saves effort, time and the result is pleasing.

Labor-intensive activities, such as digging up beds with the addition of useful ash, lime, manure, forming areas for the necessary crops, are best carried out taking into account the above factors. After all, in the fall we have more time to prepare for the future dacha season, and in his garden, each gardener himself determines when, what and where to dig or not to dig.

Tips for a beginning gardener: how to dig up a vegetable garden “in winter”

(13.11.2011)

Among gardeners, there is no clear opinion as to whether it is worth watering the garden in the fall. Opponents of autumn digging claim that in this way all the organic matter of the earth created by worms and plant roots is “killed”. In addition, according to them, the top fertile layer of the earth may suffer from digging, since in the dug up state it will be blown more by the wind. Those who are sure that it is necessary to dig up the garden before winter say that it is these same roots and bugs that need to be frozen out.

All these disputes have a constructive basis. But in general, they don’t give specific advice for a simple gardener. To dig or not to dig a garden in the fall depends on many factors: the structure of the soil, the methods of its cultivation, the crops that are planted, and other things. In this case, practice is more reliable than theory.

From personal experience I can say that you need to dig up your garden in the fall. In support, I will give several arguments and add tips on how to properly dig a vegetable garden “before winter.” It is necessary to dig up the garden in the fall, if only because in the spring it will be easier to develop the soil for the beds. If the top layer of soil is solid, then during the winter it will become “clogged” from precipitation so that it will be very difficult to make the soil soft. And the majority cultivated plants prefer “fluffy” soil. You need to dig up the entire garden where you plan to plant next year.

Digging “in winter” makes it possible to get rid of weeds. To do this, the soil must be turned over completely so that the remains of the grass are not visible on the surface. Having rotted, these weeds will not be superfluous fertilizer for the earth, and the roots that end up on the surface will freeze. You need to dig up the earth in large blocks, without breaking them. This way the organic matter of the earth will not be greatly disturbed. At the same time, moisture will penetrate deeper into the soil. And in early spring, the earth dug up in large blocks will shake out faster and become suitable for planting

It is better to use a pitchfork as a working tool rather than a shovel. You should be wary of the fact that the winter will be dry and frosty. This is bad for the soil, especially for dug up soil. Therefore, if possible, the beds should be covered with fallen leaves; as they rot, they will warm the earth.

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Do I need to dig deep into the soil often? Tilling the soil twice a year (often incorrectly) and continuously loosening it in the summer does not contribute to improvement, as many gardeners believe, but to the dispersion of the soil structure. This means that such deep tillage of the soil in the garden should not be abused unnecessarily, although in the fall on heavy clay soil it is practically impossible to do without it.

Digging of heavy soil to a depth of no more than 15 cm should be done only in the fall, without turning the soil over, but only shifting it and removing the roots of perennial weeds.

Leveling the ground in autumn

A mandatory operation is leveling, which refers to surface tillage of the soil. It is usually produced during spring processing using a rake. When the soil is sufficiently dry, you need to level its surface to reduce the evaporation of water that comes with the spring melting of snow. To do this, break up the clods of earth left in the fall and evenly distribute the entire volume of soil over the area using a rake; at the same time, you can scatter mineral fertilizers and level them with the soil. The rake is driven back and forth with constant force, in smooth, continuous movements, ensuring that the teeth glide across the surface of the soil without digging it up. Pre-dug soil is leveled

Latest articles about gardening

reciprocating movements of the rake, first in one and then in a perpendicular direction. A rake is usually used to lightly cover the seeds after sowing, move the soil into the furrows, and collect leaves, dry grass, last year’s mulch, and any debris from the area.

When to till the soil in the fall

There are several methods for autumn tillage using this technology, both using an EM solution and using EM compost. But there is one general condition: the higher the soil temperature, the more active the microorganisms work. Therefore, the sooner you cultivate the soil, the more benefits they will have time to bring.

The first method: weed the weeds and, without removing them, treat the soil with a solution of the EM preparation. Microorganisms immediately get to work, decomposing the cut parts of plants and the roots remaining in the ground. Weed seeds germinate together, but with the onset of frost the seedlings die.

Method two: treat the damp soil with a solution of the EM preparation, loosen it by 5-7 cm and cover it with a layer of fallen leaves and plucked grass (mulch). Decomposing roots and mulch will make the soil much more fertile and improve its structure by spring.

What benefits does cultivating the land in autumn provide?

First of all, this simplifies and facilitates planting work in the spring. Even those who are against such an event agree with this. After all, when the last vegetables are collected, the cold weather is still quite far away. And if the weather is warm, the beds become overgrown with weeds. This means that if you don’t remove them now, then next season it will be more difficult to fight the dominance of weeds. When cultivating the soil in autumn, a good water-air regime is created for plants;

The thermal properties of the soil also improve in the spring, the soil will ripen faster for planting.

One of the advantages of autumn work is that the remains of stems, stones and other debris were removed ahead of time.

To dig or not to dig a garden by autumn

And the black earth is his work. How does a worm do this? Feels hungry, rises to the surface, captures plant debris along with the soil, descends, passing them through itself along the way, then frees itself from waste products. And so on in a circle.

During its movement, the worm leaves behind a passage that has access to the surface of the earth. This passage, it turns out, is filled with air and waste products of the worm - roughly speaking, its manure.

Tilling the soil in autumn with a walk-behind tractor

Deviations to the sides often occur - these are withdrawals that usually occur in furrows that have already been cultivated. This may lead to another question: how to properly plow with a walk-behind tractor so that the rotating blades do not go into the ground? Only appropriate manipulation of the handles can help with this. Unfortunately, careful monitoring must be carried out on any soil. So, on loose soil, it is necessary to ensure that the cutters do not dive too deeply, and in the process of processing hard soil and virgin soil, it may be necessary to perform several approaches. It is advisable to carry out the first treatment at low speeds, and it is important to adjust the position of the coulter accordingly.

Fertilizing the soil with mineral fertilizers in the fall

These inorganic substances are obtained during chemical reactions, which are controlled by humans, or extracted from the bowels of the earth. Mineral fertilizers are potassium, nitrogen and phosphorus. Moreover, they may contain various micro- and macroelements necessary for the normal functioning of trees.

Nitrate: calcium, sodium and ammonium;

Urea;

Ammonium sulfate.

Feeding with ash

You can make ash yourself. Just burn the weeds, tops and branches and scatter about 1 kilogram per square meter of soil, then dig up the ground. This is done once every 3 years. They love this food:

• strawberry;
• raspberries;
• currant;
• cabbage;
• potato.

Don't overdo it with ash. This is dangerous because the plants will begin to rot after planting.

Applying organic fertilizers to the soil in autumn

Humus. Organic fertilizers usually include humus, chicken manure, and compost in the fall. On poor soils apply fresh manure up to 300-500 kg per hundred square meters. In September-October, they are scattered over a designated area and embedded in the soil.

Adding chicken manure. Concentrated organic fertilizer. Fertilizer applied directly under the root causes a burn to the root system of plants. For fertilizing, bird droppings are diluted and used in the form of a liquid solution for fertilizing.

Compost. Compost is an organic fertilizer made from plant and animal waste with the addition of soil and (if available) peat.

Green fertilizers or green manures. Green fertilizers, or green manures, also belong to organic fertilizers. Winter green manure is sown after harvesting the main crop in the fall for digging or left until spring soil preparation. They are used on heavy floating soils for the purpose of loosening (rapeseed, oats, phacelia, mustard, rapeseed and others).

Killing weeds by autumn

Destruction of weeds chemically I spend it in calm and cloudy weather. For these purposes I use the herbicide Roundup. Before spraying the weeds, I cover nearby useful crops with film, otherwise they may die along with the weeds.

When it comes time to cultivate the garden, be it spring or autumn digging or harrowing, most gardeners clutch their heads in despair. This rather complex and time-consuming procedure without knowledge of its rules can turn into a complete nightmare. It is especially difficult for beginners who take up a shovel as if it were a foreign object. Fortunately, there are convenient and the right ways land treatments that will help you simplify this process.

How to dig correctly, instructions

Most gardeners advise digging to the depth of the entire bayonet of a shovel when digging or planting. This will help turn the top soil with weed seeds, mineral and organic fertilizers that were sprinkled onto the ground into the bottom of the hole formed.

In autumn, the most effective method of the pass is digging up the earth in furrows 40 cm wide, but no more than the width of a spade bayonet.

The area to be dug is mentally divided into two parts. The first row of furrows is dug, then the second row is buried. Thus, the soil layers are saturated with oxygen and nutrients. This method is also recommended if you fertilize the soil with manure or compost. Having previously scattered it throughout the garden, dig up the ground to distribute it evenly. A “bed” of manure is also effective: place manure at the bottom of the furrow and sprinkle it with soil.

If the soil of your garden needs lime, then it cannot be mixed with manure - they can enter into a chemical reaction. Important!

Lime should be scattered over the surface of the area without burying.

It is best to dig the soil while holding the bayonet of the shovel in a vertical position. This will increase the layer of cultivated soil due to deep penetration and make it easier to separate the breasts.

Is it necessary and when to dig up the soil in the fall?

This question is a stumbling block for most gardeners. Some believe that digging up a vegetable garden in the fall is not rational, while others, following traditional methods of tillage, argue that this will increase the yield next year. We will give several arguments that will help you answer the question of whether it is necessary to dig up the soil in the fall. is that the top layer of leaves, twigs and other plant elements falls into the inner ball of soil and rots over the winter, and the larvae of many insect pests rise to the surface of the earth and die from birds or winter frosts. The soil is enriched with nitrogen microorganisms, which are activated by oxygen.

The downside is that, that when you dig up the soil, you bury weed seeds, helping them to overwinter and sprout in the spring.

If the soil of your garden needs lime, then it cannot be mixed with manure - they can enter into a chemical reaction. When digging in the fall, you need to fence the area.

As you know, it is recommended to properly dig up the soil in the fall no deeper than 10 cm, since with deeper penetration the beneficial substances erode.

There is no clear opinion regarding autumn digging. The advantage is that the top layer of soil will not compact as much over the winter, and in the spring it will take you less time to prepare the soil for planting.

It is also necessary to dig up the soil in the fall because the soil needs replenishment before winter. When the first rains arrive, it is too late to dig up the soil; in the fall, this period falls at the end of October. So it’s better to do it by the middle of this month.

Is it necessary to dig up the site in the spring?

When digging up a garden in the spring, you must take into account the fact that the soil has hardened over the winter.

How to properly dig up the soil in spring? If you tilled the soil in the fall, then in the spring you only need to harrow the soil. In this way, moisture reserves will be preserved, preventing the upper layers of the soil from drying out.

If the soil of your garden needs lime, then it cannot be mixed with manure - they can enter into a chemical reaction. You don’t need to dig up the soil deeply in the spring, just half a shovel deep.

Shallow digging will help preserve the substances that you buried in the soil in the fall. All humus, fertilizers, and compost will become an excellent basis for your harvest. Enriched soil is known to promote active germination of seeds and their preservation in the event of frost.

Did you know? In the spring, there is no need to dig up the entire area: it is better to leave the paths, and then the weeds will be less of a nuisance.

What is a sole and how to get rid of it

The sole is a layer of compacted soil resulting from frequent digging of the garden to the same depth.

Heavy soils (soddy-podzolic, clayey) and swampy soils are susceptible to the formation of soles. It is recommended to carry out a two-tier excavation of the territory every 4-6 years.

If the soil of your garden needs lime, then it cannot be mixed with manure - they can enter into a chemical reaction. Do not overuse two-tier digging. Beneficial substances disappear.

The sole prevents the growth of many rooted plants: celery, carrots, beets, onions, parsley, etc., and deforms their roots.

If the sole is heavily compacted, then stagnation of water occurs, which promotes the development of unfavorable bacteria and microorganisms, which subsequently affect the development of vegetables.

Digging the garden on two levels will help you get rid of the sole. It is advisable to carry it out in the fall, so that beneficial microflora has time to form during the winter and spring. To do this, you need to dig a furrow the width of the bayonet of your shovel and loosen its bottom with a garden fork. In this case, the soil along the edges of the furrow should also be loosened. Then you can add compost or manure. As a result of such digging, the arable layer increases, and the earth is saturated with oxygen necessary for the development of useful substances, and its physical and water properties improve.

Did you know? During two-tier digging, the top layer of low-fertility soil is not removed.

How to dig virgin soil correctly

Virgin land is land that has not been subjected to any cultivation, not plowed by anyone and, on the one hand, wild.

If you have such an area, then this is a great reason to treat it and get moral and physical satisfaction from the results. Once you have gathered the strength, tools and inspiration, you can immediately begin. But keep in mind that this is terrible work and testing.

If the soil of your garden needs lime, then it cannot be mixed with manure - they can enter into a chemical reaction. When choosing a site, you should make sure that there are amenities nearby: water, a store, a gas station, roads.

You can process virgin soil either with the help of technology or on your own (this depends on your health). The method of processing with machinery is quite simple, but before you think that, except for a tractor, there is nothing you can do to dig up virgin soil, remember about your hands and feet. An excellent tool, and most importantly, free, for conquering virgin lands.

Manual processing is a complex and labor-intensive process. First of all, you need to choose the right season. The autumn digging period is perfect for this type of work. Since to process virgin soil you need to clear your abandoned area of ​​weeds, start by choosing a lawn mower. You can use a regular one, but then the work time will increase.

If the soil of your garden needs lime, then it cannot be mixed with manure - they can enter into a chemical reaction. It is necessary to mow grass and weeds in virgin lands before mechanical processing.

You will also need a shovel. Virgin land It is best to dig in parts, dividing it with a thread. You need to dig to a depth of at least 15 cm. Leave the dug area to dry for a while. Then you need to walk over it with a pitchfork and fluff up the earth.

When digging virgin soil, it is important to be patient, because such a task often remains abandoned due to its complexity.

Is it possible to make the digging process easier?

First of all, you need to choose the right shovel. Its handle should be strong, smooth and sufficiently polished. This will protect you from damage to your palms and unexpected breakdowns. The bayonet blade needs to be sharpened well - then the process will go faster.

You also need to protect yourself from injuries (rubbed calluses, splinters). Gloves for work should have rubberized palms, then the hand will not slip on the smooth handle. Choose closed-type shoes with hard soles, as thin ones may cause pain when pressing your foot on the shovel.

So how can you make digging your garden easier? different ways Let's start with the simplest thing - how you hold the instrument.

The shovel must be placed vertically, with the bayonet to the ground. Press down on the shovel tray with your foot, while holding the handle firmly with both hands. The shovel bayonet must be inserted to the depth required for the type of digging - full length or half. The working leg can be chosen at your discretion. Typically, right-handers use the right hand, and left-handers, respectively, the left.

According to the rules, the shovel and its bayonet must be perpendicular to the ground, since at an angle you will not be able to dig deep into the soil. It is better to maintain an average digging pace.

The process of digging and cultivating the earth is quite difficult, but by adhering to simple and useful tips, you will greatly simplify this seasonal work for yourself. Don’t be afraid to experiment - tillage is based more on experience and your own observations than on norms and rules.

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The end of the dacha season is perhaps the busiest time for gardeners. Preparing the land for next year's planting is a prerequisite for obtaining a good harvest. Supporters of natural farming simplify their task by limiting themselves to mulching and loosening the soil. Followers traditional methods In the fall, they dig intensively into the beds. So which one is right? Is it worth investing time and effort into thoroughly digging up your garden, and when is it really necessary?

Why dig up the ground - arguments for it

Over the summer, the earth has worked hard and is tired - it has yielded crops, sprouted weeds, compacted and accumulated harmful fungi and bacteria. Deep (25–35 cm) digging with a shovel allows you to:

1. Get rid of weeds. During digging, it is much easier to pull out and chop large and long roots of weeds. In addition, the seeds of annuals that fall deep into the soil will end up on the surface and freeze in the winter.
2. Deeply loosen the soil and provide access to oxygen and moisture to the roots, improve gas exchange, which, in turn, will lead to more efficient decomposition of organic matter.
3. Get rid of pathogenic microflora, as it thrives best in dense, compressed soil. Once on the soil surface, pathogenic microorganisms will die at the first frost.
4. Fertilize the soil. Almost all autumn fertilizers are applied during digging, and organic matter rots best in loose soil.

And another important argument is making work easier in the spring. Fertilized soil will come out from under the snow, which will only need to be loosened before planting.

When digging, it becomes possible to clear the area of ​​weeds, leaves, stones and other debris, which creates many problems in the spring

You can't dig - arguments against

Gardeners who practice organic farming believe that deep digging brings nothing but harm. Their tools in the fall are a flat cutter and a rake. Yes, they agree that the compacted top layer of soil needs to be loosened, but not more than 5–7 cm, so as not to disturb beneficial insects and not to change the places of aerobic and anaerobic bacteria living deep in the ground.

Although biologists do not agree with this statement. Anaerobic bacteria live at a depth exceeding 40 cm, so digging the beds even 35 cm will not be able to exchange their places with bacteria living in the upper layers of the soil.

According to supporters of light tillage, digging destroys its structure, passages and holes of beneficial insects and earthworms - the main assistants of gardeners. The growth of weeds, on the contrary, is activated, since they have very productive roots. A rhizome cut into pieces with a shovel is capable of sprouting a new plant from each piece. And the seeds remaining on the surface of the earth will go deeper and safely overwinter.

Processing with a flat cutter is done without turning the soil, which only to a small extent affects the quiet life of soil inhabitants

What kind of soil definitely needs deep digging?

In the dispute between opponents and defenders of traditional farming, the truth is in the middle. You really shouldn’t overuse deep digging. For example, it is better to dig sandy and light soils only in the spring. There is no need for constant autumn plowing in warm regions with a dry climate. And in areas with a high risk of weathering and soil leaching, deep tillage is considered harmful.

Virgin plots of land require annual digging for the first few years

But there are situations when deep plowing cannot be avoided:

• Raising virgin land. For the first three years of operation, such land requires autumn digging. Then, depending on the condition, it can be loosened and dug to a shallow depth with a pitchfork.
• If the site has heavy clay soil, only deep digging can loosen it.
• When the ground is affected by pests, the larvae of which lie at a depth of 20–25 cm. When digging, insect eggs will end up on the surface and will not survive the winter cold.

Autumn manual plowing has its own rules. Experienced gardeners advise not to break or turn over clods of earth so that the beneficial soil microflora suffers minimal losses. Under root crops, pumpkins, melons and parsley, the soil is dug to a depth of 20–25 cm; for tomatoes, cucumbers, legumes, peppers and radishes – to a depth of 5–10 cm. The treatment is carried out in dry, cool weather.

Video: pros and cons of autumn digging of beds

It is a fact that every autumn the earth needs restoration. Whether or not to dig it depends on the composition and moisture level of the soil, as well as the personal choice of each farmer.

Plowing of the land in large areas is carried out in spring and autumn. Before embarking on such an important event, it is necessary to understand its essence in detail. There is a common belief that plowing helps reduce the number of pests and weeds on the site. Also, agricultural workers prefer to plow the land in order to fertilize it.

The above opinions are certainly true, but they are far from the only ones. Among the key reasons for plowing a plot of land are:

• excessive soil compaction or erosion;
• presence of pests and weeds;
• salinization.

The last reason is the most common. If periodically plow the land then salt will accumulate inside the soil. This is especially familiar to residents of regions with high humidity. Excessive salinity negatively affects crop yields.

Additionally, you should know that the loosening process leads to the saturation of the soil with oxygen. This process is important primarily for beneficial microorganisms. They have a direct impact on soil fertility indicators.

Optimal time for plowing

Experienced agronomists recommend plowing the garden once or twice a year. As noted above, spring and autumn are optimal for this. It is necessary to understand that the time of year also leaves its mark on the described process.

Autumn plowing of the site deserves increased attention. It is at this time that the land is being prepared for the next harvest year. Saturation of the soil with oxygen causes many weeds to die off. Closer to spring, a natural restoration of beneficial bacteria occurs, which has a great effect on the fertility of the soil.

Experienced gardeners confirm the fact that getting rid of weeds is a key task for them. It is unlikely that it will be possible to cope with the task one hundred percent, but it is possible to reduce the number of harmful plants on the site to a minimum. For this purpose, it is precisely necessary to carry out plowing in a timely manner. From the information presented it follows that time to plow the land occurs after harvesting from the site.

Plowing rules

In the autumn, farmers rely on deeper plowing of their own land. When determining the optimal time to start work, it is necessary to build on climatic features region. It is best to schedule plowing in late autumn, when it has already become quite cold. If we talk about the south of the country, then we can even talk about December.

It is important to monitor temperature readings. It is necessary to plow the garden before the temperature drops below 5 degrees Celsius at night. According to statistics, for most regions it is best to plow in November. Additional work should be carried out by owners of areas where the soil is sandy or clayey. In this case, it must be fertilized with manure or humus. The corresponding action is designed to increase soil fertility.

Spring plowing

In the spring, the garden is also plowed. During this period, soil reservation is carried out. This work takes place immediately after the top layer of soil has dried sufficiently. For plowing large vegetable gardens, it is better to use a tractor cutter. At the same time, it is not at all necessary to plant it deeply. In this case, the soil is loosened safely, because all its beneficial bacteria remain absolutely unharmed.

Regardless of the time of year, you should definitely know how to plow the soil correctly and what secrets this process has. There are both manual and mechanical methods of plowing the garden. For small areas it is not necessary to call a tractor. In this case, a walk-behind tractor will be sufficient. The appropriate technology allows for fairly deep plowing (up to 25 cm).

A tractor is necessary for large vegetable gardens. At the same time, the person who will manage it must have professionalism and appropriate experience. When choosing the type of tractor, it is necessary to take into account the properties of the soil itself. Sometimes the heaviest equipment simply cannot penetrate deep into the ground. Such tractors even sometimes sink in the soil, which is why plowing is not done properly.

We get rid of weeds and improve the composition of the soil on the site together with the participants of our portal.

Most of us amateur gardeners continue to dig up our plot after harvesting. In this article we will tell you why FORUMHOUSE participants dig up the soil in the fall and what fertilizers they apply to it.

• What kind of soil is recommended to dig?
• How to deoxidize the soil in the fall.
• Why bring in sawdust for autumn digging?
• Should I add manure for autumn digging?
• What fertilizers are applied before digging the soil in autumn?

Why do autumn digging of the soil?

Supporters and followers of the people's agronomist Nikolai Ivanovich Kurdyumov have long abandoned deep digging of the soil with turning over a layer of earth. It is believed that this event sends beneficial, humus-forming microorganisms so deep that they die there from lack of oxygen. Soil without microorganisms becomes scarce, dries out and loses its beneficial properties.

Most experts also do not recommend digging up sandy soil and good, loose, humus-rich loam. But clay soil, especially in areas with high groundwater level, is almost always dug up, because this makes it possible to improve its air and water regime. In spring it will warm up faster and better.

At FORUMHOUSE you will learn how to do a simple test on your property at home.

In addition, we usually dig up our beds in the fall to select weed rhizomes. This event allows us to get rid of most of the dandelions, wheatgrass and other perennials that have been spoiling our dacha life all summer. As a bonus, we will also defeat annuals: on well-dug soil, a significant part of their seeds will freeze and will not sprout in the spring. Along with them, some pests and pathogens will die in winter.

How and when to do autumn digging of the soil

Typically, the soil is dug up soon after harvest, from mid-September to mid-October. In any case, this activity must be completed before the onset of prolonged rains, otherwise we will only aggravate the situation by further compacting the soil.

It would be correct not to turn over the pieces of soil removed with a shovel, but simply move them to another place, simultaneously selecting the rhizomes of plants.

It is also undesirable to break large pieces of earth, because they will retain moisture when the endless autumn rains begin, and will not allow the soil to swim and compact again.

After 10-14 days, seedlings will appear on the dug up soil, which we can easily remove. This technique also helps to significantly reduce the number of weeds.

What to add for autumn digging

During the autumn digging of the soil, lime, dolomite flour and ash (to deoxidize), sawdust (to improve the mechanical composition) and fertilizers (to improve fertility) are added.

Ash, sawdust, dolomite

If the soil on your site is acidic, then it is best to deoxidize it by liming in the fall. By spring, the soil will have time to absorb the lime added in the fall, so you can safely plant seedlings and sow seeds. If lime is added in the spring, it can burn young roots and prevent soil-forming bacteria from multiplying.

Dolomite flour is a deoxidizer no worse than lime.

Marishka Member of FORUMHOUSE

If there is a lot of coltsfoot and horsetail on the site, this indicates high acidity of the soil. The soil needs to be deoxidized (with dolomite flour, for example), but this is done before digging in the fall.

A participant in our portal was the owner of a clayey, acidified area. Now her land is unrecognizable.

Owl

To deoxidize the soil, add ash (throughout the summer) or fluffed lime (in the fall). The use of ash and lime improves the soil structure itself.

To improve the soil structure for autumn digging also. With the right approach, sawdust will certainly be useful for the soil. But it should be remembered that, as they decompose, they draw nitrogen from the ground. Therefore, it is recommended to add only rotted sawdust and sawdust treated with urea.

Chayka Member of FORUMHOUSE

For our lands, sawdust is the most accessible baking powder. You can, of course, also use straw and, for example, seed husks. But where can you get this from us? The fields have long been overgrown with weeds. So do not burn your sawdust or throw it away, but put it in compost with the addition of mineral fertilizers and lime, of course, mixed with other waste. The compost will be great!

Should I apply manure in the fall?

The advantage of applying fertilizers in the fall is that by the beginning of the new gardening season they will have time to break down and mix with the soil.

Many gardeners add rotted manure for autumn digging, but experts do not recommend doing this; in extreme cases, you can add extremely small portions. Wintering perennial plants do not need nitrogen; it will only harm them.

However, there is no need to give it up.

Helga FORUMHOUSE Member

Liquid fertilizers cannot be compared with rotted manure. They simply feed the plants instantly and use manure to improve or mulch the soil.

Once every few years, but it is better to do this in the spring.

Magol FORUMHOUSE Member

If you want to get a harvest of “20 buckets each” from eight acres: tomatoes, cucumbers, potatoes, currants, strawberries, gooseberries and raspberries, then you can’t do without a manure machine every two years. In the first year, we dump any manure and form a manure heap, scientifically - a high bed, pour a layer of earth 10-15 cm thick on top and plant cucumbers, zucchini, and pumpkin. Next year we add crumbly black soil from the garden bed as fertilizer.