Earlier we got acquainted with those varieties of vegetable crops that are resistant to cold and suitable for sowing before winter. Now let's figure out the agrotechnical issues: when to start sowing, how to prepare the beds and seed, how to mulch ...
Let's start with the most burning question: why? Does it make sense to be smart with autumn plantings, go to the site in frost, spend money on seeds and sacrifice your own time?
It makes sense if spring vegetables - mainly roots and greens - are not the last in your family's diet. That is, you are used to consuming vegetable salad every day and adding fresh herbs to various dishes, and last year's carrot and beetroot stocks are already disappearing by May. You don't even want to think about store-bought vegetables - their qualities are questionable in spring. In this case, with winter crops, you will get an excellent magic wand.
Benefits of winter landings
The advantages of sub-winter landings are as follows:
- Early harvest. The seeds sown at the end of autumn sprout very quickly, and this is an opportunity to harvest two or three weeks earlier. And even a monthly head start can be obtained if you cover the beds with foil on the first warm days.
- Natural selection. Weak seeds simply will not survive under the snow cover, but strong ones will get excellent hardening, they will grow well and become healthy strong plants.
- Maximum use of melt water. The seed will swell and germinate when the snow melts, so there is no need to worry about watering.
- Spring frost resistance. The seeds are already frost-hardened, which increases their ability to withstand temperatures close to 0 ° C and even withstand slight frosts.
- Life without pests. By the beginning of spring, most of the pests are still dormant (for example, carrot fly). And by the period of mass summer, the green part of the plants will already coarse and lose its "pest" attractiveness.
So is the game worth the candle? If you decide what is worth, then we answer the second question: when to start subwinter planting? Are there any deadlines?
Winter sowing dates
Let's answer honestly, there are no exact time boundaries that are optimal for winter crops. This question can only be answered by the weather forecast for the next few weeks.
That is why gardeners-lovers of winter plantings carefully monitor forecasts for the next week, or even for a month. As soon as the meteorological reports start talking about persistent cold weather - get together to the dacha and sow! In the middle lane, this time usually comes at the end of October, but it also happens in the middle of November, or even until December, it is worth waiting for stable subzero weather. It is important that forecasts do not involve thaws. If, after frost, the temperature rises to 3-4 ° C, then the seeds will germinate and then freeze.
But for adherents of accuracy in everything, there is such a specific criterion: sub-winter sowing can be done safely when the soil temperature is 2-4 ° C at a depth of five centimeters.
It turns out that you need to sow practically in the frost? How to do this if the upper soil ball is already frozen? And for this, the beds where you are going to plant before winter should be prepared in advance, while the weather is still conducive to earthworks.
How to plant properly before winter: technology for preparing ridges
First, you should choose a place. It is optimal to place beds with podzimny plantings where a large amount of snow is swept in winter. A thick snow blanket will protect crops from frost, and when the spring thaw begins, it will moisturize well. It is also desirable that the beds are well warmed up by the sun's rays in the spring. In low-lying places where there are stagnant melt water, sowing is not recommended.
Future beds are cut with a flat cutter, fertilized with compost, ash (about 4 glasses per m²) and carefully leveled with a rake. After that, shallow - 3-5 centimeters - furrows are made. Something loose is poured onto the bottom (sand, ash, coconut substrate, peat). Do not be afraid that the grooves will later be covered with snow, you can sow in the snow. But if this option is already very unacceptable, you should first cover the finished beds with boards or roofing material.
Now you need to prepare the soil for filling the seeds and mulch to cover the plantings. You can mulch with leaf litter, needles, cardboard, hay, rotten straw, peat. There should be enough mulch so that the garden bed is covered with a 5-10 centimeters ball.
Sowings in warm beds tolerate wintering best. In such places, the mulch layer that covers the plantings can be made much thinner.
For winter plantings, only dry seeds are used. No preparatory work or special manipulations are needed to improve germination with them. Seed material should be purchased 30-40% more than usual, since not everyone will be able to go through the "winter survival course". After sowing the seeds into the grooves, they must be sprinkled with dry soil prepared in advance. Instead of soil, you can use compost, coconut substrate, sand or peat. The soil must be completely dry! It is sprinkled with plantings with a layer of 1.5-2 centimeters. From above, the planting is covered with a ball of mulch and forgotten until spring.
With the arrival of spring heat, the beds are optionally covered with a film - this way the soil will warm up faster and the seeds will sprout earlier. It should be noted that winter vegetables cannot be stored for a long time. They are typically sown in small numbers to enrich your diet in spring and early summer.
