Content
- Dig up the vegetable patch - this is how you should proceed
- Dug up - useful or rather harmful?
- What happens when digging?
- When should be dug up?
- Dig heavy soils before winter
- How should the soil be loosened?
- Tips
If a vegetable patch is newly created, must be dug up
Dig up the vegetable patch - this is how you should proceed
For the hobby gardener the annual digging is obligatory. But how duly dug up, what kinds of digging are there, how often and when should this work be done, only few garden lovers are concerned with. The answers to these questions can be found in this article.
Dug up - useful or rather harmful?
By digging the soil is not only loosened, but the upper soil layer gets down and the entire substrate is mixed. However, this has not only advantages, but also several disadvantages:
Soil, on which vegetable plants have grown throughout the year, has formed a lively soil life and a structure that is massively disturbed by this intervention. Keep in mind that in one square meter of healthy substrate there are around 200 earthworms and several billion bacteria and unicellular organisms.
What happens when digging?
Now, if you dig down, the creatures from the upper strata suddenly find themselves in the depths again. Many die because the conditions no longer fit their way of life. As a result, the metabolism of organic substances is sensitively disturbed to humus, which can reduce soil fertility.
Because of this disadvantage, more and more hobby gardeners refrain from digging or plowing regularly. Instead, the earth is gently loosened with a grave fork and then processed with the sow tooth.
When should be dug up?
It is imperative that you dig it over when restoring the vegetable garden. When digging, weeds and roots can be easily removed and the soil, depending on the structure, enriched with humus and / or sand.
It is recommended to plant a green manure afterwards, because the roots of these plants, which project deep into the soil, loosen up the soil layers very well. Alternatively, you can put potatoes that unlock the virgin soil as well.
Dig heavy soils before winter
Clay and clay soils are dug up in the fall, as the so-called Frostgare air penetrates into the soil and improves the structure. When digging, bring plenty of humus and compost to permanently improve the soil structure.
How should the soil be loosened?
There are several ways to prepare the ground for the cold season and the next harvest season:
Only in the spring, the soil is loosened:
Tips
If you have to dig a bed, you should cover it with a layer of mulch. This protects the soil organisms, so that they multiply quickly.