Do you need to dig over the siderates for the winter?

Ciderates are called herbaceous plants, which enrich with nitrogen soil, improve its structure and contribute to weakening of weed growth. This allows for less use of chemical fertilizers to saturate poor soils. Plant ciderates , usually in early spring, before planting the main crops, or in the fall. In the latter case, many gardeners have doubts whether it is necessary to dig over the siderates for the winter. Let's figure it out.

Is it necessary to dig over the siderates for the winter?

As you know, nitrogen accumulates in the tops and rootlets of plants - siderates. These include mustard, oats, peas, rapeseed, clover, alfalfa and many others. Accumulated substances through the tops enter the depleted soil, and a special branched root system makes the soil loose. Often farmers decide to "feed" the soil after harvest, late summer or early autumn. But time passes, and with the approach of winter colds, the responsible owners of the plots have the question of whether to sip the siderates. In fact, there are several opinions:

  1. Many believe that digging is necessary in order for the plant tops to land. After decomposition of greenery, useful substances will finally fall into the soil, saturating it. And this is correct, if we talk about whether you need to dig up mustard or any other culture for siderates.
  2. But, at the same time, when digging, there is a transshipment of the seams of the earth, because of which the integrity of the root system of the siderates is disturbed. As a result, nitrogen and valuable substances accumulated in the roots do not remain in the soil, but evaporate.

And then what to do if there is such a contradiction in whether you need to dig up the soil after the siderates?

Using a flatbed for digging

Experienced truck farmers recommend using an interesting horticultural tool - a planar . It is a wooden shank, at the end of which, by means of bolts, a metal bracket bent almost at right angles is fixed. Moreover, its three surfaces are very sharpened. The cutter allows you to treat the soil more carefully, rather than a shovel or a hoe. At the same time loosening and digging of soil with a flat-top cutter occurs without turning the soil at a depth of 5-7 cm. At the same time, the greens of the siderates fall into the ground. The main thing is to do this before when the tops grow above 10-15 cm in height. That's the whole answer to thinking about whether you need to dig, say, oats or rye as siderat in the fall.