How to prepare leaf soil. Types of garden land. How to prepare soddy soil yourself
In ornamental gardening, specially prepared garden soils are used. All of them are the decomposition product of turf, leaves, manure, heather, peat, contain a large amount of humus, but depending on the original substrate, they have different physical and chemical properties.
Farms usually harvest the following main lands: soddy, leafy, humus (dung), compost, peat.
Sod land is harvested in meadows and pastures, preferably in old, fallow, perennial, with good grass-clover herbage. It can not be harvested in areas of low and high acidity.
Soddy land is divided into heavy - with a large amount of clay, medium - with equal proportions of clay and sand, and light - with a predominance of sand.
Land preparation begins at the end of June. By this time, the herbage reaches its maximum development, and by winter, the harvested sod, with proper care, will have time to partially decompose. Layers are cut (with a shovel, disc, plow) 20-30 cm wide, 8-10 cm thick, depending on the thickness of the turf layer. The length is arbitrary. The sod is stacked in stacks 1.2-1.5 m wide and of arbitrary length so that the grass cover of each second layer lies on the grass cover of the first layer. Double layers are moistened with a solution of mullein or slurry to accelerate the decomposition of the sod and enrich it with nitrogen (at the rate of 0.2-0.5 m 3 of manure or slurry per 1 m 3). To reduce acidity, 2-3 kg of lime is added per 1 m 3 of land. The stacks on top are periodically moistened with slurry, and so that it does not drain (as well as rainwater), a trough-shaped depression is made at the top of the stack.
The best sod land is obtained after two seasons. During the next summer, the stack is shoveled at least twice. In the autumn, having passed the earth through a roar, they clean it indoors and use it in work. Left in the open air, it loses its Qualities - nutritional value, porosity, elasticity, etc.
sod land- the main one in floriculture, it is quite porous, rich in essential nutrients that act for many years. It is used for growing indoor and greenhouse perennials and in most soil mixtures.
Leafy land is harvested in autumn in deciduous massifs (forests, groves, parks). The best are the leaves of linden, maple, fruit plants. Oak and willow leaves contain a lot of tannins, so they are not used for harvesting land. In some cases, forest litter is used to obtain leafy soil, removing the top 2-5 cm layer. The collected dry leaves or forest litter with the remains of grass, small twigs, etc. are placed in stacks with a width and height of -1.2-1.5 m of arbitrary length. In autumn, when laying, the leaves are moistened with slurry or mullein solution and compacted; Otherwise, they will decompose slowly. During the next summer, it is advisable to moisten the leaf mass 2-3 times with slurry and shovel. It is good to add a little lime before mixing. By the autumn of the second year, the leaves are completely overripe and turn into leafy soil. Before use, it is passed through a screen to separate undecomposed residues.
leaf ground- light, loose, but contains less nutrients than turf. It can serve as a good ripper for heavy turf lands.
Leaf soil mixed with peat soil and sand can be used as a substitute for heather soil,
Humus land (humus-dung). In greenhouses, this soil is often referred to as greenhouse soil, as it is formed from rotted manure mixed with old greenhouse soil.
Pet manure, planted in greenhouses as a biofuel since spring, turns into humus by autumn. From the manure of cattle, the humus is heavy, from the manure of horses and sheep - lighter.
The humus cleaned from the greenhouse in autumn is stacked in piles, as indicated above for sod and other lands, moistened and shoveled 1-2 times during the next summer. Keep outdoors for one year. After that, the humus soil is passed through a fine screen and stored indoors.
Humus from greenhouses is often used as fertilizer in open ground.
humus earth- light, loose, oily, i.e. very rich in nutrients with a predominance of nitrogen in a form easily digestible for plants. It is used as a highly effective compound component for soil mixtures. Used for most potted crops and seedlings.
Peat land is harvested, as a rule, from lowland peat bogs. In some cases, briquettes and peat chips can be used for its preparation. Well-decomposed peat is stacked in piles up to 60-80 cm high. When laying, layers of peat are moistened with slurry every 20-25 cm and sprinkled with lime at the rate of 10-15 kg per 1 m 3 of peat. When using high-moor peat, the dose of lime is increased. At the end of the first season and in the middle of the second season, the mixture is shoveled and used in the third year. By this time, the biological activity of peat increases and its acidity decreases.
peat land- soft, loose, very moisture-absorbing, consists of slowly. decomposing organic residues and in its pure form is of low nutritional value. It is used for various soil mixtures as a ripper, especially with turfy soil, as it improves its physical properties, making it looser and lighter. It is also used in a mixture with light sandy soils, improving their cohesion and moisture capacity, as well as for mulching.
When harvesting sod from peat meadows, you can prepare sod-peat soil used for making peat pots, mulching the soil and planting some plants. .
Compost soil is prepared by composting in piles, heaps, pits of various plant and animal residues, garbage, weeds, greenhouse and household waste. As the residues accumulate, they are poured for disinfection and better decomposition with lime, moistened with slurry and covered with peat or peat chips on top. In the second or third year, the compost mass is shoveled 2-3 times per season, moistened with slurry. By the end of the third year, the compost soil is ready for use.
The quality and physical properties of compost soil are very diverse and depend on the type of waste and the nature of the composted material.
Basically, compost lands occupy an intermediate position between soddy and humus soils in terms of nutrient content. Use them in a mixture with turf and peat lands, replacing humus.
heather land is now losing its importance and is being replaced by a mixture of 2 parts leaf, 3-4 parts peat soil and 1 part sand. Heather soil is prepared as a sheet.
Garden and garden soil, or an arable layer well enriched with humus, is harvested and stacked in autumn, adding lime, phosphorus and potassium. In the summer they shovel twice. From the plots where plants belonging to the Cabbage (cabbage) and Nightshade (tomato) families have been grown for the last three years, soil is not taken.
Good garden or garden soil with a little sand can be successfully used for the cultivation of ornamental plants.
woody ground prepared from stumps, roots, deadwood, branches, chips, rotten old trees, etc. The decomposed remains of wood form a light, close in composition to the leaf, but poor in nutrients and prone to acidification of the earth. Use it in the culture of orchids, ferns and bromeliads.
Composted bark substrates. The shredded bark is composted in stacks up to 3 m high, adding pulp mill sludge and other organic material, which ensures the decomposition of the bark with the help of microorganisms. Biochemical and microbiological processes during composting are most active in a substrate with a particle size of 1-7 mm and the addition of urea to less than 1% of the dry mass of the bark (4.3 kg per 1 m 3) during the first few weeks. Composting with constant shoveling lasts approximately 4-4.5 weeks in summer and 16-18 weeks in winter. The temperature in the stacks rises to 65-70°C.
Compost in 1 m 3 contains about 300 g of potassium, 60 g of phosphorus, 30 g of magnesium, 30 g of iron, 20 g of manganese, copper and other trace elements. It is mixed with sphagnum peat, adding 1 kg of phosphorus, in other cases - sand, clay, etc., that is, it is used as a soil improver.
When grown on the same substrate of bark and sawdust, plant growth stops and chlorosis appears due to a lack of nitrogen.
Moss. White swamp moss sphagnum is harvested in moss sphagnum bogs. After drying, grinding and sieving, it is used in earthen mixtures to make them light, loose and hygroscopic, i.e., increased moisture capacity. In its pure form, it is used when forcing lilies of the valley, to cover an earthy coma of orchids and other plants. Recommended as a substrate for stratification and germination of large seeds (palms, bananas).
Charcoal in the form of small pieces in a small amount, they are added to earthen mixtures for plants that do not respond well to waterlogging. Coal adsorbs excess water, and when it is lacking, it gives it away "In addition, it is used as an antiseptic in the form of a powder for powdering cuts on dahlia root tubers, gladiolus corms, cannes rhizomes, etc. Adsorbs herbicides and other chemicals from the soil to a small extent.
Sand. Coarse-grained river sand is considered the best. Sea sand is thoroughly washed beforehand, freeing it from salts. Quarry sand is unsuitable - fine, reddish, containing ferrous compounds of iron and oxides of other metals that are harmful to plants, as well as clay and silty particles.
As a rule, sand is added to earth mixtures without pre-treatment in the amount of 1/5 of the total volume to make them loose. When grafting and for powdering seeds in sowing boxes, bowls, greenhouses, the sand is thoroughly washed with clean water beforehand from clay, silt particles. For difficult-to-root rocks, quartz sand is used. It gives soil mixtures looseness and porosity, which ensures the penetration of water and air to the roots of plants, prevents the development of moss, fungi and algae in boxes, bowls and on racks with crops and cuttings.
Storage and mixing of lands. Usually, in floricultural farms, two to three years of stocks of garden land are created, which are stored in a closed, preferably frost-free room. Previously, the earth must be passed through a screen. For each type of land, special chests are made, sometimes they are arranged under racks in greenhouses. In this case, it is necessary to ensure that during watering the plants, moisture does not get into the lari.
For proper cultivation of various flower plants on the farm, it is necessary to have all the above lands. They must be free from pests and diseases.
When compiling earth mixtures, the biological characteristics of plants, their age, culture conditions, as well as the reaction (pH) of the soil solution, in which this plant can grow, are taken into account.
Leafy soil is light, loose soil, obtained as a result of decay of fallen leaves. Leafy soil is not as nutritious as humus, but is well absorbed by plants. It has a slightly acidic reaction (pH 5...6), since a large amount of acids is formed during the decomposition of the leaves. It has a good structure, consists of air and moisture permeable lumps, dries quickly, it is added to loosen the substrate in various soil mixtures for growing indoor plants.
Leafy soil is great for all plants with thin, delicate roots. It is required for , . For cultivation, not completely rotted leaf humus is used, but with particles of unrotted leaves, so that the substrate is very loose.
Leaf ground is harvested in autumn in deciduous arrays. The best are the leaves of birch, linden, maple, elm, hazel and fruit plants. The leaves are raked in heaps, moistened if the weather is too dry.
The period of decomposition of the leaves depends on the type of tree. Quickly, in a year, under the right conditions, the leaves of most deciduous trees (birch, oak, maple, hawthorn, mountain ash, hornbeam, hazel, etc.)
The production of leaf humus is not too laborious, it is only important that the leaves are wet. You can add raw grass from a lawn mower. Make sure that the autumn rains regularly moisten the future humus. During the summer, it is advisable to water with slurry and mix.
Heaps of leaves are a great home for overwintering insects, so when adding leaf humus to the mixture, sterilize it to clean it of insects and their larvae.
For each greenhouse crop or group of crops, mixtures are made from pre-harvested meadow and forest lands.
The mixture should contain a sufficient amount of nutrients in an easily digestible form, pass air and water well, and also have a certain reaction - neutral (pH 7), acidic (pH below 7) or alkaline (pH above 7). Most plants grow well in neutral soils.
The main components of the mixtures: turf, humus, leaf and peat soils, as well as coarse sand (in different proportions).
1) Turf land contains a lot of plant residues; it is rich in essential nutrients gradually used by plants. It is better to harvest it in June - July on upland meadows or old pastures with cereals and legumes.
To increase nutritional value and speed up, the turf is overheated and layered with cow manure (1 cubic meter of manure per 4 cubic meters of turf), and lime is added to neutralize acidity (1-2 kg per 1 cubic meter). A recess is made on the stack to retain rain and irrigation water.
During the summer and autumn, the stack is mixed 1-2 times, pouring slurry or water over it. In the spring of next year, it can be used, but the best soddy land is obtained after two seasons. A longer preparation period leads to the loss of the main qualities - the porosity and elasticity of the soddy land.
Before use, the earth is passed through a screen with cells 3-4 cm in diameter to separate large clods and impurities. Small semi-rotted parts of the roots are the main value of sod land, they cannot be removed.
There are heavy soddy soil harvested on clay soils, and light - from light sandy soils. A cubic meter of heavy earth weighs 1.5 tons, light - 1.2 tons.
2) humus land obtained from well-decomposed manure, it is a black homogeneous mass, rich in essential nutrients with a predominance of nitrogen. Such land is often called a greenhouse, as it is formed in greenhouses from rotted manure. For the preparation of humus land, you can also take fresh manure. It is stacked in a shaded place for 1-3 years. During the summer, the stack is moistened and mixed 1-2 times. Before use, the earth is sifted through a screen.
The humus earth is used in those cases when the mixture needs to be more nutritious (for most potted crops and seedlings of annuals and plants that do not tolerate fresh manure). A cubic meter of humus earth weighs 0.6-0.8 tons.
Instead of humus soil, you can use compost, which is obtained as a result of the decomposition of plant and other residues within 2-3 years.
3) Leaf land, loose and light. To obtain it in autumn or spring, fallen or semi-decomposed leaves accumulated in the forest (forest litter) are collected in heaps. Oak and willow leaves, as they contain a lot of tannic acids, are undesirable. Leaves decompose faster if they are loose (should be shoveled); they are systematically moistened, preferably with slurry, along with which many microorganisms are introduced. When shoveling, it is useful to add lime (0.5 kg per 1 cubic meter). After 2-3 years, the leaves turn into a homogeneous, very light mass (weight 1 cubic meter 0.5-0.8 tons), which is sifted through a screen before use. Leafy soil is used to make light mixtures. In its pure form, it is used for sowing small seeds and picking seedlings (begonias, gloxinia, etc.).
Leafy soil mixed with peat and sand (2:4:1) is often replaced with heather, which can only be harvested in places where heather grows.
4) Peat land light, loose, well absorbs and retains moisture, significantly improves the physical properties of earth mixtures. It is obtained as a result of the decomposition of the peat of raised bogs, folded for 2-3 years in a pile, or the weathering of peat crumbs, collected in heaps and lain in the air for at least a year.
Peat is laid in a pile or a pile 40-60 cm high, pouring 3-4 kg of lime and 10-15 kg of phosphorite flour per 1 cubic meter. m. During the summer, peat is mixed 2-3 times and watered with water or slurry. Weight 1 cu. m of peat land 0.8 t.
5) Sod-peat the earth is made from turf taken from peat meadows. In its pure form, it is used in the cultivation of hydrangeas, azaleas, camellias, etc., in mixtures - for many greenhouse plants, sowing seeds, for laying the lower layer of the substrate or cuttings, as well as mulching the soil and making peat-humus pots. Weight 1 cu. m of peat land 0.6-0.8 t.
6) Vegetable, or garden, land is an arable layer, taken in the fall in areas freed from under vegetable crops, and lain in piles for one season. This land is well fertilized and used for growing seedlings. Weight 1 cu. m of vegetable land 1.2-1.3 tons.
Sand coarse-grained(river or lake) is used to give the mixture porosity (10-20%) and when rooting cuttings, and also fill them with small seeds.
Mountain sand is of little use, since it contains ferruginous compounds that are harmful to plants, so it must be washed in water before use. Weight 1 cu. m of sand 1.5 tons.
Moss, as well as sand, gives the earth friability and contributes to a more uniform moistening of the earthen coma. Use dried and crushed peat moss - sphagnum.
Chopped moss is necessary for the germination of large seeds of tropical plants (bananas, palm trees), for the cultivation of orchids, for wrapping trunks of plants that form aerial roots, for forcing lilies of the valley, etc.
Coal wood absorbs excess moisture in the ground, and when it dries it returns. It is added in the form of pieces in a small amount to earthen mixtures for plants that do not tolerate waterlogging.
The main land reserves are stored in piles under awnings or covered with insulating material (straw, dry tree leaves). In the open air, lands lose their valuable qualities.
Land in the amount of the annual need is stored in special rooms. The land used for growing flower crops for several years, depleted, when stacked is mixed with humus or compost and left in the air for 1-2 years, occasionally mixing and watering with slurry.
Mixes are made as needed. Sift each of the components separately, pour by volume (including sand), then mix well. Mixtures are heavy, consisting of clay-turf and humus soil with the addition of sand (3: 1: 1), in which plants with fleshy and thick roots are planted (krinum, clivia, old specimens of palm trees, etc.); medium - from soddy, humus, peat or leafy soil with the addition of sand (2: 2: 1: 1) for fast-growing plants with strongly developed roots (levkoy, fuchsia, pelargonium, etc.); lungs, composed of peat, or leaf, or heather, humus soil and sand (3: 1: 1) with the addition of charcoal, which are used for sowing seeds and plants with very poorly developed and thin roots.
nutrient pots(earthen cups and peat cubes) are used for growing seedlings.
The material is an earthen mixture, compiled taking into account the needs of plants.
To increase the nutritional value of cubes and pots per 1 cu. m earth mixture add 1.5 kg of ammonium nitrate, 3 kg of superphosphate, 0.5 kg of potassium salt.
Properly selected soil mixture for indoor plants is the key to a good development of the root system and the whole plant as a whole. Under ideal conditions, a certain land mixture is selected for each individual plant. In general, most houseplants thrive in slightly acidic potting mixes with a pH of 5.5 - 6.5. The soil mixture must be nutritious and necessarily moisture and breathable.
Land for planting home plants is a mixture consisting of various garden soils, taken in a certain proportion. When compiling land mixtures, the following components are usually used:
Sod land is a heavy nutrient soil with an acidity of pH 7-7.5. It is prepared from turf cut in fields and meadows. The chopped turf is laid in layers, if possible, layering with manure and watering each layer. The earth is formed within two years.
Leafy ground - loose ground with an acidity of pH 5-6. Less nutritious compared to turf. It is formed during the decomposition of plant leaves. It is harvested in autumn from fallen leaves. The leaves are periodically shoveled and watered. Leaf land is formed in the same way within two years. The most fertile and useful is the leafy land prepared from the leaves of alder and poplar. It is not advisable to use oak and chestnut leaves.
Coniferous soil is loose, acidic soil with a pH of 4-5 and a rather low nutrient content. It is harvested from the bottom layer of the litter of coniferous forests, preferably pine forests.
Humus
Humus is a dense homogeneous earth with an acidity of pH 8. It is very rich in organic matter and is of great nutritional value. Humus is prepared from the manure of domestic animals and straw, which serves as bedding for them.
Peat and peat dust
Brown high-moor or dark transitional peat with a pH of 3.5 - 5.5 is most often used to prepare the soil mixture. Peat provides looseness and moisture capacity of the soil mixture, while increasing the initial acidity of the substrate. The use of lowland peat with a pH of 6 is undesirable for indoor plants. It has a rather thin structure, which is quickly destroyed and compacted.
Sand
Thoroughly washed river sand is used as one of the important components of the land mixture. It increases the permeability of the substrate, making it lighter and more permeable to water and air. Sometimes sand is used as drainage.
Sphagnum
Sphagnum moss growing in upland and transitional bogs is characterized by high moisture capacity, has antiseptic properties and a pH of about 4.
It is the most important component in the preparation of an earthen mixture for growing epiphytic plants.
For indoor gardening, soil mixtures are usually used, made up of components in the following volume parts:
| Mixture | Humus | Peat | Sand | Additives | |||
| №1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| №2 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| №3 | 0 | 2-3 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0,5 | 0 |
| №4 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0,5 | 0 |
| №5 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 1,5 | 1 | 0 |
| №6 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| №7 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| №8 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 |
Heather soil, loam, compost, fern roots, and tree bark are sometimes added to potting mixes for houseplants.
heather land
Heather soil is extracted from a shady forest in which heather grows in abundance. Leaves and stems in such a forest rot, forming a powerful nutrient layer. Such land is well permeable to water and air and has a fairly high heat capacity. However, it has a significant drawback - heather land loses its physical properties very quickly, so it is usually used for sowing seeds and seedlings.
Loam
Some houseplants require a strong mineral soil. it is prepared from clay, which is previously subjected to frequent freezing. Peat and organic (or mineral) fertilizers are added to the clay.
Compost
Compost is an organic fertilizer obtained as a result of the decomposition of organic substances under the action of various microorganisms. There is a composter in almost every suburban area. The fertilizer obtained in it has an incredible nutritional value.
fern roots
The roots of ferns are sheared from the rhizomes of bracken, kochedyzhnik and osmund. In crushed form, they are added to land mixtures for epiphytic and semi-epiphytic plants.
Bark
For soil mixtures, as a rule, the bark of coniferous trees (pine, larch or spruce) is used. It is crushed into various fractions and added to land mixtures prepared for growing epiphytic plants. The bark is an excellent baking powder.
To increase the porosity of the soil mixture, coarse perlite, vermiculite, polystyrene or polystyrene are added to it.
Heavy, medium and light soil mixes
Ground mixtures are divided into heavy, medium and light.
Heavy earth mixtures consist mainly of soddy soil. They are used for growing palms, large woody and some herbaceous plants.
Medium soil mixes consist of equal parts of soddy and leafy soil and a certain amount of humus, peat and sand. Such land mixtures are suitable for growing the bulk of indoor plants.
Part light earth mixtures turf land, as a rule, is not included. They grow begonias, peperomia, gesneriaceae, arrowroot, acanthus, gesneriaceae, as well as some seedlings and young plants from cuttings.
If you decide to start creating a soil mixture for your indoor plants yourself, you need to do this in advance, at least a month before planting. If any of the necessary components of the land mixture is missing, it can be replaced with a suitable one.
Universal and specialized soil mixtures
Currently, specialized stores offer a fairly wide range of ready-made soil mixtures for domestic plants. They are divided into universal and specialized.
Universal mixtures are used for most houseplants. However, when using them, it is very often necessary to add additional components - drainage, peat or sand, as well as the necessary microelements necessary for each specific type of plant.
Specialized mixtures are used for each specific group of indoor plants. They can be used without any additional additives.
When purchasing a ready-made land mixture, carefully read its composition and purpose on the label.
Both beginners and experienced gardeners, gardeners and lovers of indoor flowers are sure to come across such a concept as turf land. Many people are literally lost in conjecture, representing a sod, often abundantly covered with grass, which can be used almost in this form. However, in reality, this is not entirely true. Soddy land is often included in the composition of already prepared substrates, which are sold in both garden and flower shops and are intended for planting a wide variety of plants. But, as you know, the substrate can be both bought and prepared by yourself, and it is still unknown what will be better. So sod land can be purchased by paying decently, or you can cook it yourself, spending some time and effort.
Sod land is a specially prepared substrate based on turf covered with grass. © DFB
Benefits of turf land as part of a garden mix
How are garden mixes different?
To begin with, let's talk about the obvious differences between garden mixtures, because their composition is sometimes very different. Considering the main ingredient in a garden mixture, you can understand whether the mixture is acidic or not. For example, if peat is present in the garden mix and there are no deoxidizers such as dolomite flour, then the soil is likely to be acidic.
And if sod land is present as a base, then this may indicate that the soil has a neutral reaction of the environment (but this is not 100%, so it is still advisable to check the acidity of the soil by analysis).
What is good sod land?
It is especially loved by flower growers because it contains an abundance of nutrients, is rich in minerals, is considered a light soil and moisture permeable, although the values of the latter properties are rather average.
Quite often, it is soddy land that is the basis of many soil mixtures, and such mixtures are readily acquired by people who do not accept acid and the "uselessness" of peat.
The amount of sod land in the composition of the soil mixture
Usually, the amount of sod land in the composition of the soil mixture can vary greatly and range from a third to a half of the entire mixture. However, do not forget that in the turf mixture, despite its nutritional value, there may be quite a bit of nitrogen, as a result, additional additions of this element will be required.
If we talk about the acidity of sod land on average, then sod land is usually (but not always) close to compost soil in this indicator, because sods often form from the same “substances” as compost, only over a longer period of time.
How to prepare soddy soil yourself?
Places for harvesting turf land
Cutting the soil into pieces and collecting them is easiest in any deciduous forest area. There, the turf forms the fastest. But not “under every tree” you can collect sod land, it is better to use the soil of linden alleys, maple soil and various fruit plants for this.
As for such crops as, for example, willow or oak, it is better not to take turf there. The thing is that the turf, for the most part formed from the leaf mass of these plants, and therefore the turf soil, which you will later receive from the turf, is literally saturated with tannins, which always act the same way - they inhibit the growth and development of any plants. trapped in such soil.
Sometimes you don't need to go far to collect sod for sod land - the nearest forest area or even a park area, here are a couple of suitable places to collect such land. Why? Yes, because, in fact, sod land is a layer of sod with a thickness of a couple of centimeters to five, depending on how long trees grow in this place, whether it is an artificial planting or a forest.
This layer is literally permeated with small twigs, dried leaf blades, blades of grass and the remains of their parts. At its core, it is the basis for the preparation of soddy soil, suitable for growing a wide variety of crops and ideal for growing flower crops.
The place of harvesting sod land on the edge of the forest. © The Woodchuck Canuck Types of soddy soil
There can be several types of turf soil, depending on the place where the turf was taken to obtain it. Basically, it is the mechanical composition of the soil of this area that plays a role here. For example, you can prepare light-turf soil, it will consist of clay and dust particles in a volume of about 30%, the rest, as we said above, is almost ready-made humus from twigs and other things.
The second option is heavy soddy soil, in which the amount of clay and dust particles can reach 60 percent or even more.
Sod land preparation time
Of course, this is not winter, not early spring and not late autumn, the best option is May, that is, late spring or the end of summer, that is, the month of August. They prepare soddy soil from sod, that is, they literally cut the soil into squares up to five centimeters thick (in rare cases they take more), up to 15 centimeters wide and up to twenty centimeters long.
After the cut pieces of turf are taken to their final destination, they are stacked in piles, preferably in a place where the sun looks, but not more than a couple of hours a day. Further, these sods, in order for them to turn into a full-fledged sod land, must undergo a kind of “ripening”, and this requires specific conditions.
For example, let's take the turf brought from the forest. It can be stacked in a stack of absolutely any length and width, but it is better not to make this stack more than one and a half meters high. Stacking sod in piles is best done closer to autumn or at its very beginning, therefore, spring harvesting is less appropriate, it is better to focus on autumn.
What to do after preparation?
After harvesting and laying the turf in piles, it is necessary to moisten it with slurry, usually a bucket of slurry is needed per square meter of turf half a meter high. It must saturate the sod, which is necessary to start and activate the fermentation processes and speed up the preparation of sod land.
The second option for preparing sod land
Its essence lies in the peculiar laying of turf. They must also be stacked in rows in stacks, but in such a way that the parts overgrown with grass, those that look up, are directed inward, that is, the grass in the stacks is turned towards the grass.
And between these layers of grass, in order to accelerate all the processes of decomposition of the sod and increase its nutritional value, including the enrichment of the nitrogen component, it is necessary to lay cow or horse manure in a layer of 11-12 cm every 30-40 cm (in height) and so on until meters or one and a half - maximum. If it was possible to prepare the sod, but it is acidic, then when laying manure, you can mix with lime, it needs only 40 g per square meter of sod.
Ripening soddy land in a stack. © Agrostory
What are the stack sizes?
The most different, most importantly, no more than one and a half meters in height, because it is corny inconvenient to work higher. As for the width, it is optimal up to 110 centimeters, and the length - up to two meters. In large piles, in addition to the inconvenience of their maintenance, air exchange is usually much worse, and the decomposition of the turf itself is greatly slowed down.
What to do with a pile in winter?
It is best not to touch at all, leave it as it is, do not cover, just wait for the onset of heat, and as soon as the air warms up to 5-8 degrees above zero, moisten with a solution of mullein (3 kg per bucket of water, this is per square meter of stack).
During the summer, warm period, among other things, the stack must be mixed several times (two or three times). It is best and most convenient to use ordinary garden pitchforks for this. Mixing the stack will accelerate the process of turning the sod into a full-fledged sod land and will allow the “recharge” to be more evenly distributed throughout the mass of the future sod land.
If during the summer period there is weather devoid of natural moisture, that is, there is no rain for a long time, then it is imperative to moisten the stack with ordinary water from a hose, trying to water it so as to completely wet it.
In some cases, two seasons are enough - that is, the first season is laying the stack in spring or autumn, the second season is its tedding, and by the end of the warm second season, the soddy land is ready. But sometimes, if the turf is clearly not decomposed, then it is necessary to repeat all the procedures for another season, and at the end of its turf land can be safely used.
If you need a little sod land
It is worth noting that if you need turf land in a modest size, for example, to update the top layer in a flower pot a couple of centimeters thick, then you can not cook it in such a long way.
To obtain a small amount of sod land, it is permissible to cut off a layer of sod, spread a plastic film and, holding the sod by the grass, shake the soil from a piece of sod onto the film.
Quite a lot of soil is obtained in this way when cutting sod in meadows, however, if you notice that sedge or horsetail grows in this place, then be sure that the earth is acidic here, but if legumes grow, then it will be quite suitable for use .
To get a small amount of sod land, you can cut off a layer of sod, simply shake the soil out of it into a container. © Superdom How to use sod land?
What to do with sod land before use?
Soddy land before use must be passed through a fine-meshed mesh, having built something like a roar familiar to all gardeners and gardeners. In this case, all large fractions, as well as those parts that have not decomposed, will roll down the screen, and the smallest parts will pass through it, forming a uniform loose mixture.
After that, the soddy soil can be folded into wooden boxes or plastic bags (as from sugar) and be sure to remove it in a room inaccessible to sunlight. It is best to keep the bags lying on their side so that the mixture does not compress.
On the site, that is, literally "under the open sky", turf land ready for use should not be left. Under the influence of rain, sun and wind, as well as changes in day and night temperatures, soddy land will lose some of its nutritional properties, become less porous, less elastic and naturally less suitable for further use as a component in the preparation of nutrient soil.
Preparation of the resulting sod land immediately before use
Usually sod land in its pure form is not used. True, if you have the opportunity to do a chemical analysis of the soil in the laboratory, and the data show the presence of the main components in the soil you brought in sufficient quantities, then in principle, such soil can be used without additional enrichment.
As a rule, all sorts of “impurities” are added to the sod land - often these are complex fertilizers, say, nitroammophoska, 10-15 g is enough for a bucket of sod land. You can make wood ash, it contains up to 5% potassium, it needs 500 grams per bucket of soddy land.
The introduction should be accompanied by thorough mixing until a homogeneous composition. Sometimes, to increase the amount of soddy land and some loosening it, river sand is added in the amount of one part of sand to three parts of soddy land.
Further, we strongly recommend disinfecting soddy land, because it can, in fact, contain anything, and the fact that it has lain in the form of layers in the cold for one or two winters does not fully guarantee the destruction of the ovipositor of pests or disease spores.
By the way, the procedure for disinfecting soddy land must be carried out initially, before mixing it with fertilizers or river sand. The best option is to spill it with boiling water. To do this, you need the largest colander, into which you should pour soddy soil and pour boiling water from the kettle. Of course, in this way you can destroy the beneficial microflora, but in this case the risk is justified and necessary.
Soddy soil must be passed through a fine mesh before use. © Superdom The use of sod land
Sod land is usually used for growing a wide variety of indoor plants and seedlings, for forcing green crops or growing vegetable crops in winter for the sake of obtaining an “out of season” crop.
The main thing is to use the soddy soil correctly, loosen the top layer more often, water it, fertilize it if necessary for this or that plant, and when laying it in a container, be sure to initially lay a drainage layer there, the role of which can be played by expanded clay, broken brick, pebbles or other small pebbles.
