Garlic is one of the most useful plants in our garden. It is added to various dishes, used to prevent viral infections, used in conservation, and some eat just like that.
By the time of planting, winter garlic and spring are distinguished. The latter gets to us on the table in the fall, it lasts longer. Winter is considered more popular, it is planted under the winter.
Let's figure out how to prepare a bed for winter garlic - this is done in the fall.
What should be the soil for planting garlic for the winter?
The main feature of garlic is that its root system is underdeveloped, it is located in the upper layers of the soil. Hence the conclusion is that garlic should be planted in the most fertile soil, and the place should not be on a hill where the wind blows snow (this is fraught with the freezing of garlic) or in the lowlands where meltwater will accumulate in the spring.
Garlic, especially winter, prefers sandy loam soils. Note that the best predecessors for him are pumpkin, cabbage (both colored and white), greens and legumes. After potatoes, onions and tomatoes, it is better not to plant garlic.
When preparing the soil for planting garlic for winter, all necessary fertilizers are preliminarily introduced into it. First of all, it is superphosphate , potassium salt and humus. But fresh manure, on the contrary, negatively affects the development of this plant.
We prepare a bed for winter garlic
Winter garlic is usually planted in late September or early October. The main criterion in choosing the timing of planting is the soil temperature at a depth of 5 cm - by this time it should decrease to 13-15 ° C. With regard to the preparation of beds, this work should be done no later than one and a half weeks before planting.
First, you should dig a site that you plan to take away for winter planting of garlic, to a depth of no more than 25-30 cm, while loosening the top layer of the soil and simultaneously removing the weeds. Then add fertilizer and align the bed. This concludes the first stage of preparation.
For a couple of days before planting, ammonium nitrate is usually added to the bed. If the soil is dry, it should be watered. Also pay attention to the density of the top layer of the future bed. Its soil should not be too dense, otherwise garlic can stay on the surface and freeze in winter. But too loose ground is not the best option, in such a situation the bulbs grow small and are subsequently poorly stored.