What can be mulched with sawdust. How to properly prepare sawdust for the garden. Making fertilizer and preparing for application

Should you use sawdust in your dacha? Many people ask this question, let's find out the opinion of those who have used sawdust in practice.

Question: How useful or not is sawdust useful on the site? Where and how can they be used? Or maybe it’s better not to use it at all?

We ended up with several bags of sawdust. A neighbor asked us for it and scattered it around her property. My mother-in-law wants to put them under the raspberries - I don’t know if this is right or not?

ABOUT.: I have a bad review for them. They acidify the soil terribly. And I spilled urea, it’s still bad.
The raspberries didn’t even get leaves, and the lawn didn’t grow at all, or rather, it was in terrible shreds. And she added it, and did everything she could. That whole season, where there was sawdust, went down the drain.

ABOUT.: The paths between the beds are covered with sawdust, they are watered all summer so that they rot, and in the spring they are embedded in the beds, something like that.

ABOUT.: Sawdust perfectly decompacts the soil and serves as an excellent mulch. But! If you do not have blueberries, rhododendron or pine needles, which require acidic soils, then add dolomite flour along with sawdust to alkalize the soil.

ABOUT.: Sawdust can be obtained free of charge from wood cutting companies. In Berdsk I know what they are handing out, my brother went there and collected sawdust to fill the roof of the bathhouse.
Sawdust must be used carefully, because, on the one hand, sawdust loosens the soil, and on the other hand, it very strongly acidifies it.
Therefore, our parents and grandmothers advised us to sprinkle sawdust on the paths so that there is less dirt, and in the fall add slaked lime to the soil, simply scattering it around the garden, in the spring the whole thing is dug up.
Sawdust is also used when processing onions, kerosene is diluted in water and sawdust is added, let it sit a little and then spread over the onion bed - not too tightly, of course.

ABOUT.: Sawdust actually greatly increases acidity. I pour them into the beds along with the ash and dig them up, they neutralize each other, otherwise my garden is full of clay.

ABOUT.: Girls, I don’t recommend using sawdust anywhere in the garden; because of it, a wireworm appears, which begins to devour everything, and it’s very difficult to get it out. I didn’t listen to the advice of my friends, now I’m looking on the internet for how to get rid of it, it appeared right there , where I sprinkled sawdust.

ABOUT.: One year I poured sawdust into the rows of strawberries... Then I had to cut them down, they had become so compacted over the winter that they had crusted over. And weeds grow very well on them.

ABOUT.: And we have been using sawdust for 3 years in a row. My husband has his own sawmill. I sprinkle all the paths between the beds, the grass grows much less, and sometimes I also sprinkle it under the bushes, it’s better, of course, not to sprinkle it fresh. No worms or living creatures. Everything looks great and beautiful, like snow on the ground. And in the spring we dig it all up with a motorized cultivator.

ABOUT.: We also love sawdust, only we have it with chicken droppings. Sawdust very good loosen the soil, and to prevent it from acidifying, you first need to fill the bucket with sawdust with water. And I do warm bed under the cucumbers - in the center of the bed I bury sawdust with chicken droppings, and the cucumbers at the edges, and they always grow very well. Fine.

ABOUT.: Girls, you know everything yourself. Cons: sawdust acidifies the soil, sawdust removes nitrogen from the soil. Now let's change the minuses to the pluses.
It acidifies, which means you need to alkalize it, mix it with ash, and where they were used, in the fall we add fluff lime (now in garden stores a special deoxidizing lime is sold; by the way, it is great to use when growing clematis).
It takes nitrogen, which means we don’t pour it dry, but soak it in a bucket with urea, or even better with calcium nitrate - this is nitrogen + calcium, which also alkalizes (deoxidizes the soil).
I take a bucket, dry mix sawdust with ash and pour 2-3 tablespoons of calcium nitrate into a bucket of water. I use it as mulch for both raspberries and strawberries.
Thus, any minus can be changed to a plus.

You can see that the strawberries are mulched with sawdust, they are gray from the ash, in the fall of 2012 they were fresh, straight from the sawmill. Then I can show what berries will grow with these “sour” sawdust.
Yes, conifers, hydrangeas, rhododendron, blueberries generally say “thank you” for the mulch with sawdust.

ABOUT.: For the 101st time I sing a hymn to sawdust, and all other organic matter in addition. This time I photographed the obligatory companions of sawdust when mulching.
I remind you:

ash and lime for alkalization so that the soil does not acidify when using sawdust,
urea (calcium nitrate), so that sawdust decomposes faster and does not take nitrogen from the soil,
water to dissolve the urea so that it is evenly saturated with fertilizer,
Sawdust to make the soil lighter, plumper, looser.

As a result, we come to the following conclusion: sawdust can be used, but correctly. To benefit from them, you must follow the application rules described above.

Due to its availability, sawdust has gained popularity among gardeners and received wide application in the garden. Most often, sawdust is used as fertilizer. Is it possible to mulch with sawdust? We will try to find an answer to this question in this article.

Properties of sawdust when used in mulching

Many vegetable growers do not even realize that sawdust can also be suitable for mulching or soil insulation. Sawdust can be compared to organic matter, which, when added to the soil, begins to decompose, releasing carbon, which in turn leads to the activation of microflora and an almost doubling of beneficial bacteria. Let's consider the impact of sawdust on soil and plants.

The beneficial effects of mulching with sawdust

The soil becomes loose and light.
Breathability makes it possible not to retain excess moisture.
The composition of the soil becomes similar to peat, which has a positive effect on the development of the root system of planted plants.

Harmful effects of mulching with sawdust

Rotted sawdust makes the soil more acidic, that is, it increases its acidity, and acidic soil is not suitable for all plants.
Fresh sawdust reduces the amount of nitrogen in the soil, and without nitrogen, not a single plant grows.

Experienced owners advise: if you do not know all the characteristics of the soil (namely, the acidity level), then you can try mulching one bed. This will not cause any significant losses, but in the future you will know for sure whether sawdust mulch is suitable for your area. And, if it fits, you will see that mulching with sawdust will only bring benefits. That is why many people use this material for mulching - it is cheap, easy to use and safe. You can cover with sawdust both the surface of the beds and the passages between them, as well as the tree trunk circles, the surface of the ground under raspberry, currant, gooseberry bushes, etc.

Mulching with sawdust is widely used in closed ground- in greenhouses and greenhouses. This material combines perfectly with manure, which is also used to fertilize the soil in a greenhouse, with tops and other plant residues. Such compost, flavored with sawdust, overheats faster and at the same time remains loose and breathable. However, it should be noted that only fresh sawdust is used with fresh manure, and only rotted sawdust is used with rotted manure.

Mulching the soil with sawdust can be done both in spring and autumn. After the end of the season, sawdust can also be incorporated into the soil along with straw, fallen leaves, and mowed grass.

What sawdust can be used for mulching?

According to its structure, sawdust mulch can be different sizes, composition and production time. In this regard, it may have some differences in properties. Based on this fact, each type of sawdust mulch should be used for its intended purpose. You cannot use sawdust from chipboard because they are artificially impregnated with all sorts of resins and other nasty things.

Sawdust from deciduous trees will rot faster, so if possible, we give them preference. But also sawdust coniferous species will do.

You should not use very small sawdust in the beds, as they can cake into lumps and form a crust on the surface of the soil.

Using large sawdust as mulch promotes the formation of a very thick and rather loose sawdust layer on the surface of the earth. It is quite difficult to compact such a layer, since the stems of plants located in it may be damaged. Therefore, the structure of sawdust mulch directly depends on the age of the plants being covered: the finer the structure of the sawdust, the younger the plant organisms being covered. Larger sawdust should not be thrown away, as it is not considered the right material. They are well suited for covering plants growing near the house for the winter. ornamental shrubs or fruit trees.

Is it possible to mulch with fresh sawdust?

Of course, you can mulch the beds with fresh sawdust, but it is preferable to use sawdust from deciduous trees. Sawdust from coniferous trees contains a lot of resinous substances, which are harmful to plants. Such sawdust can be used to mulch between rows. There is a way out. In order to harm the plants without fear, sawdust from coniferous trees should be slightly rotted, that is, “old”, having lain for about a year, but in no case moldy, rotten, or caked. To avoid any troubles with sawdust, they are treated in the same way as with manure when humus is maturing, that is, they are turned over and loosened every now and then, so that the moisture from the rain does not stagnate and a favorable environment does not arise for the development of pathogenic bacteria, mold and putrefactive fungi. Under natural conditions, the reheating procedure can take up to 10 years, so there are ways to more quickly prepare sawdust for use. The most common and in a simple way Preparation for mulching is as follows: 3 buckets of sawdust and 200 g of urea are poured onto the film and water is poured on top so that it completely wets the sawdust, then the layer is sprinkled with urea and the procedure is repeated. Thus, several layers are obtained, which are then tightly wrapped and kept in this state for two weeks. After this period, the sawdust can be used. You can scatter sawdust not only near the plant itself, but also in the aisles between plantings.

How to mulch correctly with sawdust?

Mulching the soil with sawdust should be done only after thoroughly processing the bed.

It is necessary to weed the weeds, trim the mustache and shoots (if this concerns strawberries or raspberries).

Some gardeners cover the beds with thin paper before mulching; this more thoroughly protects against the appearance of weeds.

The sawdust layer is usually from 3 to 5 centimeters.

If mulching with fresh sawdust, it is necessary to add nitrogen fertilizers. Since they oxidize the soil, it is recommended to apply them with ash. A good effect is achieved by simultaneous use of the drug Baikal EM1.

Mulching with sawdust in a greenhouse

Sawdust is one type of mulch that can be used in greenhouses. Cultures do not rot and spoil. They are used to enrich manure and plant waste. They speed up decomposition organic fertilizers, the compost is loose and breathable.

Mulch is added to greenhouses in spring or autumn. It is better to apply sawdust in combination with other components. This mixture is laid in the ridges in the fall. You can make compost:

200 kg. sawdust;
50 kg. manure;
100 kg. herbs;
30 kg. food waste.

For greenhouses, sawdust can be placed in ridges in combination with straw or hay.

In the spring, the soil is mulched when intensive crop growth begins. In greenhouses, during heavy watering, a crust often forms on the surface of the soil, and the soil around the roots is washed away. In this case, it is necessary to mulch the soil. In addition, mulching reduces the watering rate and prevents overheating of the root system of crops in the greenhouse.

A greenhouse measuring 3x6 m will require six bags of pine sawdust. The mulch is spread in a layer of 5-7 cm between the rows and around the stems of the crops.

What crops can be mulched with sawdust?

Trees, shrubs, and flowers are mulched with sawdust.

This material is used to cover beds with vegetables and berries; for this, the space between the beds is sprinkled with sawdust to reduce the growth of weeds.

For decorative mulching of flowers, trees or shrubs, sawdust of large fractions can be painted in various colors. This gives unique splendor to landscape design.

This type of mulch is used for growing vegetables such as carrots, potatoes, onions, and cucumbers. To increase the potato yield, mulching the distance between plants with sawdust after hilling has a good effect.

In combination with nitrogen fertilizer such a layer provides best growth crops

Mulching with sawdust is inexpensive and effective way increasing crop yields, preserving and increasing soil fertility, as well as giving the garden an aesthetic appearance.

For some crops, mulching is an integral agronomic technique of the growing process.

When used, plants are more protected from freezing in winter period, from the heat and heat in the summer.

When mulching, the growth of weeds is inhibited, and the soil is less susceptible to excessive evaporation. Fruits, due to the lack of contact with the soil, are less damaged by diseases.

When using this prime, it is important to choose the right material for this important procedure. One option is mulching with sawdust.

The use of sawdust has a number of advantages compared to other materials. These benefits are as follows:

How to prepare sawdust for mulching

For soil mulching, only sawdust, which can be taken from any wood processing plant or made yourself using wood and a saw.

It is advisable to use them from deciduous trees, since fresh coniferous sawdust strongly oxidizes the soil.

The particles of this material can be of different sizes, and, consequently, the properties of the mulch will be different.

It is advisable to use medium-sized sawdust for mulch. Very fine particles often cake and form crusts or clumps on the soil surface. The large particle size of wood chips is also undesirable for use as mulch on delicate garden plants.

But for mulching trees and shrubs, large sawdust is the best option.

Many summer residents are interested in the question of whether it is possible to mulch with fresh sawdust? A more favorable type of mulch for plants is half-rotted sawdust. This is due to the fact that fresh sawdust contains little nitrogen (0.5%) and is forced to take it from the soil.

Therefore, it is best to use rotted material that is two years old, or to artificially accelerate its maturation by enriching it with nitrogen.

To do this, sawdust is filled with the following solution: 200 grams of urea diluted in a bucket of water. For better impregnation the poured sawdust is periodically mixed.

Most gardeners prefer to process sawdust before using it in a compost bin.

How to properly mulch with sawdust, nuances

Mulching the soil with sawdust should be done only after thoroughly processing the bed.

It is necessary to weed the weeds, trim the mustache and shoots (if this concerns strawberries or raspberries).

Some gardeners cover the beds with thin paper before mulching; this more thoroughly protects against the appearance of weeds.

The sawdust layer is usually from 3 to 5 centimeters.

When to mulch

Mulching with sawdust is used in the fall to protect plants from freezing. This method is suitable for perennial flowers, strawberries, shrubs and vegetables planted in winter.

But you need to remember that sawdust is a rather hygroscopic plant, and having absorbed moisture in the spring, it takes a long time to thaw, forming an ice crust. Therefore, such a shelter may not be suitable for all plants. For example, it is not advisable to use it on roses.

In the spring, the procedure is carried out after thoroughly processing the plants, removing the old mulch covering, or digging it up with soil.

Mulching strawberries with sawdust should be done before flowering. By the end of summer, thanks to the influence sun rays, rain and wind, there will be very little sawdust left on the beds.

In summer, it is highly undesirable to mulch plants. Since this will not allow perennials to properly prepare for winter.

What crops can be mulched with sawdust?

Trees, shrubs, and flowers are mulched with sawdust.

This material is used to cover beds with vegetables and berries; for this, the space between the beds is sprinkled with sawdust to reduce the growth of weeds.

For decorative mulching of flowers, trees or shrubs, sawdust of large fractions can be painted in various colors. This gives unique splendor to landscape design.

This type of mulch is used for growing vegetables such as carrots, potatoes, onions, and cucumbers. On carrots, the smell of sawdust prevents the appearance of carrot flies. To increase the potato yield, mulching the distance between plants with sawdust after hilling has a good effect.

In combination with nitrogen fertilizer, this layer ensures better crop growth.

Mulching with sawdust is an inexpensive and effective way to increase crop yields, preserve and increase soil fertility, as well as give the garden an aesthetic appearance.

Author of the article: Kozhukhova Elena

Sawdust, like other waste from sawing wood, is a good material for making fertilizers and compost.

However, errors in the process that are made out of ignorance, as well as incorrect use of ready-made fertilizer, can not only cause harm to plantings, But change soil characteristics, making it unsuitable for certain plants.

why the earth needs fertilizers;
how sawdust turns into compost;
how to make compost from wood waste and droppings or manure;
how to determine the readiness of humus;
which sawdust is best suited for producing humus;

As plants grow, their roots pulled out of the ground nutrients and various minerals in the form of aqueous solutions.

These substances are concentrated in the upper (fertile) layer, consisting of:

clay;
sand;
humus (humus).

During irrigation, water permeates the top layer of soil and, mixing with these substances, forms an aqueous solution. The more intense the growth of roots and other parts of the plant, the it draws more water from the ground and an aqueous solution of nutrients and minerals.

Gradually, the concentration of nutrients and substances necessary for growth in the soil drops and the plant no longer receives them adequately. Because of this:

growth rate decreases;
immunity decreases and vulnerability to diseases and pests increases;
The quantity of fruits decreases and their quality decreases.

In nature, the consumption of nutrients by plants is compensated the formation of humus from various organic matter:

dead roots, leaves and branches;
excrement of birds and animals;
corpses of various living creatures.

In gardens and orchards, this method of restoring the fertile qualities of the soil is not applicable, so the soil you need to add special compounds, which contain nutrients and substances necessary for plant development.

By saturating the top layer of soil, they increase its fertility, supplying the roots of plants with the necessary nutrition and building material.

Humus production

The transformation of sawdust into humus is natural result of the work of various bacteria, which break down cellulose into simple organic matter, and also perform many other actions.

Therefore, the speed of obtaining humus, as well as its quality, directly depend on the conditions created for these bacteria.

In addition, very composition is important source material – processing wood waste alone allows bacteria to turn it into a good nutrient, but will not supply the soil with the substances and microelements necessary for plant growth.

The process of producing fertilizer from sawdust begins when the following conditions are met:

positive temperature and sufficient humidity;
oxygen availability;
presence of a minimum number of bacteria.

For the vital activity of bifidobacteria, which break down cellulose into glucose and other substances, nitrogen needed, which they absorb from the air and earth. The nitrogen contained in the air is not enough for active work bacteria, so their activity is low.

You can increase it by adding:

urea;
land;
droppings or manure.

During the activity of bacteria, a lot is released carbon dioxide, so the process of turning compost into humus should only take place outdoors.

In addition, bacteria that turn sawdust into humus emit a lot of heat, so the process doesn't stop even at sub-zero temperatures.

However, as the temperature drops, the bacteria living in the outer layer of the compost heap reduce the speed of their work, so the rotting process occurs less evenly.

But high temperature inside the heap allows bacteria to transform the material in the outer layers of the heap.

In addition to recycled cellulose and other organic matter, the compost should also contain: inorganic substances, first of all calcium and phosphorus.

Therefore, to obtain high-quality balanced humus, it is necessary to add slaked lime and other minerals to the compost.

During the life of bacteria, they mix as much as possible with humus and form compounds that are optimal for plant nutrition.

How to make rotted sawdust quickly?

For making compost free space is needed separated from the garden " sanitary zone» 5–7 meters in size.

Despite the fact that you can simply dump all the materials in a heap and leave them to rot, many gardeners and gardeners prefer neat boxes, which prevent compost from spilling.

How to compost?

As such a box can be used ditches, platforms and any containers.

Laying compost in holes and ditches is most effective if a variety of plants are planted above them.

In this case, the high temperature created by the bacteria will allow seedlings or seeds to be planted 3-6 weeks earlier, which will the harvest will be earlier. In addition, a slight heating of the earth will have a beneficial effect on the development of the root system.

Depending on the type of wood, natural decay in such conditions is 1–3 years, and the temperature rise in compost is 1-5 degrees.

Adding droppings or manure to sawdust reduces rotting time up to 6–10 months, and the addition of drugs that accelerate the proliferation of bifidobacteria reduces the period to 3–5 months.

At the same time, the temperature of the compost rises to a level of 40–60 degrees even when the air temperature drops to zero or slight frost.

More details about this method of obtaining humus, as well as compensation negative influence on the basis, you can read in the article about.

To obtain humus from compost You can use any suitable container made from materials resistant to bifidobacteria and light acids. Easiest to use plastic containers suitable size.

If you only have metal barrel or a box then it can be covered with roofing felt, but this will negatively affect the bacteria in the outer layer.

Wood is good for making a compost bin. Although it does not last long (5–15 years), it does not disturb the microclimate in the compost heap.

A wooden box can be made from boards or bars, or from old doors.

Sometimes a box is even made from disassembled cabinets ( chipboards), but the phenols they contain negatively affect the microflora of the outer layers of the heap.

In such boxes, the process of decay does not stop, but becomes a little more uneven.

If the rotting time is observed, the humus from it is in no way inferior to any other, therefore the only drawback– you need to wait 1–2 weeks longer.

The compost box can be of any shape, but it is important to remember that the higher the height of the pile in it, the greater the pressure on the walls.

It's easier to make a box larger size in length and width, using for it thin bars and boards, what to fence powerful design, able to withstand the pressure of a large pile.

After all, the task of such a box is prevent contents from spilling over the surrounding area.

It is not necessary to make the walls of the box completely closed; it is quite acceptable to make them in the form of a lattice with a cell height of 3–10 cm (depending on the composition of the compost - for sawdust no more than 3 cm, for a mixture of sawdust and excrement up to 10 cm). The length of the cells can be any.

If there is no box, or you don't want to do it, you can pile the compost directly on the ground.

At the same time, you must understand that the area under the heap will receive too large a dose of nutrients and minerals, and the soil on it will become acidic.

Therefore, even on next year It is not advisable to plant anything there.

After complete rotting of the compost, such an area should be sprinkled with ash and slaked lime or dolomite flour, then plow it so that the soil can absorb nutrients, and after a year it can be used for planting.

Therefore, the area under compost heap you need to choose very carefully- if possible, close to the planting site and so as not to damage the plants.

After all, even at a distance of 2–3 meters from the edge of the heap, the concentration of acids, nutrients and minerals will be dangerous for plants.

Methods for obtaining humus

Exists 8 composition combinations to obtain humus from wood waste, which differ both in the components used and in the final result:

clean sawdust;
treated with urea;
a mixture of any parts of plants;
with kitchen waste;
with manure/compost;
with the addition of cesspool contents;
from wood waste, manure/compost and mineral additives;
using drugs that accelerate the proliferation of bifidobacteria.

First way the simplest, but also the longest.

Wood waste is piled up and watered to increase its moisture content.

Sometimes the waste is soaked for 1–2 hours before being piled, but this is only justified for small volumes.

The time it takes for such a heap to rot depends on:

wood species;
air temperature;
composition of the earth beneath it.

Soft deciduous trees rot in 10–15 months, and coniferous trees in 2–3 years. Every 2 weeks it is necessary check the humidity and temperature of the pile, sticking his hand into it.

If the pile is dry or cold, then it needs to be watered. If it feels wet to the touch, then there is too much water in it, so the pile needs to be stirred to dry, then raked again.

You can speed up the process of converting compost from wood waste into humus by treating it with urea.

To do this, urea is dissolved in water and This solution is poured over the pile. The urea solution fills the wood with nitrogen, which is necessary for bacteria for normal existence, so the rate of their reproduction, as well as their work efficiency, increases noticeably.

Both types of humus, obtained from the same sawdust, contain only good nutrients, so together with them microelements also need to be added. Otherwise, they will only be effective as top dressing on undepleted soils.

In addition to waste from sawing wood, you can make compost from any parts of plants. For example, in the fall you collect leaves and rake them, then form a pile by laying sawdust and leaves in layers.

If you trimmed trees, then the cut branches grind with special equipment, which we talked about in this.

Twigs and branches large size will rot for decades, and bacteria will process the shredded wood as quickly as sawdust.

Remember, diseased or pest-infested leaves and branches should not be added to the compost. Such waste is needed pile up and then burn.

After all, bacteria that process wood will not be able to kill pathogens or pests, so humus from contaminated materials will pose a threat to your plantings.

In addition to waste from the garden or vegetable garden, you can use it to obtain humus and any kitchen leftovers with the exception of meat.

They can be either fresh or sour or moldy, the only condition is that all waste must be crushed , otherwise, the process of decay will last for several years.

A mixture of sawdust and litter or manure is obtained in cowsheds, pigsties and other places where animals are kept. The most popular is a mixture of sawdust with chicken droppings or manure.

Animal and bird excrement not only fills the compost with nitrogen, but also are a source of many microelements required for normal height plants.

This compost rots in 8–12 months.

If you add drugs that accelerate the proliferation of bifidobacteria, then humus will be ready in 4-6 months.

In addition, such humus is the most balanced and suitable for use on any soil for any plants.

Along with droppings or manure, you can also pour the contents of cesspools and outdoor toilets into the compost heap.

The only condition is that they The home sewer should not come out, After all, water containing shampoos and washing powders is poured into it, and such chemistry negatively affects both the soil and plantings.

To create a proper heap, first lay a layer of sawdust 10 cm thick, then water it with the contents of the cesspools (1 bucket per 2–10 m2) and lay a new layer of sawdust.

The height of the heap is chosen based on convenience and total volume.

Signs of completion of decay are:

completely absent smell of excrement;
loose structure, similar to loosened sandy soil;
reducing the temperature to street temperature both outside and inside the heap.

If you have acidic soil on your site, and plants like less acidic or alkaline soil, then when adding a compost heap, sprinkle it with slaked lime or dolomite flour..

How to use humus?

IN agriculture humus, including sawdust, is used in different ways.

Completely prepared humus is scattered over the area and plowed up to mix with the soil. This method most effective in early or late autumn.

If you are planting green manure, you can spread humus both before planting and while preparing the field for winter.

During autumn and winter, humus and soil will mix, causing plants will receive a more balanced diet. Ready-made humus can also be applied during spring plowing, but this method is less effective because the soil will not have time to become saturated with humus and the plants will not receive balanced nutrition.

You can also use compounds that have not had time to rot.

If they are treated with agents that accelerate the growth of bacteria, then such compost can be added after collecting green manure, during autumn plowing.

Over the winter, the sawdust and other components will completely rot and mix with the soil.

Therefore, in the spring the plants will receive the most balanced nutrition.

Fresh compost is added to the soil only in three cases:

its composition ensures rapid decay and is treated with drugs that accelerate the growth of bacteria;
the field is left fallow;
compost is used for heating planting material in holes and grooves.

In all other cases, fresh compost will reduce plant productivity and can make the land unusable.

In areas where the soil around trees is not dug up or is dug up very rarely, ready-made humus laid out around the trunk and watered generously.

Nutrients and microelements from humus, together with water, penetrate the soil and saturate it, due to which the tree grows faster and bears fruit better.

The same method is used to apply fertilizers to fields planted with currants, raspberries and other bushes.

Video on the topic

Watch a video on how to prepare fertilizer from sawdust:

Conclusion

Wood sawdust – good material to obtain humus. After reading the article, you learned:

which sawdust is best suited for producing humus;
how long does the rotting process take?
how this process is affected by chicken manure and the excrement of other birds and animals;
how can you quickly get good humus;
how to apply humus correctly.

How to keep the soil moist for a long time in hot weather? How to protect plants from freezing in winter? How to curb the growth of weeds in garden beds? Such questions are often asked by inexperienced gardeners.Mulching with sawdustsoil is one of the agricultural techniques that solves these problems.

Advantages and disadvantages of mulching with sawdust

Mulch the soil with sawdust, that is, covering the surface of the earth with them must be done competently. This procedure is not always beneficial. Advantages:

cheapness;
retain moisture in the soil well;
promote greater soil permeability;
protect roots from temperature changes;
when they decompose, organic substances are formed that nourish the earth with vital elements;
retain heat in the soil and prevent it from freezing in severe winters;
allow air to pass through;
prevent the spread of weeds;
prevent the berries from coming into contact with the soil, which means they reduce their spoilage;
mulch is a home for beneficial microflora;
pine mulching sawdust prevents the development of fungal diseases and repels some pests;
pine sawdust, especially pine , drive away some pests and pathogens.

Despite the impressive list of advantages, mulching has its disadvantages:

fresh sawdust affects the acidity of the soil, increasing it;
sawdust large size they rot for a long time, and for the decomposition process they need nitrogen, which they take from the soil;
also, the decomposition period depends on the type of tree - sawdust from soft deciduous trees rots in 10–15 months, from pine and other representatives of conifers - 2–3 years;
pine sawdust prevents the development of not only pathogenic microflora, but also beneficial ones.

What sawdust can be used

Crops react differently to the application of sawdust mulch.

plants love chopped wood from deciduous trees, except oak, poplar and walnut. It is better not to use oak, as well as waste from poplar and walnut. They secrete substances that inhibit the growth of many crops;
sawdust from coniferous trees acidifies the soil , therefore it is applied to plants that prefer an acidic environment - potatoes, greens, carrots, tomatoes and representatives of the pumpkin family;
It is prohibited to use waste from chipboards, as they contain hazardous substances.

For mulchingThey use different sizes of material.

Very fine fractions are not used. It cakes into lumps and forms a hard crust on the surface.
Large sawdust forms a loose and deep layer that is difficult to compact.
Large chips insulate plants winter

Sawdust in pure form sprinkle paths in plots and flower beds, passages between beds. You should not cover the ground with fresh sawdust in the fall. This wood material has low thermal conductivity. If you covered it cold ground, then it will not thaw for a long time in the spring and will not warm up well. For mulch It is better to use rotted or semi-rotted material that is painted light or dark brown.

For a healthy harvest potatoes After hilling it, sprinkle the grooves with sawdust. They will help retain moisture and prevent weeds from germinating. Mulching bushes raspberries helps its root system to overwinter without negative consequences. Bushes of tomatoes, cucumbers, strawberries and many flowers - hydrangeas, roses , lupins also respond well to this procedure.

Mulching must be combined with the addition of nitrogen. fertilizers

For cucumbers they practice mulching with wood chips small fraction. Each bush is sprinkled in a circle, this protects the plant from sucking pests. Coniferous sawdust is used as biofuels. They are poured into the base of the cucumber beds , water it well with slurry and increase it in height with soil.

Wood waste under the influence manure will hum and generate heat all season. Large wood shavings are placed in planting holes for grapes and flower vines. They act as a heat insulator, protecting plant roots from deep cold. Coniferous It is better to use sawdust for mulching carrots , they will drive away the carrot fly. To insulate mulch, the “dry” method is most often used, which is suitable for most crops - clematis, grapes, rose bushes.

The advantage of this method lies in the fact that plants overwinter in a dry, warm place where excess moisture does not penetrate. They are covered with sawdust, covered with polyethylene on top and covered with earth. Events are held in late autumn.

Winter garlic needs mulching not to protect it from freezing, but to preserve soil moisture and prevent cracking of the ground. Therefore, a “wet” method of covering is suitable for garlic: mulch from shavings sprinkle the soil near the plants, without adding soil and without covering the beds with polyethylene. Mulching pine sawdust protects garlic from diseases and pests.

You should not sprinkle such mulch on plants that like an alkaline environment - cabbage, beets. This will adversely affect their growth.

Timing of work

For sawdust to start “working”, it must rot. This requires high temperatures, which is why optimal timing Their uses are spring, summer - warm seasons. During this same period, it is necessary to protect the roots of plants from the scorching sun and prevent rapid evaporation of moisture. Wood mulch can be process strawberry plantations, raspberry bushes, tree trunks of fruit trees. Winter mulching is carried out with a mixture consisting of:

from sawdust;
plant residues;
rotted manure.

Technology

Before what to processsoil with mulch, you need to find out its acidity and, if necessary, adjust this parameter by adding additional components.

Preparation of material

The sawdust itself are not a fertilizer. On the contrary, they, like a sponge, suck elements from the soil, depleting it. Therefore it is necessary from them make mulch. It is easy to prepare it with your own hands. Preparation starts with acquisition wood material. It must be of high quality, without pathogenic microorganisms and pests.

On plastic film pour out several buckets of sawdust and calcium nitrate on top (70–80 g per 1 bucket of material). Then water it with water, cover it with film and leave it for a week.
Urea is most often used for saturation of the material with nitrogen. Fold it in a heap, water each layer with a urea solution (200 g per 10 liters of water), then cover with film. Every 14 days, the sawdust is shoveled so that it is saturated with oxygen. They are used when they turn black.

Technology preparation is to ensure that a sufficient number of microorganisms settle on the material, which will begin to process the wood into organic matter. To do this it is necessary to support high humidity, and the temperature is above +15°C. To prepare mulch takes time, so it is better to do it in spring or autumn, making compost pits. Sawdust, manure and plant waste - tops, mown grass, leaves - are placed in them in layers. If there is no time, then compost prepared from fresh sawdust. For 1 bucket of sawdust take:

superphosphate in granules - 30 g;
ammonium nitrate - 40 g;
calcium chloride - 10 g;
slaked lime - 120 g.

The mixture is infused for 2 weeks.

Addition dolomite flour or ash in rotted sawdust neutralizes components that change soil acidity.

Features of spring and summer mulching in open ground and greenhouses

In spring, annual crops are mulched immediately after planting. For this purpose, only sawdust from deciduous trees is used. oak cannot be used. Root vegetables - carrots, turnips, garlic - are sprinkled with mulch after thinning, when the tops of the plant have reached a height of 5–7 cm. The mulch layer is made 3–4 cm thick.

It is added to perennials after warming up. soil , after removing the old mulch layer or digging it up with soil. They are not mulched in the summer, as they do not have time to prepare for winter. Raspberries, currants, apple trees, bushes strawberries mulched in spring before flowering. Sawdust should be added before the second decade of June, then by mid-summer there will be no trace left of the layer.

It is better to use mulch in the greenhouse apply in the spring, mixed with other nutritional components - manure, urea. Plants are mulched when they begin to actively develop. This allows you to reduce the watering rate and protects the roots from overheating. Use of pine sawdust in a greenhouse for growing tomatoes and cucumbers helps reduce the development of diseases and numbers harmful insects. The mulch layer should be 5–7 cm.

Preparing beds and plantings for winter

In the garden do raised beds, on which vegetable and flower crops grow well.

Remove the top fertile layer and set it aside.
A layer of mown grass, tops, and straw is laid on the resulting base.
Sawdust, well moistened with a urea solution, is placed on it.
Again, plant remains, which are covered with deposited soil.

To prevent the bed from crumbling around the perimeter, make sides from mown grass. Plants in such a bed need more water.

Gardener mistakes

Novice gardeners sometimes complain that mulching does not bring the results they expected. This occurs due to a violation of the process technology. Let's look at the main mistakes:

using sawdust without pre-treating the soil with nitrogen fertilizer is one of the fatal mistakes;
it is forbidden use freshsawdust - this entails an increase in soil acidity;
incorrectly selected size of wood waste for plants - large shavings, used only in the garden for mulching tree trunk circles trees and shrubs or as winter insulation;
adding sawdust to unheated soil.

Sawdust mulch- it's good material and fertilizer , which is suitable for many types of soil. The result of mulching will be noticeable after 3–4 years, since the formation of a fertile layer is a very slow process. But the quality of the strawberry or raspberry harvest can be assessed in the same season. But be sure to take into account peculiarities using mulch so as not to harm the crops.