Mulching - what is it, how to do it right

In recent years, nature has been throwing surprises in the form of 40-degree heat in summer or frosts in mid-spring after planting. All this negatively affects productivity. You can deal with such troubles with the help of mulching.

Mulching - the benefits of agricultural practices

Soil mulching is a preventive measure to protect horticultural crops from various climatic troubles, weeds and pests. Mulch is a homogeneous material or a mixture of substances that, according to their qualitative characteristics, are capable of protecting the soil of vegetables planted in the ground, berry bushes, trees, melons and flowers. It serves to improve plant growth and obtain a rich harvest.

Main protective features:

protects the root system of plants by retaining moisture in the soil, maintaining the required level of moisture and acidity;
protects against temperature extremes, hypothermia and overheating;
does not allow weeds to grow;
is a source of nutrients for both plants and earthworms loosening the soil;
the soil does not turn into a hard-to-break crust;
protects berries and vegetables from pollution.

By loosening the soil after rain or watering, you can keep the top layer cool and moist. With the help of this procedure, weeds are destroyed, the soil is enriched with oxygen. Traditional loosening has a drawback - it does not improve soil fertility, frequent loosening destroys the soil structure.

Types of organic mulch

The most popular covering material for horticultural crops is organic mulch. It protects the upper layers of the soil in winter from freezing, and in summer from overheating and from the formation of a crust after watering. It also improves soil fertility.

Agricultural waste is used for organic mulching:

Sawdust. This is a universal tool that can be used on any soil. The advantage of sawdust is that they protect plants from pests, slugs, making it difficult for them to move. Microorganisms in the topsoil gradually turn the mulch into fertile soil, which helps increase yields. In hot weather, the earth, covered with sawdust, protects tomatoes and potatoes from overheating.
Straw. It does not allow slugs, pathogenic fungi located in the ground to take root, it will prevent the development of anthracnose, early rot and leaf spot. Prevents the defeat of potatoes by Colorado potato beetles. Its 15 cm layer is naturally reduced by a factor of three. It is good to sprinkle the aisles in the garden and the soil under the trees with straw; it has a beneficial effect on strawberries, garlic and blackberries.
Hay and cut grass. We use cut grass from lawns, weeded weeds without seeds, stepsons of tomatoes - we dry everything before use. It is good to mulch cabbage with especially tomato stepchildren, as the pungent smell repels the whitefish, a cabbage pest.
Compost. For vegetable crops, this is the optimal covering material that provides protection against diseases, pests and is a source of nutrients. The organization of a compost pit from organic waste, leaves, weeds, tops, shavings and paper makes it possible to get rid of waste. If you properly lay the compost pit, in a year you can have high-quality fertilizer.
Fallen leaves are a good mulching material in beds with cabbage and beans, and when the soil is warm enough, they are used for growing tomatoes, eggplants and peppers. Ideal for flower beds: in winter it protects the root system from frost, during thaws it slows down the growth of bulbs, which reduces the risk of frostbite.

peat chips and waste resulting from the processing of pumpkin and sunflower seeds;
reeds and humus;
paper packaging and straw;
freshly cut grass and cardboard.

The thickness of the mulch layer should be between 3 and 10 cm.

Organic mulching can have a negative effect if used incorrectly: too much material in rainy weather is a favorable environment for the development of mold and fungal infections. Slugs, snails and other pests settle in large mulch.

How to use inorganic mulching materials?

With the help of inorganic materials, you can give the site a decorative look, for example, lay out paths with colored pebbles. But it should be remembered that inorganic mulch does not contribute to the fertility of the earth, but significantly worsens its characteristics.

Non-organic agricultural practices include:

textile;
ruberoid, only;
black and color film;
cardboard, paper;
lutrasil;
expanded clay;
stones: gravel, crushed stone.

Expanded clay and stones are used for decorative purposes to decorate paths.

The disadvantage of their use is that they interfere with the cultivation of the soil, expanded clay collapses over time, turning into crumbs.

The film is convenient due to the lack of a preparation process, retains soil moisture well, and prevents weeds from growing. The disadvantage is the fragility, under the influence of sunlight it becomes unusable, so the film lasts only for one season. When using film shelters for plants, the following points should be considered:

plant watering scheme;
fight against slugs gathering under the film;
the ability of plants to tolerate overheating that occurs under cover in hot weather.

Textile materials based on polypropylene fiber are becoming increasingly popular as mulch. Due to its low cost and ability to absorb sunlight well, geotextiles are widely used. Another plus is that it prevents weeds from growing.

The technology of using coating materials consists of a sequence of steps:

1. First, we spread the canvas on the beds.
2. Then we mark the points where we will make holes.
3. Next, we make cuts.
4. We plant plants in the prepared holes.
5. It is better to make transverse and longitudinal holes, they better protect the soil from moisture evaporation than round and oval ones, while rainwater will freely flow to the seedlings.

The beds with strawberries, cucumbers and zucchini are mulched with black film. Berries and fruits will not come into contact with the ground, so they will remain clean. For tomatoes, it is better to use an opaque red film, and for cabbage - white. The red color accelerates the ripening of tomatoes, the white one prevents the soil from overheating, the temperature regime is important for cabbage crops. Transparent film for soil mulching is not suitable, as sunlight penetrates under it and high humidity forms, which contributes to the active growth of weeds and creates favorable conditions for pests.

Effective use of mulch

The way we will mulch the soil depends on the task:

moisture conservation, weed control;
site decoration;
increase in productivity;
reduction of maturation time;
extension of the warm season.

The most useful for plants is the use of fine organic matter, it has a fruitful effect on the soil, approaching in action the natural processes that take place under the coating. Water easily penetrates through humus, sawdust, straw, peat and other organic materials, while these materials slow down its evaporation, protecting the soil from drying out in hot weather. After decomposition, they become sources of humic substances for the soil. Therefore, under organic mulch, plants require less watering and fertilizer.

Film mulching is effective if it is necessary to partially cover the soil. If you temporarily cover the aisles of zucchini, cucumbers, corn, sweet peppers with a black film, then the yield will increase by 20-30%. In the spring, the ground under the cover warms up faster, which contributes to an earlier harvest. Seedlings will take root faster if the soil around is mulched with a black film.

Solid mulching with agrofibre or film is often used in commercial-scale cultivation of strawberry plantations and cabbage fields. This method of growing reduces the need for nutrients, sometimes by a third of the fertilizer rate. In this case, we carry out top dressing until the soil is covered with agrofiber or use foliar top dressing in the future. So that weeds do not grow under the film material, it must be dark in color, not letting in sunlight.

When using covering materials on a personal plot, it should be remembered that under the film the soil is quickly depleted, so it is better to give preference to organic compounds. It is desirable to use inorganic materials in the warm season, cleaning for the winter season. Organic matter can be left on the beds, it will rot and enter the soil in the form of humus or other useful organic compounds.

How to properly mulch?

Mulch the soil twice a year - in spring and autumn. Efficiency depends on compliance with the rules.

In autumn, we carry out the procedure after the crop is completely harvested. According to the lines, this is the beginning or middle of October, depending on the climatic conditions of the region. At this time, the weeds begin a dormant period, and microorganisms continue to work actively. Plots with berry crops and the garden are mulched with dry and coarse material: walnut shells, wood shavings, bark, peat. For the garden, we use fallen leaves, humus, manure and other soft materials.

Before carrying out the procedure, we prepare the soil:

we clean the area from cut branches, remnants of weeds, dry tops;
we make the necessary fertilizers and top dressing;
we dig and loosen the soil;
if the soil is dry, be sure to water the area, wait until the water is absorbed.

Dry soil must not be mulched! There is a possibility that in this case the water will not reach the roots in sufficient volume.

In autumn we make a layer of mulch 5-8 cm, sometimes 15 cm, do not tamp. In areas in the shade, we make the layer thinner than in open, well-lit places. When mulching crops that will overwinter in the ground, such as garlic, leave a small distance between the rows of plants.

We carry out spring procedures when the top layer of soil, in which the root system is located, warms up to a temperature of 12-14 degrees. If you mulch cold ground when planting seedlings of early cabbage, carrots, the soil warming up period will increase, which will lead to compaction of the upper layer, negatively affecting the yield of early crops.

To mulch the soil, the following factors should be considered:

During the growing season, we mulch the soil after watering, fertilizing, loosening or spraying.
If garden work involves digging, then mix the mulch poured in the summer with the soil along with healthy tops, weeds and fallen leaves.
If we do not dig the garden, we are waiting for spring. When the soil has warmed up, we temporarily shift the mulch layer to the side, and after warming up the soil to the required temperature, we return it to its place.
If the layer of mulch did not allow the soil to freeze, in the spring we leave it on the beds. Sowing seeds and planting plants is done directly into the semi-rotted composition.
After carrying out the spring work on the cultivation of the land, we mulch the soil again. During the summer period, a new layer of semi-rotted organic matter is formed. The soil is enriched with useful organic substances, fertility increases.
Covering material prevents the growth of weeds. If the weeds have sprouted, cut off the tops with inflorescences to exclude sowing seeds. When seeds get on the mulch, they will not be able to germinate without soil, so they mostly die.

All of these methods are necessary in order for the plants to feel comfortable.