Experienced gardeners are confident that It is necessary to do mulching of strawberries. Thanks to this agro-application, a layer of mulch retains moisture in the soil, and it is quite difficult for the weeds to break through to the light, the soil becomes nutritious and loose. Strawberry mulching is a very important part of nursing, comparable to proper planting and watering. In this article we will tell all the features of strawberry mulching.
- What is mulch for growing strawberries?
- When to mulch strawberries
- Options for mulching strawberries at their summer cottage, than to mulch strawberries
- Mulching with straw, grass, sawdust, needles and cardboard
- Use of strawberry mulch film
- Features watering strawberries with mulch
What is mulch for growing strawberries?
Mulching is the covering of the soil around strawberries with organic material, as well as with a film or cardboard. Thanks to mulching, the evaporation of water from the soil is reduced, and the number of irrigations per season is reduced. Moisture in the soil will last much longer, which, of course, is useful for strawberries. Mulch for growing strawberries is also needed to restrain the growth of weeds, and as a result you save yourself from the need for frequent weeding. Under a layer of mulch, the root system and the soil warm up.Covering material does not allow heat to leave the ground.
In springtime, this is especially true when the soil freezes through the night. If you use sawdust, pine needles or straw as mulch, the soil is saturated with nutrients that are necessary for the plant. You can also get rid of contaminated strawberry fruit. Without mulch during watering or rain, dirty drops of water fall on the leaves and berries, after which the presentation is lost. Since the layer of mulch prevents the berries from touching the ground, they will not lie on the ground and will not get sick with gray rot.
When to mulch strawberries
To understand how to mulch strawberries, you need to know when to do it. This procedure should be carried out twice a year. The first time this is done in the spring, when fruit bushes begin to appear on strawberry bushes. This is done so that the flower stalks do not come into contact with the ground. Mulch can be harvested after the crop is harvested, or at the end of summer. The second time to mulch strawberries should be late autumn. This is necessary so that the plants do not freeze when the first cold weather occurs. You can pick up mulch in the spring, as soon as the bushes begin to grow.
Options for mulching strawberries at their summer cottage, than to mulch strawberries
Mulching strawberries at their summer cottage is quite simple, but very effective procedure for the plant. Beginning gardeners do not always know how to mulch strawberries, although many materials are suitable for this. As mulch, you can use straw, sawdust, grass, pine needles, film, and even cardboard. Laying mulch should be on the surface near the plant. Next, we will describe in more detail what can be sprinkled with strawberries.
Mulching with straw, grass, sawdust, needles and cardboard
To mulch the soil with straw - a fairly common option in the suburban areas, because the straw is ideal for mulching: the soil is not acidified, besides, rotting, straw will serve as a good organic fertilizer.
A layer of straw mulch should be 5 cm thick. It is recommended to cover the ground during the period when the strawberries began to bloom. Before mulching, weeds must be removed from all the beds and mineral fertilizer must be applied.
Strawberry mulching with mowed grass produced the same way as when using straw. The layer of mulch should be 5 cm and the grass must be dry.
If you use sawdust as mulch, then the beds must first be loosened and weeded. After that, between the strawberry bushes, spread the old newspapers in two layers overlap. Then pour the sawdust, the layer should be 5 cm. Mulching strawberries with sawdust is done for two years, after the expiration of the time they intersect and the procedure is repeated.
It is best to use sawdust hardwood than coniferous, as in the fall they perepravayut faster.
You can mulch strawberries not only conifer needles but also cones, bark and branches. Unlike other materials used mulch needles quickly rot, as a result of the soil becomes loose and saturated with nutrients. Those who doubt whether it is possible to mulch strawberries with needles are also right about something. All because the needles mulch acidifies the soil, but this is easy to deal with. To do this, you must regularly make ash, as well as twice a year - dolomite flour.
The best way to mulch strawberries, we figured out, but there are other, non-traditional ways. Use as a mulch cardboard is the least popular method, but it also has a right to exist. It is best to use thick cardboard boxes, but do not take regular newspapers, because they contain a lot of lead from printing ink, and it is harmful to plants. On the prepared area lay the cardboard overlap with the setting of edges by 20 cm. After that, fill in a layer of fertile soil of 10 cm and leave the area for a week. After that, you can plant strawberries. Use a garden scoop to pierce a layer of mulch together with a cardboard and plant a seedling in the hole, watering it immediately. In order not to spoil the mulch, between the bushes of strawberries do not need to be watered. After the seedlings have grown, cover the beds with mowed grass.
Use of strawberry mulch film
Quite often used for strawberries. mulch film or spunbond. Spunbond is a fabric used for mulching strawberries. To figure out what is best to use (film or spunbond), you need to know what is the difference between them. If you use the film as mulch, it will be able to serve you for two seasons, but the strawbond is used for strawberries for several years.There are special varieties of polyethylene, which are designed for mulching. The film already has holes for planting and watering plants.
Also, sun rays do not penetrate through the dark film, and weed growth is restrained. However, the shelter of strawberry spunbond allows the soil to breathe. The film passes air worse, and the earth can blot off, and this will cause the root system of the strawberry to rot. Mulch film must be immediately before planting strawberries. On the eve of the plot you need to make a bed for strawberries, if there are weed roots, remove them. After that, apply organic fertilizer to the soil and carefully level it with a rake.
After spreading the film, you need to press it along the edges, such as bricks.
You can mulch strawberries with a film in greenhouses, in which case the moisture will evaporate more slowly.
Features watering strawberries with mulch
Than to mulch strawberries in autumn and spring, we figured out, now it is necessary to understand how to water the covered plants. Since mulch retains moisture in the soil quite well, the number of irrigations is significantly reduced, by about a third. You need to water strawberries in the morning, so that until the evening the surface of the mulch has time to dry. This will save your berries from the disease of gray mold. It is also worth remembering that when using organic materials as mulch, they quickly decompose and can also become a source of disease. To avoid this, it is enough to regularly clean up the old mulch and pour the new one.
When using the film should be borne in mind that you need to water the plants right under the bush otherwise, the water will simply drain on the film and the strawberries will be left without water. Also when using like kind of shelter there are difficulties in determining whether you need watering or not. To avoid this problem It is recommended to schedule watering.
