Content
- How is the vegetable patch prepared properly?
- Draw plant plan
- Prepare the bed for sowing
- When does green manure make sense?
- Tips
In the spring before sowing the vegetable patch is loosened up
How is the vegetable patch prepared properly?
At the latest in spring, when the snow cover is thawing and heavy frosts are no longer to be expected, the time has come to prepare the vegetable patch for the next harvest season. But what works are then and what garden tools are needed for this? The answer to these questions can be found in this article.
Draw plant plan
It is recommended to draw a planting plan and to divide the available area. According to the laws of the crop rotation a distinction is made in:
A small area of the vegetable garden should be reserved for flowering plants or herbs. These attract insects, which ensure a good pollination of the vegetables and thus for a higher crop yield.
Prepare the bed for sowing
Unless already done, old and not rotted plant material is removed first. Now you need a grave fork and a sow tooth to loosen the upper soil layer, which is condensed by snow and frost:
In the course of this work, compost soil and, in the case of very heavy soils, sand is incorporated into the soil. Remove all weeds and stones, this facilitates the subsequent care noticeably.
When does green manure make sense?
Green manure can be sowed from March to October and the vegetable garden prepared for planting.
Green manure plants, with their roots extending far into the earth, also loosen deep layers. They make the early usual digging redundant. After chopping off, you can leave the plants on the beds as a protective layer of mulch. They serve earthworms and soil organisms as food.
This increases the amount of humus in the soil and this can store more water. The butterfly plants frequently contained in green manure mixtures enrich the soil via their nodule bacteria with nitrogen that is valuable for other plants.
Tips
Heavy digging in the spring damages soil life sustainably. Loosen the soil carefully and fertilize it with a biological fertilizer if necessary. A soil analysis is recommended, so you know exactly what nutrients are missing.