Get a head start in the garden for spring - prepare the soil already in the fall

Fertilizer

When the bed and garden are empty after the season's crops, it's easy to think that gardening is over, but with some simple steps you can already this fall prepare the soil for the upcoming season. That way, you can get started extra early and even get an extra harvest next season.

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40 liters

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Cow Manure 40L

40 liters

Kr 74.90

Written by: Liselotte Roll

Swedish garden inspirer, journalist and author of books about nature, cultivation and animals, such as "Soil", "Grow for insects" and "Chickens as a hobby".

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Fertilizer

Soil - brown, gray, dry or clayey. It is rare that we wonder about the properties of soil when we are not cultivating, but perhaps we should? After all, soil is actually the foundation for almost all life, and it is also full of exciting food chains that affect most things - even above ground. A multitude of soil organisms such as microbes, earthworms, snails, and insects help so that the soil can be used for cultivation. And all they require in return is that we give back the nutrients we take when we harvest. Nutrient supply or fertilization can sometimes seem a bit tricky, but fundamentally it is organic material that is added whether we choose to fertilize with animal manure, bokashi, compost, or plant materials like grass, straw, or compost. Everything becomes food for the soil organisms which later make the nutrients available to new plants.

Why prepare the soil in the fall?

Traditionally, beds and growing spaces are fertilized in the spring, when the frost has left the ground, but there are many benefits to doing it in the fall instead. First and foremost, it's fun to get started quickly with cultivation in the spring. But there are also practical reasons. Among other things, the presence of snails and other pests is less at the beginning of the season - and if you're lucky, you may also get an extra harvest. For example, spinach can be sown in winter to be harvested in April, and then you can grow something else in the same spot.

This is how you fix the soil in flower beds and gardens in the fall.

Remove the weeds, and choose a fertilization method.

One way is to cover the ground with a 10 cm thick layer of organic material, such as a mixture of grass clippings, straw, plant parts, and leaves, which will then compost where it lies. This type of mulching provides a water-saving cultivation bed with even temperature where microorganisms benefit. In the spring, you just remove some of the material if it hasn't rotted, and then it's ready for planting.

Animal manure

Another method is to fertilize with animal manure in the top layer of soil with a rake – the rest is taken care of by nature. You don't need to bury the manure. Buckwheat is among the plants you can use as cover crops.

Honningurt er blant planene du kan bruke som grønngjødslingsplanter.

Green manure

Green manure is another way to improve the soil after harvest. It involves letting other plants besides the main crop enrich the soil.

Green manure plants can have special characteristics:

While some bind nitrogen in the soil, such as vetch, clover, and legumes, others have deep roots that loosen compact soil, leaves that improve soil structure, and some have a deterrent effect on nematodes.

Some plants can also have multiple uses. In the fall, you can sow annual green manure plants after harvest. Whether you choose to push them down or leave them as mulch after they have withered, they contribute to better soil.

An example of an annual green manure plant is crimson clover - if you cut it down before it seeds, you avoid self-seeding. Buckwheat is also a good, fast-growing, annual green manure plant. By planting it, you also give bees a final energy boost before winter dormancy.

Tip: It is always wise to cover the soil - either with temporary green manure plants or through mulching. When the soil is bare, you risk that nutrients are washed out by, for example, rain.

WRITTEN BY

Liselotte Roll, Swedish garden inspirer, journalist and author of books about nature, cultivation and animals, such as "Earth", "Cultivate for insects" and "Chickens as a hobby". (Photo: Sandra Birgersdotter Ek)

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Fertilizer