Do-it-yourself “correct” beds
I have my own house and a plot of 7 acres. We have been using the garden for 20 years. So, in last years I began to notice that the earth was becoming heavy, water- and air-tight, and the harvests were getting poorer and poorer. In the fall, it became a shame that so much effort, time and money had been invested, and the result was almost zero.
Something had to be done, but I didn’t know what. That’s when B.A.’s book fell into my hands. bagel “Vegetable garden in a new way. The revolutionary method of “doing nothing.” This book turned my whole thinking upside down and allowed me to take a fresh look at cultivated plants, weeds, pests, soil and Mother Nature in general. In nature, everything is interconnected: one with another, another with a third, and so on along the chain. And then I looked on the Internet, saw a lot of interesting, smart, instructive things, and in the spring I decided to implement the basic principles of organic farming in my garden.
With the onset of spring, my husband and I divided the garden into “Right” beds – 90 cm wide and 8 m long(although the length can be arbitrary), row spacing is 60 cm. The width of the bed should be such that you can reach the middle with your hand, because you cannot step on the ground either when planting or when weeding.
Row spacing should be wide to provide plants with good air exchange and light, since scientists have long proven that plants take only 30% of the required energy from the soil in the form of nutrients.
We also chose a width of 60 cm because of its convenience when mowing with a lawn mower. The brought soil and compost were poured onto the top of the beds and everything was mixed together with garden soil. The beds turned out to be slightly raised, but not high. Several beds were fenced off with wooden boards - there was not enough material for everything.
One bed contained 4 rows for planting seeds of onions, carrots, beets, and radishes. I planted seedlings of tomatoes, peppers, eggplants, and cabbage in two rows in a checkerboard pattern. Vegetables were planted according to the principle of “good neighborliness”, i.e. compatibility of cultures. For example, onions along with carrots and beets (along the edge of the bed). In general, beets are considered an “extreme” crop; their place is at the edge of the garden bed. She planted tomatoes with peppers, cabbage with celery and beets.
Combined plantings are good because the plants (at least three species) do not oppress neighbors, but help each other.
Don't expect a harvest without mulch!
Further, following the principles of organic farming, I mulched the plantings, but did this only when seedlings began to appear (late spring - early summer). Mulched with mowed grass, but always dried a little in the shade. The mulch was watered with a solution containing effective microorganisms and water was poured on top again. Beneficial microorganisms begin to work when warm weather sets in with an air temperature of at least 25°.
Throughout the summer, I added more and more mulch (about once every one or two weeks). Ideally, the mulch layer per season should be at least 5 cm.
And with potatoes we did this: the bushes came up after the first weeding and hilling by the whole family mulched with straw and hay. Of course, we had to work hard, but then throughout the summer we no longer weeded, and the Colorado potato beetle appeared much later and in smaller numbers. The area under potatoes was small, about 4 acres. The strawberry bed was also mulched with mown grass, where clean berries were then collected, and there were no rotten ones at all. Weeds grow through the mulch, but very little. To avoid them altogether, you need a dense layer of mulch of at least, as I said, 5 cm.
Mulching is especially important in hot weather, but in rainy weather you need to be careful, as mulch can rot, especially on heavy soils.
And yet it has many more advantages: protecting the soil from drying out, reducing labor costs for weeding, enriching the soil due to the decomposition of organic matter by soil microorganisms and bacteria.
Wormwood instead of chemistry
Separately, I would like to dwell on ways to control pests and diseases in organic farming. To combat pests, I planted plants in the beds that repel them. For example, next to the cabbage I planted marigolds, hyssop, sage and a lot of dill.
White butterflies circled and circled over the cabbage, but I never noticed any pests on the leaves. I added basil to the tomatoes and peppers, which not only repels insects, but also improves the taste of tomatoes and the structure of the soil. I planted onions and carrots close to each other, since the onion fly is repelled by carrots, and the carrot fly by onions. Wormwood repels many pests, especially Colorado potato beetle. I have several wormwood bushes growing in my garden in different places, but to the side, not in the beds. With the help of wormwood, I saved eggplants from the striped pest. In the summer, when all my spicy plants and flowers bloomed, there was such beauty in the garden, and the smell was amazing!
I fertilized only once, in the spring, and only foliar. Next season we plan to use our own solutions and fertilizers.
In the fall, we plant the vacated beds with green manure (white mustard). The use of green manure is another principle of organic farming. They enrich the soil with macro- and microelements, their long rhizomes loosen the soil and increase the humus layer of the soil.
When using organic farming, the land before winter should always be covered with greenery and in no case bare.
And in conclusion, I want to say: in order to carry out “perestroika” in the garden, my husband and I had to work a lot, but the whole family is very pleased with the results of this work! In addition, next season there will be much less work, since the beds will already be permanent, all that remains is to loosen them (up to 5-7 cm) and plant the plants.
If you follow the principles of organic farming, the humus layer in the garden bed will increase every year, as a result of which the yields will increase significantly, and (most importantly!) they will be absolutely clean from an environmental point of view.
Dear gardeners, switch to organic farming! It really works - tested practical experience. Believe me, this is a very interesting process, because Mother Nature has long taken care of everything for us, we just need to watch her and try to disturb her as little as possible!
Seedlings in diapers
I really love experimenting in the garden. I take a plastic bag for a sandwich measuring 20x30 cm, without unfolding it, put 1 tbsp on the left edge. l. (with a heap) of prepared moistened soil, then I place a seedling in the middle of the lump of earth, and on top another 1 tbsp. l. earth, and I roll everything up in the form of a roll - I “swaddle” the seedling, like swaddling a baby. I wrap the edge of the bag (you can tighten it with an elastic band). The leaves of the seedling should protrude above the film.
I put the formed rolls in a kiwi container (you can use a cake container), 13-15 bags fit. In short, in three containers I got 42 seedlings, and they all fit on one windowsill. I place the containers themselves in small trays from semi-finished products.
Then, when the seedlings grow up (after several weeks), you need to unroll the rolls again and add 1-2 tbsp. l. land. Regular care: watering, lighting.
The seedlings grow remarkably well, and by the time they are planted in open ground I have healthy and strong tomato seedlings with an elongated root system.
With this method of picking, the most important thing is that you do not get injured. root system when transferring to permanent place, and the tip of the root is not pinched, which promotes further root growth deeper, where the plant will find more moisture and will not depend on watering.
Having planted my tomatoes in two rows in a checkerboard pattern in a narrow box bed, I mulch them with hay and straw (but not fresh!). A bed with ripening tomatoes looks so beautiful that it’s simply impossible to describe! And the harvest is so large that until the New Year, my whole family eats fresh tomatoes.
By the way, this picking method is very well suited for apartments where there is little space for seedlings, and much less land is used. You can pick other vegetables and flowers in this way. Try it, you will definitely like it. It really works!
ORGANIC FARMING GARDEN – MY REVIEWS
Vegetable garden "for sloth"
The most interesting thing about organic farming is that increasing soil fertility can be transferred to a constant and almost autonomous mode of operation. And another article - the best for that confirmation.
It's not like that, guys...
At the beginning of my gardening journey, I used the experience of my parents, that is, I first dug up the entire vegetable garden, and then created beds up to a meter wide, leaving 30-40 cm gaps between them. Then, of course, I struggled with weeding the plantings, taking out all the grass torn out of the site. But every year it became clear to me that I was doing something wrong, because the work was constantly being added and added.
This became especially noticeable after I started growing seedlings of tomatoes, cucumbers and peppers on my own. At first, I only bought it at the market, but when I was once cheated there with the varieties, I decided that now I had to take this matter into my own hands (now I have already compiled a pretty good garden collection, but every year I test one - two new varieties or hybrids).
When I was finally convinced that there was no longer any possibility of doing agricultural technology in the old way, I began to study the works of advanced gardeners. The one that made the greatest impression on me was the Meat Tlider. Thanks to his articles, I fully realized that the wisest thing to do is to abandon the “nomadic” beds, replacing them with boxes installed in once and for all selected places, thereby eliminating trampling of the earth, which leads to deterioration of its structure. But at the same time, I left the width of the beds themselves as usual (about a meter), but increased the passages to 70 cm.
Practice has shown that if you fill the surfaces of the beds with organic matter in the fall, then under this “coat” you can get moist and loose soil, which you don’t have to dig, but simply loosen it with a hoe.
But where can you get so much mulching material? I began to grow green manure before winter, collect leaf litter along the clearing along which I walk to my plot, and stopped disdaining weeded weeds. Why wear them? compost heaps? It is wiser to leave it in place, increasing the thickness of the mulch layer, which will serve as extra food for various worms, bugs, fungi and microbes. In addition, in the ground “under a fur coat” the passages made by worms and empty
you are from rotten organic matter through which water passes with air and nitrogen dissolved in it. In other words, soil fertilization occurs almost “automatically”! It is generally accepted that nature independently creates 1 cm of humus in about 100 years. If we help her, then this process can be accelerated significantly.
Correct timing
My next step was to switch to ridge planting of potatoes, which also saved me from the need to shovel the entire area of the plot. By creating parallel trenches 10 cm deep and a spade bayonet wide at intervals of 70 cm, the soil only has to be laid to the right of them. Very convenient and economical. I called this method of planting “under the sloth”. Using the same method, I now plant corn (the distance between the rows of this crop is 1.2 m, and between the rows I place cucumbers or pumpkins), sunflowers and climbing beans. The only difference is that I don’t dig trenches for these plants, but loosen strips of earth 30 cm wide.
As for cucumbers, I came to the clear conclusion that in the southern regions they should be grown in three periods. And only so!
First, I plant the seedlings in the greenhouse between April 25 and May 1 and get a good harvest in early July. I plant the second batch of cucumbers with seeds in open ground on May 15, and they give me their fruits from mid-July to mid-September. And I plant the third wave of cucumbers in mid-August, which allows me to enjoy the green ones almost until the end of the season. At the same time, cucumbers of the first and second terms can be either varietal and hybrid, or parthenocarpics. But the third term - only parthenocarpic. The fact is that by September 1, figs ripen, the flowers of which simply ooze with nectar, and therefore bees, flies and hornets race to them, pollinating the cucumbers at the same time. At the same time, I note that cucumbers can be grown from stepchildren, but their survival rate will be worse than that of tomatoes.
A week before planting cucumbers and tomatoes, I water the beds well and immediately cover them with film, pressing it tightly to the ground along the entire perimeter. Under it, the moist soil warms up well, and the evaporation of moisture is practically eliminated.
When planting, I use hydrogel, which I carefully place in the holes around the plants, which allows me to forget about watering for 10 days.
It is also important that when watering, water can turn barely hatched seeds upside down in the soil, and then they will certainly die. To prevent this from happening, after planting I always compact the soil slightly. And if the weather is hot and windy, then I do all the watering only through non-woven material stretched over the beds, and from a small watering can and in small portions.
I urge all readers to dig as little as possible. Do not destroy its structure! Don't walk on it unless necessary. Take care of her. Switch to simple loosening with a depth of no more than 5 cm. After all, even in Soviet time Agronomist T. Maltsev proved in practice that no-till cultivation is the most promising and correct. Deep loosening deteriorates its structure and leads to overgrinding.
After rain or irrigation, such land turns into a swamp with the formation of a soil crust when it dries. And I also urge all gardeners not to get carried away with weeding: do not keep the soil bare, something should always grow on it! After all, vegetation reduces soil temperature and significantly delays water evaporation. Mulching is shading the soil. Take care of this in advance. I wish everyone health and good luck in their dacha and personal work. And human happiness!
V.A. GIANTS. Sochi
I am glad for those who strive to live with the times, for those who are mastering the new science of agriculture, for those who are not afraid to admit their mistakes and are looking for new ways to communicate with the earth without sacrificing nature. But in almost every issue there are also letters that are simply upsetting.
About traditions...
Why can't people see their mistakes? Why don’t they feel guilty before future generations? They are destroying the earth, leaving no chance to restore its fertility and create a sustainable balance in nature! Moreover, without thinking, they also harm the health of themselves and their loved ones. Who exactly do I mean?
And those respected gardeners who are engaged in the “traditional” (or even worse, “old-fashioned”) way of running their farms. Do you think I'm being too categorical? Yes, I myself worry about these fellow summer residents! But still, let's think about it in detail.
So, what do people usually mean by “traditional farming”? Here's what:
suitable digging of the soil with a shovel in autumn and spring, weekly weeding in the summer, application of mineral fertilizers, as well as treatment of plantings in gardens and orchards with chemical means of protection against diseases and pests. But can this really be called a tradition? Yes, one of the main agricultural tools of the peasants was the plow, but who said that they plowed their gardens from top to bottom?
They did this selectively and plowed shallowly, without disturbing the fertile layer. But the main thing is that before this they transported manure to the plots, embedding it in the ground.
It will be objected to me that at that time everyone had a large farm, and no one had any problems with the presence of such organic matter. And I don’t deny it, I just want to draw your attention to the fact that digging itself is not only pointless, but also harmful.
Go ahead. After the Great Patriotic War There were devastated villages and villages in which there was no livestock or poultry. To accelerate the development of agriculture, a number of forced measures were taken. Forced! In particular, chemists developed and implemented mineral fertilizers, thereby sharply increasing the yield of almost all crops.
But the whole point is that the “mineral water” only replenishes chemical composition soil, and its balance is constantly disturbed. But the amount of humus from adding chemicals does not increase. Moreover, it is gradually decreasing! As a result, the land is increasingly depleted, plants, due to a lack of one or another nutrient, grow frail (at first glance this may not be noticed) and therefore become easy prey for pests and diseases. If you have depleted soil, increase its fertility, but not with the help of “mineral water”! Yes, of course, it will not be easy, you will have to work hard and be patient, because the earth needs time to recover. But almost any soil can be cured; don’t believe that there are “lazy” gardens! Get away from old stereotypes. I was wrong?
...and about innovations
Many summer residents often think that natural and organic farming- It is the same. But in fact - no. In the first case we're talking about about the coexistence of different plants in a certain unit of area, and each of them plays its role. For example, tall ones shade short ones from the sun and protect them from the wind, wild ones attract beneficial insects, helping to rid their cultivated neighbors of pests, etc.
Organic farming means running your own farm using waste products of flora and fauna. Here our helpers will be not only the plants themselves, but also everything that can move: from the simplest microorganisms to lizards and birds. I understand how difficult it is to evaluate, understand and accept all this.
In addition, having taken the first step and not getting a good result, many return to their usual methods. But everyone must go through this difficult and long path, because each generation must contribute to the restoration of the fertility of the earth.
My dears, try to start with a simple thing: sow the plots with green manure in the fall, do not leave the soil bare anywhere - neither in winter nor in summer. In the spring, simply loosen it shallowly, cutting off the grown grasses, and mulch your plantings with them, covering the beds from the sun, winds and showers (they wash humus deep into the ground). And the covered soil will always be moist, which will create favorable climate Location on.
Believe me, at one time I also stood at a crossroads, and not everything worked out for me at once. And even now I am looking for more and more new ways to get closer to nature. But I haven’t been digging or weeding for five years now, I just cut the grass and use it as mulch. Every autumn I fall asleep with leaves tree trunk circles trees and shrubs.
I don’t burn the branches left after pruning, but I process them with a chopper and scatter the resulting sawdust in the garden. I bury all food scraps (as well as paper and cardboard collected over the winter) in the garden at the beginning of the season. I water all the plants without exception with infusions of herbs and chicken droppings, spray baking soda, infusions of garlic, birch tar, I practice treatment with whey and vermicomposts. And all my plantings survive the winter without loss, even if there were frosts of -30°, and in the summer I always remove good harvests, even if the heat was 40°. That's it!
: GROWING EARLY ZUCCHINS IN MOBILE...
The agricultural technology of such farming is aimed at respect for the earth, as a living organism, to improve fertility through the return of organic matter, green manure, mulching, crop rotation, as well as to obtain natural, environmentally friendly food products without the use of chemical fertilizers and plant protection products.
And organic farming technologists promise us larger yields with less labor input than in classical farming
But is everything as simple as leading experts and promoters of organic farming tell us?
Organic farming in the country
When we first decided to put organic farming into practice at our dacha, we were naive people, like everyone else, we needed that very safe food, and at the same time we had little free time, but a great desire to grow plants. Therefore, we dug through a lot of literature to find out what it is: organic farming in the country and where to start mastering it. We needed to understand and comprehend all this. And we immediately set about an exciting and good thing: organic farming from scratch.
We took into use 12 acres of land near Odessa, which no one had cultivated for several years. Of these, 2 acres were under trees and bushes, 1 acres were under strawberries, and the remaining 9 acres were densely covered with weeds, so it was necessary to develop virgin land. We have a noble goal ahead of us: we are implementing careful and loving relationship to the ground, which is called in the literature “ Organic farming in the country".
First, we cut the weeds, then we laid out the area, dividing it into paths and beds. The beds were surface treated (loosening) to a depth of no more than 5 cm, as recommended in the books. We sown seeds, planted seedlings and mulched.
The plantings were, as expected, thickened and planned taking into account the allelopathic properties of neighboring plants. A week later, the first shoots appeared, and then weeds appeared, which had to be pulled out manually, since Fokina’s flat cutter did not work on mulch. And so several times a season.
We spent a lot of time and effort, but there was no result. Of those planted, about 7% of cultivated plants survived, which gave, to put it mildly, modest harvest, or rather, there was almost none (not counting 5 carrots and 5 watermelons weighing 100 g each).
Nevertheless, we continued to work, because we fell in love with work on the land and fresh air. And the experience gained was very useful.
Today we practice organic farming in our dacha on two hectares of land, where we harvest tons of crops. We also maintain several forest nurseries. We work according to the “Organic agro-forestry” system.
And the question “how to grow?” is no longer relevant, now the question is “what to do with the harvest?”
Well, now we will tell you about everything in order, how in reality you need to start organic farming in your dacha from scratch, and not what is told in books or at seminars. In life, it turns out, it’s not quite the same as on the pages of books. But how does everything actually happen in organic farming?
Harvest of Alexey and Nadezhda Chernyavsky Myths of organic farming
1: “The earth cannot be stirred up.”
We called the process by which the earth does not turn, “wilding of the soil.” This means that there are so many insects, animals and weeds in it that they do not allow anything to grow and bear fruit. cultivated plant. So much for natural farming! In addition, if you have virgin soil on your plot, then you will have to plow it once, since virgin soil cannot be conquered manually. And after the first plowing, you can treat the soil superficially. Then there will be watermelons and corn.
Conclusion: a cultivated plant needs cultivated soil and appropriate care!
2: “Mulched plants do not need to be watered.”
After conducting many experiments, we came to the conclusion that mulch does retain moisture, but not for long, especially in dry places. Therefore, if you want to get a harvest by practicing organic farming in your country house, then you will have to water moisture-loving plants, even if they are mulched, you will just need to do this less often .
3: “All plants need to be mulched so that there is no bare soil left in the garden.”
In fact, not all plants like mulch. So, for corn, watermelons, melons, peanuts and chufa, mulch is unacceptable. These crops love “hot and clean soil.” In addition, corn, peanuts and chufa require hilling, which is very difficult to do if there is mulch on the ground.
Conclusion: when using organic farming in the country, it is certainly necessary to mulch, but selectively. Cover the soil only around those plants that really like it (tomatoes, cucumbers, strawberries, etc.)
4: “Organic farming for the lazy.”
Many people have heard the old proverb “You can’t catch a fish out of a pond without effort”; no one has yet canceled it. And for people for whom organic farming in the country has become a matter of life, they know exactly what this proverb is about. As we found out, If you want results, you have to work hard! Loosening the beds, planting seeds, extracting and laying mulch, digging and weeding weeds, hilling, planting, watering, collecting and processing crops, in the end, all this is work! It’s worth giving in to laziness - and full harvest you won't see!
Conclusion: He who works, eats.
5: “Joint and dense plantings repel insect pests and attract insect predators » .
Fast, efficient, convenient and environmentally friendly, and therefore safe
Conclusion: You need to combine beds with crops, not crops in a bed.
6: “Biological plant protection products are better and safer than chemical ones.”
We do not use either one or the other. Today, humanity is already reaping the full benefits of using chemistry in agriculture(killed lands, mutant insects, dead bees, food poisoning and allergies in people, polluted waters of the world's oceans, etc.). And we still don’t know what fruits biological drugs will bring us, because it’s a matter of time. Remember when they appeared on the market chemicals protection, people were very happy about this, it seemed to them that the problem was solved. But they struggled with the consequences, but the cause - monoculture - remained. Today people rejoice in biological drugs! What will happen tomorrow?
Conclusion: by practicing organic farming in the country, we avoid the use of any drugs.
Chemical and biological means of protection have detrimental consequences for the ecology of the entire planet and every person. Nobody knows how it will all end, not even scientists!
7: “Do this and everything will be like ours”
Another sophisticated lie that gullible farmers are falling for. In the course of our numerous experiments and based on the experience gained, we came to the conclusion that nothing is the same in nature! And, repeating the experiment, it is unlikely that it will be possible to obtain exactly the same result. Even in the same bed, with the same agricultural technology, using the same farming, the same fertilizer, mulching, green manure, the same plants bear fruit differently.
There are different soils, different climates, microclimates, etc. in the world. Even the attitude and mood of the person working with the plant, using exclusively natural farming, plays a huge role and can affect the result! In general, you don’t need to expect results the same as in the pictures promoting organic farming in the country, and then if the result is inconsistent, disappointment will not discourage you from moving on!
Love your land, study its specifics and character, observe - and draw your conclusions with good thoughts. Don't believe it, check it. And then organic farming at your dacha will pay off, and you will definitely succeed!
When engaged in gardening and gardening, many farmers are faced with the problem of lack of space, as well as sometimes inexplicable incompatibilities between different plants. Which, in turn, leads to a decrease in yield and various diseases, which impair plant growth and the quality of the resulting fruits. Mixed plantings vegetables, the diagrams of which are drawn up taking into account all the features, can solve many problems.
The Science of Mixed Plantings
Allelopathy is a science that studies the influence on each other and the ability of them to coexist together. The proximity of vegetables in the greenhouse and mixed plantings are determined taking into account the influencing factors. Each plant secretes various substances through its leaves and roots, which, when released into the soil, can either be absorbed by other plants or cause harm to them.
Some species tend to stimulate the growth of accompanying plantings and have a protective effect on them from pests, but at the same time they can also be oppressive. Besides the obvious, there is another reason to create mixed plantings - to save space.
Schemes of mixed and compacted vegetable plantings
It is very important when drawing up a plan for future plantings to consider:
- Climatic conditions in a particular area may vary, as some places are drier and others wetter. The effects of wind, precipitation and frost must also be taken into account in the calculations.
- It is necessary to know the characteristics of each specific site, its soil composition, the effect of sunlight on this area, as well as its protection from the aggressive influences of nature.
Planning
These parameters should form the basis of the garden planting strategy to obtain the highest results from each meter of area. Drawing up a plan begins with studying the characteristics of the site and the characteristics of each individual meter of land. Schemes of mixed beds (planting vegetables in a garden bed, as is known, vary in purpose) must be drawn up taking into account all climatic and agrotechnical parameters of the soil.
Advantages of the method
Advantages of mixed plantings:
Smart combination
Alternation of crops with different requirements for nutrition and soil composition allows you to avoid partial or complete depletion of the land and the destruction of any individual elements nutrition needed by plants.
Joint planting of vegetables can improve the quality of life of neighboring crops, and can also affect the taste and nutritional value fruits
Main and accompanying plants
Mixed plantings of vegetables, their arrangement patterns and the principles that guide the gardener when composing them are based on simple knowledge. In practice this method There are such concepts as a companion plant, or accompanying plant, as well as the main crop. The main plant is the target of planting, and the satellite plant is used to fill gaps and produce larger yields.
Mixed planting tactics
In the role of accompanying plants, aromatic green fertilizers are more often used, a number of which can benefit their neighbors. The main crops are usually vegetables and are slow-ripening, small-sized specimens, with fast-ripening species in between.
This tactic is very effective. While the main culture is slowly growing and developing, the accompanying culture has time to grow, making room for sufficient development of the main one. That's what it is main principle drawing up a plan and diagram of mixed plantings.
Preferred neighborhood
In order to organically fit into your plan various mixed plantings of vegetables and their arrangement on the site, you need to know the properties of each plant and its compatibility with others. It is convenient to consider the properties inherent in individual garden crops in the form of a table. Mixed plantings of vegetables in the garden must be made taking into account the needs of each crop.
Correct Neighborhood Table
| Name of culture | Good neighborhood | Undesirable neighborhood O |
| Basil | All crops, especially tomatoes and lettuce | Ruta |
| Eggplant | Beans, thyme | - |
| Beans | Cucumbers, potatoes, spinach, corn, radishes, buckwheat and mustard. If beans act as the main plants, then for them good neighbors will become lavender, rosemary, yarrow, oregano, borage | Any garlic, wormwood, marigold |
| Grape | Corn, potatoes, radishes, beans, radishes, rye | Onions, soybeans, barley, cabbage |
| Peas | Goes well with carrots, rice, various salads, cucumbers, turnips | Onions, garlic, tomatoes |
| Cabbage | All varieties are excellent neighbors for bush beans, salads, buckwheat, celery, beets, borage, carrots, and spinach. | Does not go well with grapes and strawberries |
| Potato | Gets along with legumes, cabbage, radishes and various salads. Potatoes will help in repelling pests: tansy, marigolds, nasturtium, coriander | It is highly not recommended to plant sunflower and celery next to each other. |
| Strawberry | It is good to plant spinach, sage, and parsley nearby. The mutual influence with beans, cucumbers, pumpkin, peas, and soy is especially favorable | Cabbage |
| Corn | All cultures | Beetroot, celery |
| Onion | The best combination with beets, strawberries, cucumbers, carrots, lettuce, spinach | Beans, peas, legumes, sage |
| Carrot | Peas. Loyal to the neighborhood with potatoes, onions, lettuce | Dill, fennel. Also, there is no place for it under an apple tree, as the root vegetables will be very bitter |
| cucumbers | Good companions for beans, beans, beets, garlic, onions, radishes, spinach, as well as dill and chamomile | Undesirable proximity to tomatoes, since their maintenance conditions are very different |
| Pepper | Basil | It's hard to get along with beans. Bad neighbor fennel for him too |
| Parsley | Pairs well with strawberries, peas, tomatoes, asparagus, salads | - |
| Radish | Salads, beans. Radish plantings can be combined with tomatoes, onions, parsley, garlic, strawberries and peas | Planting next to hyssop is highly discouraged, as this imparts great bitterness to the fruit. |
| Turnip | Goes well with peas | Doesn't go well with mustard and asparagus at all. |
| Beet | It is an excellent companion for cabbage, radishes, radishes and salad. Next to the beets you can also place beds with garlic, strawberries, celery, and cucumbers | - |
| Celery | White cabbage. Feels great next to cucumbers and tomatoes, soybeans, beans and peas | Neighborhood with corn, parsley, potatoes and carrots is extremely undesirable |
| Tomatoes | They go well with basil, celery, parsley, spinach and beans. Planting next to cabbage, corn, garlic, carrots, beets is neutral in its influence | Do not place next to kohlrabi cabbage, fennel and dill, potatoes, eggplants |
| Pumpkin | A responsive neighbor for peas and beans. Coexists favorably with corn | Next to cabbage, cucumbers, salads, onions, carrots |
| Beans | Friendly with almost all cultures | Onions, fennel, garlic, peas |
| Spinach | All cultures | - |
| Garlic | Friendly neighborhood with tomatoes, beets, strawberries, carrots, cucumbers | Negatively affects the taste of peas, beans, cabbage |
Today you learned about what mixed planting of vegetables is. Schemes for their composition are created taking into account the preferences of each individual plant, as well as the conditions of its maintenance, which should be the basis for calculating future beds. The use of such a progressive method provides many advantages, which are especially important to take advantage of when striving to obtain maximum benefits and large yields from each square meter area.
A correctly drawn up scheme for planting vegetables in the garden and a competent plan for placing crops in the country are one of the main components of spring events. When planning planting garden plants on a summer cottage, it is very important to take into account crop rotation or the so-called alternation of all cultivated plants. vegetable crops.
Decorative and classic types of beds
Today, in the conditions of home garden vegetable growing Arrangement of several types of classical ridges is practiced:
- vertical structures They allow you to decorate unattractive walls or fences, minimize the contact of plants with the ground, reduce the risk of fungal diseases and reduce the growth of weeds. Disadvantages include the limited volume of soil and the need to use frequent fertilizing and irrigation measures. Among other things, such beds are not suitable for growing perennial crops, capable of freezing out in winter period;
- deep designs have gained particular popularity in recent years. Such a ridge is a platform standard sizes, represented by soil dug up twice with manure or good compost to a depth of a couple of spade bayonets. Such a bed does not require digging for three to five years, and the soil can be loosened, watered, weeded and limed from paths laid along it;
- tall structures convenient from the point of view of processing vegetable crops. When arranging, a trench 30-40 cm deep is dug. Branches and paper should be placed in the dug trench, as well as vegetable waste, after which layers of fertile soil are filled in and lightly compacted. Bordering high design can be made using either wooden boards, slate or any other available material;
- warm designs a bit like high ridges. A ridge is dug a meter wide and of arbitrary length. A layer of fresh soil is placed on the dug surface. cow dung, after which the fertile soil is filled up. The surface should be spilled with plenty of warm water and covered with black polyethylene or non-woven material. Vegetables are planted in specially made slots.
Site planning using the Mittlider method (video)
Decorative ridges can add originality to a personal plot. A striking example - unusual shape or fencing made of beautiful materials. You can draw up a plan for the location of such structures online using special programs. Even amateur vegetable growers with little experience can do this kind of computer drawing up of a plan diagram.
Requirements for beds for vegetable crops
When planning vegetable beds, you need to remember that such structures must be sufficiently dry and level. Also, areas shaded by trees or buildings should not be allocated for garden beds. The right bed should warm up well sun rays. Experienced gardeners It is recommended to lay out ridges in areas in the direction from north to south. Good result provides arrangement of beds with low sides that prevent crumbling and help retain moisture during irrigation activities.
In flat areas, it is recommended to break out ridges and arrange them directly across the slope. If there are too large slopes, it is advisable to make special terraces that are strengthened with wooden planks, logs or slate sheets. Such planting areas help protect the soil and grown plants from heavy flood waters or heavy rains.
Currently, they are especially popular the following options for the location of garden beds:
- geometric arrangement of square, rectangular or elongated ridges in parallel and perpendicular directions;
- radial arrangement in spacious areas with planting garden crops peculiar rays in a circle;
- angular non-standard location;
- spiral arrangement or rock garden ridges that can decorate any landscape and are optimal for cultivation garden strawberries or other low-growing berries.
The shape of vegetable beds can be completely different. Experienced gardeners prefer to plant a garden or country cottage area on fairly even, rectangular or square ridges. To give the garden an original appearance, beds can be round, oval, triangular or any other shape. In any case, when planning the location of the ridges, it is necessary to be guided not only by desires and personal preferences, but also take into account the features of the relief.
Scheme for planting vegetables in the garden: basic rules
In the process of choosing a place and scheme for growing vegetables on a personal plot It is recommended to adhere to the following rules:
- Growing dill, salad crops and radishes does not have to be done in an ordinary way. Such garden crops can produce a fairly high yield when planted as a compactor for other vegetables. This type of planting allows you to obtain an aesthetically pleasing design for your garden and will significantly save money. free space personal plot;
- beets, radishes, turnips, carrots and other root crops can be planted on the sides of the beds. In this way, it is possible to obtain a beautiful frame for other garden crops without inhibiting their growth and development. In the process of designing a garden plot, the rules of crop rotation must be taken into account, so the same crop cannot be grown in one place for several years in a row;
- as a border design for large-sized beds, it is allowed to plant such climbing plants like peas, beans or beans. Landing is carried out at north side from the main vegetable crop, which will not allow climbing vines to block solar lighting;
- It is best to allocate separate ridges for pumpkins, squashes and zucchini, which is due to the rapid growth of the plant and its spread throughout almost the entire free space.
It is also very important to maintain the distance between crops in a row and the gap between rows when planting seedlings and sowing.
Mixed plantings: planning beds (video)
Crop rotation in the garden: how to plant vegetables correctly
One of the simplest and most popular solutions for implementing crop rotation in home garden vegetable growing is is based on the division of vegetable garden crops into several main groups:
- leafy group - cabbage, lettuce, green onions, sorrel and spinach;
- the fruit group is represented by tomatoes, cucumbers, peppers, zucchini, squash, eggplant and pumpkin;
- a group of root vegetables, represented by radishes, beets, carrots, turnips, potatoes, Jerusalem artichokes;
- a group of legumes represented by beans, beans, lentils,.
The correct alternation of such plants in a personal garden and garden plot should be carried out as follows:
- in the first year, fruit crops are grown in the first bed, root crops in the second, legumes in the third, leaf crops in the fourth;
- in the second year, fruit crops are transferred to the fourth bed, root crops to the first, legumes to the second, leaf crops to the third;
- in the third year, the root crops are transferred to the fourth bed and so on.
No less popular is crop rotation depending on the requirements of garden plants for soil fertility:
- high demands are typical for aster, pumpkin and cabbage;
- an average degree of demandingness is typical for nightshades;
- insignificant demands are characteristic of amaranth, amaryllis and umbelliferae;
- Legumes can enrich the soil composition.
Nightshade crops are represented by potatoes, tomatoes, eggplants and bell pepper. The umbrella or celery category includes dill, carrots and parsley. The most popular amaranths are beets and spinach.. The pumpkin family is represented by cucumbers, zucchini, squash, pumpkin, watermelon and melon.
Popular brassicas or cruciferous vegetables include all types of cabbage, radishes and watercress. Soil-enriching legumes include peas and beans, and sunflowers belong to the Asteraceae family.
Crop rotation of vegetable crops (video)
Even in small beds you can get decent yields. Correct and timely planning of plantings and crops, as well as compliance with crop rotation is prerequisite obtaining the highest and quality harvest from small-sized household plots and garden plots.
Not in nature large areas occupied by one species.
There is always a mixture of herbs in the meadow
, in the forest there are not only different types of trees, but also shrubs, grasses, and mosses.
Even in a field where only one crop is planted after plowing, weeds grow.
We, too, can create a vegetable garden in which plants coexist. How to do this? The answer is simple - use the mixed planting method. To do this, you need to know which plants are good neighbors and plan the area to ensure the closest possible proximity. different cultures. They should not grow in large masses, but in adjacent rows or holes.
There is a lot of information on this topic on the Internet... I'll just share my experience...
First of all, you need to choose the main crop, then select a neighbor that has a beneficial effect on the main plant. For for long years I plant together tomatoes and basil and lettuce... peppers and beets... corn and cucumbers or beans. tall plants will protect the lower ones from direct rays of the sun and create a more favorable microclimate for them. You still need to be more careful with corn... it’s better to plant it separately for seedlings or cucumbers... one year I planted corn and cucumbers at the same time, but the cucumbers didn’t sprout... I had to replant them, but the corn was already growing. ..and it grew and grew... as a result, the cucumbers remained small and underdeveloped in the shade of the corn thickets.
It is worth planting aromatic herbs nearby that repel pests. You just need to make sure that they don’t drown out the main culture. Plant marigolds, calendula, and nasturtiums scattered throughout the vegetable garden. Last year we had an aphid invasion... and only one young seedling was spared by it. It was a pear with calendula and other herbs growing under it...
Consider the timing of crop ripening. If you harvest one crop early, it is worth finding a replacement plant for it. You can't leave the ground bare. It is mulched and green manure is planted. When choosing crops, you should pay attention to reducing competition between them. Plants with deep root systems will get along better with those with shallow roots; species with low nutritional requirements will not interfere with those who need a lot of nutrients; tall, spreading crops will protect those that like light partial shade from the sun.
Only the neighbors' water needs should be similar.
For example, early cabbage will simply be great next to celery
Just don’t confuse it - exactly early varieties cabbage... as soon as we harvest the cabbage in mid-July... celery will spread throughout the entire bed and will continue to grow until September-October, depending on the climate.
The most popular neighbors in the garden
Tomato - basil... tomato - parsley... tomato - salad
Early cabbage - celery... cabbage - marigolds... cabbage - nasturtium
Carrots - onions... carrots - garlic
Potatoes - beans...
However, do not forget that advice is just advice, and not a command for action... using this table you can choose the most convenient combinations for yourself.
Another piece of advice... make it a rule to keep records of all actions performed at your dacha. I have a treasured notebook where I write down everything I do... I start with the seeds in stock, then... what, when and where I planted (seedlings, in a greenhouse, in a garden bed)... what and with what I did combined, and at the end of the season I make a note side by side whether I liked it or not...
This year I decided to keep new statistics for myself in Google spreadsheets... I'll see what comes of it, starting from the seeds for now...
And in my treasured notebook I have already noted for myself that this year I will plant together:
Eggplant + Vigna (Chinese beans)
... Carrots + tomatoes + basil (I won’t change my observations)
... Corn + pumpkin + cucumbers
... Broccoli + cucumbers + peas
... Pepper + beets (this also remains unchanged for me)
... Leeks + beets
... Onions + beets + carrots
... Early cabbage+ celery.
I’ll be sure to show you in the group what came of it
Don't be shy - share your experience!!! How do you combine plantings?!... What conclusions did you draw for yourself?!... Maybe, on the contrary, you have a bad experience of combining plantings?!... Be sure to write about it, any experience you have is simply necessary for each of us