Green manure mustard: when to sow and when to bury, advantages and disadvantages

Mustard belongs to the cruciferous family. It is considered one of the most popular and versatile green manure. This culture does not need specific care. It develops well and brings great benefits to the soil. The plant saturates the earth with nutrients and makes it looser. When using mustard as a green manure, it is important to know when to sow and when to bury the crop. In this case, it is worth considering a number of features.

Advantages and disadvantages of mustard as green manure

To improve the quality characteristics of the soil, different types of mustard are used - black, white or Sarepta.The white variety is considered especially effective. It increases the parameters of germination and yield of cultivated plants, protects the soil from drying out, helps to get rid of weeds and pests.

The effectiveness of the plant is due to its unique chemical composition. The culture releases the following substances:

1. Disinfecting components - glycosides. They help to avoid active growth of weeds and infection of the crop with scab or rot.
2. Proteins and minerals. These substances contribute to the restoration of even the most depleted soil and allow it to adapt to planting seedlings.
3. Acids. These substances protect the soil and tender young plants from the negative effects of ultraviolet radiation.

Key features of this green manure include the following:

• improvement of soil structure - it becomes loose and perfectly absorbs moisture;
• increase soil resistance to blowout, washout and displacement;
• no weeds in the area;
• reducing the risk of disease and pest attacks;
• improving pollination of cultivated plants.

At the same time, mustard has some disadvantages:

• risk of developing pathologies that are characteristic of representatives of the cruciferous family - these include powdery mildew, clubroot, rust;
• lignification of stems after the start of flowering;
• attracting birds - they peck mustard seeds and can cause damage to berries and fruits.

For which soils mustard is suitable as green manure

The plant can be used as a fertilizer for chernozem, peat or sandy soil. Mustard loves neutral soil types. It can also grow with low acidity. At the same time, planting a plant in loamy, acidic or s alty soil is not recommended.

What and when can I plant after

After mustard, you can plant a large number of crops. These include:

• potato;
• tomatoes;
• pepper;
• bow;
• eggplant;
• pumpkin;
• garlic;
• celery;
• strawberry;
• strawberries;
• spinach;
• zucchini;
• beets;
• beans;
• peas.

At the same time, it is forbidden to plant the following after the plant:

• all types of cabbage;
• fuck;
• watercress;
• levkoy;
• turnip;
• radish.

Terms and rules for planting crops

Mustard can be planted in different seasons. Depending on the timing of planting, the care of the crop is different.

Spring sowing

The plant can be planted as early as March. In warm areas, this is allowed even at the end of February. It takes 30-40 days for the culture to grow deciduous mass.

For landing operations, it is recommended to do the following:

1. Clear the beds of old plant residues.
2. If necessary, treat the beds with a rake or flat cutter. In spring, the soil is quite wet, so planting seeds is not difficult.
3. The easiest way is to scatter mustard seeds around the area. At the same time, it is not necessary to close them. At the first rainfall, they themselves will go deep into the ground.

The seeding rate per 1 hectare may differ:

• when planting in the beds, 400-500 grams of mustard are required;
• when placed between rows, 120-150 grams will suffice.

When the air temperature rises to +10 degrees, the first sprouts will appear already in 3-4 days. At the same time, the soil will be covered with a continuous cover after approximately 1 month.

Summer planting

In the summer, it is permissible to plant mustard in the event that it is necessary to remove the site from crop rotation, restore and improve it. It is allowed to plant a plant 2 times during the season:

1. For the first time, planting work should be carried out at the end of May. After 1.5 months, the plants can be planted in the ground.
2. After 2 weeks, mustard can be planted again on the same bed. At the same time, it is important to observe the norms of consumption of seed material.

This soil restoration option is suitable if it is not depleted too much. To normalize the structure of very poor soil, summer planting of white mustard is not suitable. One green manure will not help to quickly restore depleted soil.

The formation of the humus layer takes many years. To speed it up, it is worth using more efficient methods. To do this, you can make compost or humus. It is also acceptable to apply other organic fertilizers with a powerful effect.

Autumn

To increase soil fertility, it is recommended to plant mustard in autumn immediately after harvest. This is especially true in cool areas. Thanks to this, the culture will have time to grow up before the arrival of severe cold weather. In the south, green manure should be planted until mid-November.

For landing operations, it is recommended to do the following:

1. After harvesting, clean the beds from the remains of plants and weeds.
2. Feed the soil with humus. For 1 square meter, it is worth using no more than 2 buckets of top dressing. The earth needs to be dug up and loosened with a rake.
3. Scatter the seeds thickly over the entire area of the plot to achieve the formation of a continuous cover of plants.
4. In the absence of precipitation and high dryness of the soil, pour a thin layer of earth on the seeds - a maximum of 1 centimeter. After that, the soil needs to be moistened so that the seeds do not scatter.

Then events may develop differently:

1. With the timely planting of mustard, she manages to grow up well. In this case, the plant can be mowed and left on the beds as a mulch layer.
2. If the grass has grown a little, and the cold has already come, mustard should be left in the garden.

With the onset of spring, it is recommended to dig up the soil or process it with a cultivator. Overripe mustard can be used as a complete fertilizer.

Caring for green manure

This undemanding plant thrives well in loose soil. It grows well in the shade and in sunny beds. In good conditions, sprouts appear 3-5 days after planting. After germination, the development of mustard stops.

About a month later, a thick green manure carpet appears on the ground. After another 1 week, the mustard begins to bloom actively. In dry weather, the plant needs abundant watering. Before the onset of the flowering process, mustard must be mowed, and the soil must be dug up.

When to cut grass?

In order for a plant to develop in the garden, it is required to maintain optimal parameters for the humidity of the site. It is necessary to mow the greens before flowering. This is done 1 month after planting. This is important to do in a timely manner, because with the onset of flowering, the stems become coarser, and the foliage acquires a rigid structure.At this time, mustard absorbs a large amount of nutrients from the soil and loses the properties of green manure.

When growing mustard in heavy soil, mowed greens must be dug up directly with the ground. To do this, it is recommended to use a shovel. In more loose soil, it is enough to plant the plant in the ground with an ordinary chopper. In dry weather, fertilized beds need to be watered systematically. This will help speed up the decomposition of greenery.

Common mistakes

The most common mistakes people make when growing green manure include:

1. No watering after planting. It is forbidden to allow the soil to dry out under this plant. Therefore, it is important to moderately, but regularly, water the plantings.
2. Neglecting the seeding process after planting. As a result, they are pecked by birds or spread by the wind.
3. Planting mustard after cabbage or radish. These cultures are considered related. Therefore, it is forbidden to plant them nearby or alternate them.
4. Mowing too late. Green manure must be removed before the grains ripen. Otherwise, the green manure will become a weed and fill the entire garden.
5. Too frequent or very rare planting. To achieve a pronounced result, it is necessary to spend 400 grams of mustard per 1 weave. It is important to properly distribute the grains so that there are no voids.

Mustard is considered an effective plant that is often used as green manure. In order for the culture to give the desired result, it is required to strictly adhere to the terms and rules of planting.

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