When is the best time to plant white mustard? Mustard - green fertilizer: what is the use, planting, growing, application

Mustard is a favorite green manure among adherents of eco-farming. It is able to replace fungicides, insecticides, free you from the laborious digging of the earth, and the site - from many weeds. And all because mustard has unique properties, which have already been discovered by many gardeners.

Mustard is a useful green manure

There are many types of mustard in nature. The most popular of them are: Sarepta (Russian, gray), black (French, real) and white (English). The latter is just used as a green manure.

Yellow mustard is the common name for white mustard. Its seeds are white and its flowers are yellow.

Mustard is called white because of the color of the seeds, in other species they are black or brown.

All types of mustard have similar properties, are used in cooking and medicine, have a burning taste and pungent aroma, and have an antiseptic and antifungal effect. Apparently, white mustard is more common and inexpensive in Russia, which is why it is precisely its seeds that are sold as green manure in large volumes.

Mustard has a beneficial effect not only on human body but also on the ground. She fights viruses and fungi there, repels many pests. That is why it is often alternated with potatoes. The earth is freed from late blight and wireworm. In addition, crop rotation is carried out.

Mustard belongs to the Cabbage family, therefore it attracts cruciferous fleas. Do not sow it before cabbages, turnips, radishes and other cruciferous plants. And do not alternate these cultures in one area. In addition to common pests, they share the same diseases.

Video: mustard grew

The early maturity and frost resistance of mustard make it possible to grow it in spring, before heat-loving crops, and at the end of summer - in autumn, after harvesting early vegetables. Seeds are sown before winter. In young plants there are no coarse fibers. Mowed before flowering, they quickly rot and turn into humus - food for plants. The roots are fibrous and thin, they are left in the ground. Penetrating the upper layer, like capillaries, they make the soil breathable, loose.

Mustard roots penetrate the earth, making it loose

Mustard, sown thickly and very early in the spring, is a strong competitor for weeds that are just starting to break out of the ground. She suppresses them with her large leaves and succulent stems, preventing them from reaching the sun, taking away food and water.

Even in a whole field of mustard you will not find a single weed

Mustard is the first green manure that I tested on my site and was incredibly pleased. My potatoes stopped hurting. Two years with mustard, and the worst weed leaves my garden - loach, which entwined everything that it came across. Now only occasionally there are single copies. And one more thing: my acquaintance with mustard was the beginning of a heavenly life. I haven't dug the ground for two years, and everything is growing great!
In addition to mustard, I grow phacelia, vetch, rye, oats, and clover. Cereals have a powerful root, I sow them along the fence so as not to let weeds into the garden. Vetch and clover with the help of nodules on the roots concentrate nitrogen in the arable layer. I sow phacelia in front of cabbage, it does not attract fleas, it grows in lush low bushes and serves as a living mulch, retains moisture. Each siderat is good in its own way. You can't say which one is better. And you can’t grow mustard in one place every year. Siderates also need crop rotation.

Video: mustard and phacelia in one area

Application technology

As soon as the earth thaws and dries, I loosen upper layer with a flat cutter, I also cut rows with a depth of 2–3 cm. I pour seeds thickly and level the area. None return frosts mustard is not terrible, even here in Siberia. If it is very cold, it will wait in the ground and rise later. I don't water, I don't care. It's time to plant the main crop, the mustard is still low, I make holes right in its rows. I cut it off when the green manure is gaining color, and immediately leave it as a mulch. Everything! As you can see, there was no need to dig the ground. For mustard, I plant potatoes, they grow well: the bushes are healthy, the tubers are large.

Rules for sowing and using mustard:

• Sowing dates: early spring, after harvesting early vegetables and before winter.
• Sowing scheme: scattered or in rows every 10–15 cm.
• Seed consumption: 150–300 g per hundred square meters.
• Mowing time: when the plants grow to 20–30 cm. It is necessary to have time until the mustard greens have coarsened and seeds have not formed.

If you wait for the formation of pods, then the mustard will turn into a weed: the seeds will spread throughout the area with tops or wind

Ways to use:

• Cut with a flat cutter, deepening it 2–3 cm into the ground, and leave mustard greens in place. In the heat, it will dry out and replace the mulch for some time, and in wet weather it will rot immediately and enrich the earth with organic matter.

  Siderat is cut with a flat cutter just below ground level.

• Sow mustard 1.5–2 months before the onset of cold weather and leave uncut. In winter, it will serve as a snow retention, in the spring it will protect against the formation of a crust on the ground and erosion. Before planting the main crop, rake and compost or use as mulch.

  If mustard is left until spring, it will, of course, freeze and dry up, and in spring it will lie on the ground like hay.

• Cut and use with other herbs to make green manure.

  Mustard continues to play the role of a phytosanitary even in the composition of green manure

• Lay the green mass under warm beds.

  Siderates are laid in warm beds

• Mow with a trimmer that will chop the greens, and plant it in the soil with a shovel, flat cutter or motor cultivator.

  For mowing and planting mustard, mechanisms are often used: trimmers and cultivators

However, supporters natural farming categorically against digging the earth, and hence the incorporation of green manure into it.

When growing green manure, the main thing is not to dig up the soil and not get carried away with one type of plant. Green manure must be changed every season, then the soil will become more fertile.

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On the own experience I know that mustard roots make the earth loose, and this frees them from digging. But if you still dig up the ground, you think that without this agricultural method nothing will grow, then in the fall you can bury green manure. Once, when all the cultures were removed, I conducted an experiment. Decided to improve small plot earth. To do this, they dug trenches deep on a bayonet, laid tops, weeds and green manure there. Near parallel dug the next. The excavated earth covered the previous one, already filled with grass. As a result, the area became higher. In the spring, I leveled it with a rake and planted potatoes. It was there that he turned out to be the most fruitful. So this method of planting green manure has already been tested, but it is too time-consuming, like plowing greenery into the ground. Therefore, I no longer lay trenches, I don’t dig the ground and I don’t close green manure, but only cut it off. They improve the soil even without any digging.

Today, agrarians widely use white mustard like a siderat. With its help, you can enrich the soil, supply it with nutritious minerals, and also increase fertility.

Green manures are natural fertilizers that are very useful and effective for enriching the soil.

General description and features

As a natural fertilizer, annual plants are often used, which can grow green mass in a season. This number includes white mustard. In addition, it is used in medicine, as well as in cooking.

White mustard is a common annual plant. During the season, she can grow a height of one meter, which explains her popularity as a green manure. In addition, the culture is a wonderful honey plant. If it grows near the apiary, then the honey yield will increase significantly.

The plant blooms throughout the summer. If it is grown for fertilizer, then they do not wait for the flowering period, it is mowed green. Siderate allows you to protect the land from weeds and does not ultraviolet rays destroy its structure.

It is important to know: in addition, green manure makes it possible to loosen the soil and enrich it with phosphorus, nitrogen and other useful substances.

Mustard roots are quite long. So, in size they can reach 3 m. Thanks to this, plants can put useful material to a considerable depth. After mowing in soil penetrated by extensive roots, air exchange improves. This is useful for almost all cultures.

What is useful mustard

Sowing mustard for fertilizer has many advantages, among which are:

1. Restoration of poor soil in a fairly short time.
2. Absorption of sparingly soluble organics, as well as vitamin from the earth. The plant processes them all into easily digestible substances that can be absorbed by various economic crops.
3. The root system is very branched, which provides high loosening of the soil.
4. Siderate suppresses weeds and prevents their spread.
5. Prevents leaching of useful minerals from the soil.
6. Stops the reproduction and spread of bacteria and microbes in the soil.

Due to these advantages, mustard is often used for fertilizer. With its help, you can prepare depleted soil for sowing different cultures. Such an effective fertilizer is much cheaper than purchased fertilizers.

Sowing

Since the culture has a powerful root system, it is able to reach deep layers of the soil. This makes it possible to grow it even on scarce and very infertile soils.. Of course, it will not grow on sandy loose soil.

White mustard belongs to frost-resistant plants. Therefore, its landing can be performed both in the summer and the cold season. Thus, sprouted shoots are able to withstand slight frosts (up to -7 C 0). Thanks to this, the plant can be planted both in autumn and in spring.

Planting in the spring

To ensure the normal ascent of mustard, there is no need to dig up the treated area. Here it will be enough just to loosen the soil to a shallow depth. After that, the area is leveled with a rake. If the site has a large area, then the soil will be covered with special equipment.

The seeds are small. Often they are sown very densely, after which the site is raked. In the event that the mustard will sit in rows, then you need to make holes up to 5 cm deep, and the distance between them is 15-20 cm.

Interesting to know: to re-get green manure, white mustard must be planted from late spring to late May. During this period, the plant will have time to gain green mass, sufficient to fertilize the site.

1.5 months after planting, the culture blooms. You need to cut it in advance, without waiting for flowering. It is also worth considering that mustard must be cut two weeks before planting wheat or other crops.

Planting in autumn

In regions with a mild climate, green manure can be sown in the fall. Having overwintered in the soil, already in early spring the first shoots will appear. Of course, there is such an option that before winter the plant will have time to gain green mass.

Thus, it can simply be mowed and then compacted on the site. In warm regions, mustard can be sown until November. There is every chance that the plant will germinate this year.

In autumn, mustard is best sown immediately after harvest. This will prevent the germination of weeds. In this case, the interval between harvesting and sowing green manure should not be more than 3 days.

Before planting a green manure plant, it is necessary to clean the land from the remnants of crops that have been harvested. This will prevent the transmission of diseases of previous plants to mustard.

Use of white mustard as a fertilizer

This mustard is effective fertilizer. It is very easy to grow. After the bevel, there is no need to clean it, which greatly simplifies the process of top dressing the soil. But, the main thing is that siderat can be used several times in one year.

How to properly care

White mustard is a natural fertilizer that can increase soil fertility. But in order to achieve this result, you must follow some rules:

1. Watering. If the plant was planted in the spring, then there is no need to water it. In summer, the plant should be watered immediately after sowing. In the future, the procedure will be carried out only during a severe drought.
2. Mustard will germinate well only in a light area with good drainage.
3. there is no need for feeding.
4. The plant must be mowed before flowering. This will prevent many problems from occurring. Including the risk of spontaneous germination.

As you can see, mustard as green manure is very popular. And this is not surprising. After all, it allows you to increase the fertility of the soil without any special investment. And most importantly, this method of fertilization is safe for environment and people.

How to plant white mustard as green manure, see the following video:

Siderat is good because it performs several useful features. It retains nutrients within the soil layer penetrated by the roots, preventing them from being washed out. The long roots of green manure, reaching to the deep ones, play the role of a pump, pumping nutrients upward. This contributes to the accumulation of humus in the soil and improves its properties. Needless to say, how great is the role of humus in enriching the soil with beneficial microflora. To this we add that the green mass, through its organic residues, introduces nitrogen and other nutrients into the soil, decomposing faster than others. organic fertilizers based on fiber.

What is good white mustard

All of the above characteristics are fully possessed by mustard as green manure, more precisely, white mustard. She is good for her fast growth. Its growing season is short: before mass flowering plants take 45-60 days, until the seeds of white mustard fully ripen - 80-90 days. If the development of the plant occurs at +29 ... +35 degrees, then already 37-40 days after germination it can be mowed.

The precocity of mustard is complemented by resistance to cold. As soon as the temperature rises above zero by one or two degrees, the seeds are ready to sprout. White mustard as green manure is insensitive to late frosts down to -5 degrees; autumn +3 ... +4 - also not an obstacle to the development of the plant. Therefore, the time period for sowing white mustard is so wide (end of March - mid-September).

Another thing is the soil for its sowing: it must be cultivated. Best Option- pre-fertilized with organic matter. Sandy and peaty cultivated soils are a little worse for sowing white mustard. Regardless temperature regime, the plant needs abundant watering in the phases of seed germination and budding.

Preparation and sowing

Before sowing mustard as green manure in the spring, you need to calculate the time so that a month remains before planting vegetables. When the time comes for potatoes and other root crops, the mustard green mass is cut off and left in place. AT summer period white mustard in the aisles will "work" as a phytosanitary officer, repelling pests of vegetable crops. The main thing is that the green mass of mustard does not interfere with the development of the latter. It brings the greatest benefit if it is sown after harvest, before August 10th.

The seeding rate of mustard per green manure is 120-150 g per hundred square meters. But this is if it is sown in furrows with row spacing, the width of which is 15 cm. If it is planned in bulk, then seed consumption will increase to 300-400 g. All of them should be covered with a layer of soil 2-3 cm.

Both in the field and on the table

In its green mass, mustard as green manure contains a storehouse of useful trace elements, including 22% organic matter and 0.71% nitrogen. Of course, it accumulates the last element worse than plants of the legume family, but it still needs to be looked for in the "conversion" of sparingly soluble nutrients into easily accessible equals. Up to 400 kg of green mass of white mustard can be removed from one hundred square meters. This is equivalent to applying almost the same weight of manure to the soil.

Essential volatile oils contained in all parts of the plant lead to a decrease in the populations of wireworm, slugs, codling moth, nematodes, and prevent the development of fungal infections. Sown in cultivated soil, mustard suppresses as green manure. However, before and after cabbage, which includes white mustard, it cannot be planted: as a precaution, so as not to make it a distributor

To complete the "eulogy" of white mustard, it must be mentioned that it is an excellent honey plant, medicinal plant, and its young leaves are used in cooking.

Green manures are green fertilizers specially grown to restore the soil after vegetation, enrich it with nitrogen and microelements, and suppress weed growth. Green manure is the most important component organic farming. Green manure plants are rapidly gaining green mass, which are mowed and embedded in the soil or left on its surface to protect the top layer, and the green manure roots in the ground, rotting, serve to enrich the soil and subsoil.

A much more interesting technical culture for us is green manure. AT last years there is a real mustard boom among gardeners-gardeners - every autumn more and more plots “get bitter”. And this is not surprising, because mustard is a more effective fertilizer than manure. annual plant Cabbage family, it very quickly increases its green mass and accumulates nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium. The culture is photophilous, demanding on moisture during germination, cold-resistant - vegetation continues late in autumn at a temperature of 3-4 ° C, seedlings withstand frosts down to -5 ° C. You are probably familiar with the burning taste of ground mustard seeds, which is due to the sulfur compounds accumulated in them. Mustard root secretions also contain sulfur, which is very disliked by bears, cockchafer larvae, wireworms (larvae of the click beetle), slugs and other soil pests. Tellingly, moles are extremely hungry for them, so the sowing of mustard can indirectly reduce the harmful effects of these digging animals.

It is important to consider the following when using green manure:

The decomposition of green manure with the subsequent formation of humus is possible only if there is moisture in the soil. If there is not enough moisture in your region, then from time to time you will have to water the bed with beveled green manure for better education humus.

Green fertilizers should be cut from the budding phase or at most in the early-mid phase of flowering. Otherwise, firstly, the stem will become rough and useful substances from the soil will be used for its processing, and secondly, when the seeds ripen, green manure plants will turn from friends into weeds.

And a couple more tips...

Apply green manure on permanent narrow beds to improve fertility purposefully.

I also advise you to buy seeds without GMOs, because then these plants will be eaten by worms and microorganisms, and if the plants are genetically modified, then we absolutely cannot predict how this will affect the inhabitants of the earth, and in the future on ourselves. Who knows what the humus from GMO plants will be like and how it will affect the cultivated plants?

The most popular siderates:

• lupine;
• legumes;
• Vika;
• rye;
• white mustard.

Advantages and disadvantages or why sow mustard in the fall?

This green manure is available to any gardener, easy to grow and effective. Its main purpose as a fertilizer is to enrich the soil with phosphorus and nitrogen. The green mass, dug into the ground, transmits these important elements subsequent plants, stimulating the process of their growth and development. In addition, mustard has the following useful features:

• fast germination and high yields. Green mass is a complete fertilizer in composition.
• High cold resistance.
• possession of essential oils.
• Lack of seed preparation. They are placed in the soil, falling asleep a small amount earth, sand or close up with a rake.
• strong root system. Reaches 0.5 meters and loosens the ground to this depth. It can assimilate elements that are poorly soluble in water and inaccessible for this reason to other plants.
• Increasing the air permeability of the earth. It is achieved by increasing the number of earthworms after sowing mustard in the fall.
• erosion prevention.

Gardeners have identified the shortcomings of mustard as green manure

1. Going to weed. If you do not mow mustard until the last, then it will coarsen, bloom. The cut off seed plants, most likely, will fall into the ground and germinate. This garden weed is difficult to remove from the soil.
2. Limited application. White mustard should not be grown in autumn where other cruciferous plants, such as radishes, turnips, cabbage, will have to be planted next season.

Cultivation of green manure mustard

Actually, very easy. Mustard is adapted to any soil and conditions. Having planted its seeds, you can forget about the plot for 2-3 weeks. It will rise and grow anyway. Even frosts are unbearable for her - young shoots can withstand frosts down to -5 ° C, without much damage to the green mass.

The size of the seeds of this plant is small, but since they have some volume (similar to very small beans), it is convenient to capture them when planting. Therefore, mustard is usually planted, and not sown, in a row way, keeping a distance between seeds of 10-15 cm, and between rows - 20 cm. At favorable conditions this plant forms sprawling bushes that need space. strongly deepen planting material no need, it will slow down germination and weaken the plants. The maximum planting depth on loose, sandy soils is -1 - 1.5 cm; on clay - 1 cm. Shoots will appear together in 3-5 days.

White mustard, as a fertilizer, has many advantages over other crops. Firstly, it germinates quickly - 3-4 days, with quite low temperatures, even when 0 degrees. The sprouts can withstand temperatures as low as -5 degrees below zero. The yield is quite high - up to 400 kg of green mass per hundred square meters. The composition of the herb is very balanced:

• 0.7% nitrogen;
• 0.9% - phosphorus;
• 0.5 - potassium;
• 22-25% organic matter.

What time of year should you plant mustard?

Spring. The first planting of white mustard, which is most often used as a fertilizer, is produced in April. As soon as the constant night frosts stop and the air temperature rises above 10 ° C, this undemanding plant is sown. To achieve its conditional form, it will take about 4-7 weeks, that is, if you sow mustard in the spring, in April, you can have time to fertilize its area before planting the main garden plants.

But it should be noted that not all vegetable crops can be planted after mustard. Cabbage, radish, radish, lettuce and other plants from the cruciferous family are bad neighbors, followers and predecessors for her, since they are all affected by the same diseases.

In autumn. After harvesting crops occupying large areas, there is still a sufficient number of warm days that can be used for planting green manure on this plot.

In autumn, mustard is planted after potatoes and cereals, thus healing large tracts of land. Sometimes this green manure is sown before winter, so that the mustard comes up in the spring. The most important thing in this case is not to make a mistake with the landing time. Seeds must be placed in cold, but previously loosened soil. They need to stay in a dormant state until spring, and at the same time, not freeze. Therefore, the embedment depth can be slightly increased, since melt water will still wash away the topsoil.

Cutting. In 1-1.5 months after sowing, mustard grows up to 15-20 cm. It is cut with a Fokin flat cutter or a cultivator, after watering with a solution of EM preparations. Treatment with an EM preparation accelerates fermentation processes and creates favorable microbiological conditions, which leads to soil enrichment nutrients and micronutrients. Under winter close up no later than 3 weeks before sowing. For stubble cultivation 2 weeks before soil freezing, never later than the start of seed formation.

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Attention! The processes of decomposition of plant residues, humification take place only in the presence of moisture in the soil.

Cruciferous green manure is not used as a precursor to cabbage!

If you still decide to dig up the mustard, then you should follow some rules that will help you: You need to choose the season. Usually experts and experienced gardeners it is advised to choose the end of summer or the beginning of autumn, because during the winter mustard must absorb into the soil all the beneficial particles and elements that it possesses. It is necessary to wait for the flowering of mustard (about a month after the mustard has risen, it can be a little later, but no later than 2 months). At the beginning of flowering mustard has the largest number nutrients needed by the soil. Next, you'll need a shovel. With its help, you must dig up the mustard with a special method called the coma turnover. This soil excavation has great importance to restore the structure of the soil, it is this method that allows you to make mineral and organic elements into the soil. All the greenery that remains after this should be buried in the ground, because the worms very quickly process grass and any other greenery. If you don't want to bother digging in greenery, you can just leave it in the garden. The roots will decompose over the winter and the aerial part itself will rot.

White mustard is the most popular green manure among gardeners. This plant is chosen not only because of its low cost, but also because mustard has a very effective effect when applied as a fertilizer.

Useful properties and chemical composition

Mustard saturates the soil with nitrogen and phosphorus. The green mass of mustard buried in the ground actively releases useful substances to subsequent plants, feeding them at the initial stage of the plant.

BUT First stage plant growth is the most important in their life and mustard helps plants in this, nourishing them with useful microelements. But, mustard also has other beneficial properties:

1. Mustard does not allow weeds to develop, as it is very fast growth slows down the growth of other weeds.
2. It is able to clean the soil from putrefactive microorganisms, fight diseases and pests such as late blight, wireworm and slugs.
3. Helps in improving soil structure.
4. Becomes a mulch cover after winter frosts and helps at this time to protect the soil, keeping it in a large number of moisture.
5. Stimulates the growth of various crops.

Concerning chemical composition, then mustard leaves and flowers have useful vitamins and micronutrients. The seeds of the plant contain essential and fatty oils and different kinds amino acids.

Mustard is rich in natural mineral compounds (these include thioglycoside sinalbin, the enzyme myrosin). Oils give mustard a burning taste.

Mustard begins to germinate very quickly, which is what attracts most gardeners. Mustard seeds are able to sprout up to -5 degrees, it is very unpretentious and unfavorable conditions for its growth are not a hindrance.

Soil preparation before planting

Mustard grows best in clay, acidic, and low-humus soils. In the process of growing mustard, you need to fertilize it with substances such as phosphorus, nitrogen or sulfur. In order for mustard to grow well, it needs to provide enough water at all times. Mustard loves abundant watering and does not tolerate drought.

If you intend to plant white mustard for industrial processing in the future, then you should plant it on cultivated soils, or use organic fertilizers when planting on complex soil.

How and when to sow

Mustard can be sown in spring or autumn. But if you want to use mustard as a fertilizer, then it is best to plant it in April, as soon as the frosts stop at night and there is a plus temperature of 8 degrees and above. If you plant your mustard at this time, you may have time to fertilize the area before planting your vegetable garden.

But you need to remember that not all crops can be planted after mustard. You should not plant crops such as cabbage, radish, lettuce, and other cruciferous plants.

In autumn, mustard should be planted after harvesting cereals and potatoes, so that it is possible to fertilize a large area.

Some experts advise planting mustard before winter so that mustard has already risen in spring. You need to responsibly approach this moment and accurately determine the time for landing.

As experts advise, the seeds need to be buried in cool, but previously loosened soil. Mustard needs to be left alone during this period of time until spring comes.

To sow mustard, you do not need to apply special efforts, but first decide in what period you want to plant it.

The mustard planting process is as follows:

1. Using a flat cutter, you need to loosen the soil, the depth should be about 6–7 cm.
2. Take ready-made mustard seeds, which must be bought in advance from a specialized store.
3. The furrows should be located at a distance of approximately 15–17 cm from each other. The sowing rate is: 140 grams per one hundred square meters of land.
4. If you do not want to plant mustard in the standard way, then you can use the other way and sow the mustard in bulk, but at the same time the consumption will be doubled.
5. The last step you need to loosen the ground and deepen the mustard seeds by 4 cm.

This completes the mustard planting process, now your soil will be protected and freed from diseases, pests and weeds.

Tips for sowing seeds:

• Prepare the ground first. To do this, dig up or loosen the ground beforehand.
• It is necessary to sow to a depth of 2.5 cm.
• Seeds can be sown in rows or scattered.
• After you have sown the mustard, you need to water it well.

After a month has passed after sowing. You will need to cut the mustard before planting the vegetables.

If you have prepared seedlings, then plant them in prepared holes, and leave mustard between the rows. Mustard will protect your seedlings from frost and drought.