Clay soils. How can you improve the soil structure on your site?

Before improving the clay soil on the site, which is so heavy that it makes digging difficult by sticking to the shovel, it is recommended to add crushed brick. Finely crushed brick is sifted through a large sieve, scattered on the ground in a layer of 2-3 inches and then, together with fertilizer, embedded in the soil.

By repeating this operation for several years in a row, you can improve the properties of the soil beyond recognition, and the results are better the deeper you dig. Crushed or powdered bricks can, of course, be easily obtained where there are brick factories nearby. So, there are not enough bricks, there is clay soil on the site, it is not clear how to improve it, since all methods have been tried. In the absence of a brick, you can replace it by burning various weeds and earthy substances: to do this, make a fire from brushwood, light it, and then throw weeds with roots and earth adhering to them, all plant waste: spoiled straw, turf, etc. , and all the time they maintain the fire so that it smolders inside the fire. When in this way a sufficient amount of ash substances is obtained from the burnt earth, it is used instead of crushed brick. You can get even better results and improve soil quality if you have peat on hand to burn. It is used in the same way as crushed brick. How to improve loamy soil using simple farming practices?

The benefits of hoeing the soil. Before you improve soil fertility, you need to know that hoeing should not be mixed with digging the soil. You can dig only at a time when the soil is not occupied by plants, but hoe - during the entire time until the sown or planted plants have not yet completely occupied the ridges. Digging is loosening the soil to a relatively large depth (from 4 to 6 and even 7 tops); hoeing - loosening the soil by 1-1.5 inches, and sometimes even less. Hoeing is extremely useful for the successful development of plants: it facilitates air access to the roots, without which proper growth of the above-ground parts of the plant is completely impossible. Every gardener knows how to improve heavy soil with regular loosening.

Especially on clay soils, after heavy rains, a crust forms on the soil surface, and air access to the roots is completely stopped; If this crust is not broken with a hoe, plant growth will be significantly inhibited.

Secondary soil salinization is a pressing problem when using mineral fertilizers. What needs to be done to improve saline soils in gardens. It is known that the largest percentage of salt is contained in subsoil layers. In the upper layers, the percentage of salt, if there is one, is in most cases very insignificant, allowing the cultivation of many plants that do not send roots far into the depths. But if soils that have a saline subsoil are handled ineptly, soil salinization occurs; they can be reduced to the level of pure solonchaks, on which nothing will grow. The fact is that salt, as is known, is easily soluble in water.

Soil salinization during irrigation is the most pressing problem in regions with arid climates. When we water, or when it rains, or snow melts, water, seeping from the upper layers of the soil to the lower ones, carries the salt in the soil with it to the lower layers of the earth or, as scientists say, the salt is leached. With the onset of drought, water from the lower layers of the soil rises through capillary vessels to the upper ones, from where, under the influence of great heat, it evaporates into the air. Rising from the lower layers, it also raises the salt dissolved in it. Salt cannot evaporate into the air like water, and it also cannot go back down without water, and the longer the period of drought and the more salt in the soil water, the more and more it accumulates in the upper, once fertile soil. layer. Thus, soil salinization occurs. There are other causes of soil salinity, some of which are related to inappropriate use of fertilizers. To prevent this from happening, it is necessary to prevent the water from rising back up in such places. This is achieved by shading the soil with a living or dead cover.

For large crops, such as garden plantings, large, even undecomposed manure or sowing of forage grasses can be successfully used; for small crops - fine humus. It is better to water the site an extra time or two during droughts and, in order to avoid the harmful effects of the accumulation of groundwater, make drainage ditches in low areas of the site, which, although associated with unnecessary costs, makes it possible to radically change even the fertility of the site, and not just avoid it salinity. The fight against soil salinity must be constant and include all necessary measures.

How to make site drainage on clay soils with your own hands

Do-it-yourself site drainage on clay soils is often the only effective drainage method. Read about how to drain a site on clay soil using simple materials.

1. Drainage removes water harmful to plants and lowers the groundwater level.
2. Drainage increases soil fertility.
3. Drained soil is more accessible for spring work.
4. Drainage increases the growing season.
5. Drained soil is easier to cultivate - cheaper.
6. Drained soils respond better to mineral fertilizers.

How to sift the soil. When arranging flower beds, you should not sift the soil: when the sifted soil subsequently settles, it becomes so compacted that the access of air to the roots of the plants becomes too difficult, and the plants slow down their development or completely stop growing. However, sometimes it is necessary to sift the earth containing too many stones, crushed stone, chips, etc. A wooden frame is installed about 2.5 arshins in height and 1.5 in width; the bottom of this frame is nailed down with boards to a height of 1 arshin, the rest of the frame space is covered with 1/4-1 inch square. A finer mesh is not suitable for sifting soil. This mesh is installed at an angle of 50° and fixed motionless. A wheelbarrow is placed close to the net, on its outer side; the sides of the wheelbarrow are beveled so that it can be moved close to the part of the frame boarded up with boards. The worker throws the sifted soil onto the mesh with a shovel, and smaller parts fall through the mesh, while stones, roots, etc. remain on the outside of the mesh and fall into the wheelbarrow. Thus, the screenings do not have to be piled into the wheelbarrow a second time: they immediately fall into it and can be immediately taken away.

Using green fertilizer for soil is very useful, but it is important to know how to do it correctly. The greatest mistake is made by those who apply fertilizer too deep into the soil. The more superficially the fertilizer is applied, the better, the faster and more accurate the effect. The best thing is to dig in the fertilizer to the depth of one shovel. If the fertilizer is applied into the soil to a depth of 40 to 50 centimeters or more, as is unfortunately very often done when planting trees, then oxygen does not have sufficient access, and therefore the fertilizer cannot decompose properly and produce the proper effect on the tree . Practice, for its part, has often proven to us that fertilizer applied too deeply, after several years, was found in the soil in the same form as when it was applied to the soil, and, therefore, absolutely no benefit came from it.

The importance of green fertilizer for the garden. The usual material for fertilizing a garden is manure, while experiments prove that organic green fertilizer is an excellent way to fertilize the soil and bring it into a better cultural condition. It is useful to use green fertilizer: grain plants (rye, wheat, etc.), cruciferous plants (all types of cabbage, mustard, etc.) extract nitrogen from nitrate salts contained in the soil; in other words, their yields depend on applied fertilizers containing nitrogen in one form or another.

Butterfly plants have the ability to absorb nitrogen from the air, as a result of which these plants enrich the soil with nitrogen and develop well themselves, even on soils where the normal development of any other plants would require the introduction of significant quantities of fertilizers. In addition, as experiments have proven, cultivating plants with green fertilizer promotes the formation of dew, i.e., moistening the soil, warming and loosening it, increasing the supply of nitrogen, accelerating the process of decomposition of mineral substances in the soil and increasing humus. In general, cultivating plants using green fertilizer imparts ripeness to the soil, which is an important factor in terms of increasing productivity. Compared to manure, green mass even has some advantages: it decomposes faster than manure straw, produces excellent humus, and the nitrogen contained in it has higher fertilizing qualities than manure nitrogen.

The nitrogenous compounds of green fertilizer are easily soluble, which explains the strong effect of plowed green mass. In gardens, especially northern ones, it is difficult to fully use green fertilizer: to do this, this area would have to be left free of garden crops for the summer and sown with lupins or some other plants used as green fertilizer. In the fall, the green mass would be plowed, and garden plants in this area could only be sown the next year. Therefore, it is necessary to apply green fertilizer in a special way: sow lupins in the area closest to the garden, mow them and transport them to the fertilized area, where they can be plowed. In this case, lupins bring only partial benefit: part of the stems, no matter how low the plants are mowed, remains at the planting site, and most importantly, the roots also remain there, loosening the deeper layers of the soil and making them accessible to the plants.

Making compost from cow manure and bird droppings

Compost heaps and goose droppings. Preparation of compost from manure requires preparation: compost heaps are in all cases arranged in shaded areas not exposed to the sun. The base of the heap is a platform (bedding) 2-3 square meters, raised above the soil surface by 1/2 arshin, made of turf plates or from soil taken out of old ditches and well-aged. In both cases, the soil must contain a significant amount of humus, which is necessary to retain moisture, ammonia and solutions of other nutrients. A layer of 1-1.5 inches of goose droppings mixed with soil is poured onto the surface of the site, sprinkled with a small amount (2-3 handfuls) of freshly slaked lime, and covered with a layer of manure (cow or horse) of 3-4 inches. A second layer of goose droppings is poured onto the manure layer, but with a thickness equal to the first, and also mixed with lime and soil, which is again immediately covered with a layer of 3-4 inches of manure, etc. The final layer of manure should be thick! 5-6 vershoks; individual heaps can reach up to 3 arshins in height.

Each newly laid layer of goose droppings and manure is immediately, before laying it, thoroughly watered with slurry, water from washing clothes (soapy), slops or even plain water. Both unfinished heaps, due to a lack of compost from bird droppings, and completed heaps are watered every 3-4 days so abundantly that the heaps are moistened each time to their full thickness. During the summer, depending on the degree of decomposition of goose droppings, the heaps are transferred 2-3 times from one turf area to another, for which the mass of the heap is cut along a vertical line, along one of the side walls, and across the entire width into layers 3-3 4 inches. Each cut layer is thoroughly mixed with shovels or forks, and then laid in an even horizontal layer on another turf area.

The same is done with all subsequent layers, as well as with each transfer of heaps. When the heap is transferred to another base, it is thoroughly watered with slurry, etc., and then its surface is covered separately with a layer of manure and earth, each 2-3 inches thick.

With the described care of a heap of compost from bird droppings, as easily decomposing, after 7-8 months it will be completely ready for use and as a strong, fairly complete fertilizer, suitable for all types of plants that require strong nitrogen fertilizer, for fertilizing the earth when planting trees , or fertilizing the trunk circles of already planted mature trees.

For a corresponding agricultural plant, up to 3,000 poods per tithe is required; for cabbage - 1-2 handfuls for each plant during hilling; for beets - spread a layer of 1/2 inch between the rows and tuck; For cucumbers, apply compost from cow manure into the furrows (in rows) before sowing in a mixture with an equal amount of soil, in a layer of 1.5-2 inches; The seeds are covered with the same mixture; for fruit trees: when planting - 1 pood per planting soil; when fertilizing planted trees, before digging the trunk circles, scatter 1-2 pounds over the surface of the circle; for berry bushes - 1/2 pood for each specimen.

Improving soil and its structure, fertility, properties, quality and composition

Soil improvement should be carried out without stopping on an ongoing basis. If a trial digging of the ground and test pits for planting trees show that the soil is too unsuitable for planting trees and generally for setting up a garden, and the subsoil seems such that trees cannot develop at all, it is necessary to improve the soil and prepare soil for pouring into landing holes. With a small garden, this work cannot be too expensive; Without fulfilling them, you absolutely cannot count on the normal development of the garden.

For people living in the village, improving the soil fertility for an ornamental garden cannot present any difficulties at all, since this work is done casually and, mainly, in free time from more necessary activities. In this case, we mean improving the quality of the soil purely mechanically in order to make it more suitable for the development of plants. When improving the structure of the soil, we mean improving it in the sense of increasing its nutritional value by introducing substances rich in nitrogen, phosphoric acid or potassium; when improving the soil, it is also sometimes necessary to introduce various substances, but not in the sense of enhancing its nutritional qualities, but for the sake of changing the mechanical structure. Thus, it is necessary to compact soils that are too loose, loosen soils that are too dense, drain damp ones, etc.

Chernozem and generally humus soils often need to improve the properties of the soil by adding clay and lime: clay will make these soils more cohesive, will promote better retention of absorbed moisture, and lime will help plants absorb nutrients faster. In addition, lime helps improve the composition of the soil by binding its smallest particles.

Improvement of heavy clay and acidic soil

Peat and swamp soils must be drained with ditches, closed or open, depending on the means of planting the garden: closed ditches will cost much more. After draining, they immediately begin plowing the area being improved, which also helps decompose the soil layer and remove harmful acids contained in excess in these soils. Next, a radical means of improving clay soil will be the addition of clay and lime: clay will enrich the peat soil with potassium and bind it, eliminating excessive looseness; lime paralyzes the harmful effects of acids contained in excess in peat soils and makes nitrogenous substances more digestible.

Marly and especially calcareous soils require grading if the lime content is too high. Such soils are not very fertile (especially calcareous ones), but they are warm, loose, and allow excess moisture to pass through well, retaining it in an amount quite sufficient for plants. Improving heavy soil helps correct one inconvenience of such soils: the applied fertilizer (manure, humus) is so quickly decomposed and used by plants that already in the second year after application there is almost no trace left.

But if the lime content in such soils is too high (more than 50% by weight), it is necessary to improve them, and then an excellent soil is obtained on which almost all cultivated plants develop successfully. To improve calcareous soil, you should first of all add clay, the amount of which should be greater, the higher the percentage of lime in the soil. It is impossible to indicate the exact amount of clay required to improve the soil: the clay may be damper, drier, and it is impossible to determine the amount of clay by weight, but you have to use your eye. In addition to clay, calcareous soils also need humus, as a result of which manure is added at the same time as the clay.

Clay to improve acidic soil is applied in this way: directly from the cart, it is scattered over the site, and large clods are broken with a shovel; After spreading the clay, they try to plow it or dig it up with the top layer of soil as soon as possible, while the clay has not yet dried. With further processing, the lumps of clay will disintegrate on their own and mix with the soil. If heaps of accumulated clay can be protected from freezing, it is, of course, more profitable to take the clay out along a sled track and immediately scatter it across the field; Clay frozen over the winter is easier to crumble and seal in the spring.

Improving sandy soil in the garden

Peat or bog black soil is extremely useful for improving sandy soil. Peat changes the color of such soils, enriches them with nitrogenous substances and, most importantly, promotes better rooting of plants and better development of the root system.

To improve the soil in the garden, clay, manure or humus and, if possible, peat are also added; as with the improvement of marl and calcareous soils, here it is necessary to change the color of the soil to a darker one, enhance the water-holding capacity of sandy soil and enrich it with humus, which, together with clay, will give cohesion.

Too dense clay soils can be improved with a wide variety of materials suitable for loosening. Sand, marl, lime, ash, crushed stone from brick buildings, old plaster, straw horse manure are transported to such sites - in short, everything that is at hand and the delivery of which will cost less. If such an area is covered with grass, it is raised with plows or dug up in the fall; In the spring, this work is repeated and, perhaps better, the lumps of clay are broken up. Pieces of undecomposed turf, after the earth has been drained from them, are collected in heaps and, when dry, burned. All work in such areas should be carried out, if possible, in dry weather, otherwise the clay will be smeared and then shrink into lumps that are difficult to break.

When choosing a place for a garden - if, of course, there is a choice - it is necessary to pay attention to the subsoil of this area. The soil layer, as we have already seen, can be corrected, although this will involve expense; It is almost impossible to correct the subsoil, unless by constructing ditches we can drain excess water if we are dealing with a damp area. It often happens that sandy soil is located on a clay subsoil; Thus, sometimes deep rayol plowing or deep digging is enough to achieve a significant improvement of the soil, mixing the topsoil with the subsoil; clay soil may lie on sandy or calcareous subsoil - and then improving the soil again will not present much difficulty. If simple digging does not give any indication as to the properties of the subsoil, then it is useful to dig test holes up to 1 -1 1/4 arshins deep to determine the subsoil; and only if they are finally convinced that the subsoil cannot be used to improve the soil layer, do they begin to transport the necessary materials from outside.

In general, special attention should be paid to improving the soil layer. If holes are dug for planting trees and bushes, into which specially prepared soil can be poured that meets the requirements of the plants, then the soil layer is used to create lawns, and, depending on the properties of this latter, the lawn develops. Without a lawn, and a beautiful lawn, it is impossible to imagine a garden: only on the emerald velvety green of the lawn do all flowering plants benefit in beauty.

Clay soil is very difficult to cultivate. Nevertheless, there are a lot of summer cottages and vegetable gardens with clay soil. Let's look at how to improve clay soil.

First, you need to pay special attention to the surface layout of your site. All uneven terrain must be leveled to avoid any stagnation of water. And the direction of the beds must be determined so that good drainage of excess water is constantly ensured along the boundaries.

It is very important to dig up clay soil for the winter without breaking up lumps. This must be done before the onset of autumn rains, so as not to further compact the soil. In winter, the structure of these lumps will improve under the influence of frost and moisture. This accelerates the spring drying and warming of the soil. And in the spring, such soil must be dug up again.

When cultivating clay soils and deepening their arable layer, it is impossible to turn a significant part of the lower podzolic layer to the surface. The depth of digging must be increased every year by only 1-2 cm, while adding lime materials and organic fertilizers for digging.

If the earth is so heavy that even digging is difficult, then you can add crushed brick, straw, finely chopped branches, and bark. In the absence of bricks, it can be replaced with burnt weeds. They are burned along with the roots and the soil adhering to them, and then introduced into the soil when digging.

The main technique for gradually improving the structure of heavy clay soils is the application of organic fertilizers: rotted manure, peat manure, peat feces and prefabricated composts and peat.

During the years of their development, it is advisable to add at least 1.5-2 buckets of rotted manure or compost per 1 square meter every year. meter. At the same time, organic fertilizers in the first years of soil cultivation should be embedded to a depth of no more than 10-12 cm, which contributes to their better and faster mineralization. This stimulates the development of beneficial soil microorganisms and earthworms. As a result of their vital activity, the soil becomes looser, more structured, better permeable to air and water, and more fertile for plants.

At the same time, manure applied to clay soil must be well rotted, otherwise the plant roots may “burn.” It is advisable to use only horse or sheep manure, as they decompose more quickly.

Before adding peat to the soil, it must be weathered. It is better not to add rust-colored peat to the soil, since it contains excess iron, which is harmful to plants.

Good results are obtained by adding old sawdust to the soil, no more than one bucket per 1 square meter. meter. But their introduction into the soil during decomposition diverts some of the soil nitrogen, which reduces soil fertility and worsens the growing conditions of plants.

To prevent this from happening, these sawdust must first be soaked in a urea solution (150 grams of urea per 10 liters of water per 3 buckets of sawdust) or use sawdust from livestock, generously moistened with animal urine.

Good results are obtained by adding supercomposts from the “Pixa” group to such soil. The application dose of “Pixa” and “Pixa-Lux” is small. The sachets indicate the application rules, and you will receive the result next year.

At the same time as organic matter, it is necessary to add significant doses of river sand to the clay soil during autumn digging. This is a very labor-intensive but effective technique.

Due to the fact that for different crops grown on the site, the requirements for the mechanical composition of the soil are different, the amount of sand applied may be different.

Most vegetables, many flower crops, especially bulbs and annuals, grow better on light loam. Therefore, when preparing the soil for these crops, it is necessary to add per 1 square meter. meter for 1 bucket of sand.

For cabbage, beets, apple trees, plums, cherries and some flower crops (gladioli, delphiniums, peonies, roses), soils with a heavier mechanical composition are the best. Therefore, when preparing a site for them, it is enough to add 1 square meter. meter and half a bucket of sand.

Organic matter and river sand should be added to heavy clay soil at least every other year for several years. The fact is that the plants will use organic matter for their needs, and the sand will gradually seep down, and the soil in the upper habitable layer will become “heavier” again.

But still, when organic matter and sand are added to the soil in such quantities over a period of 5 years, the top arable layer of soil 15-18 cm thick can be transformed from clayey to loamy.

The use of annual green fertilizers (vetch, lupine, phacelia, etc.) is very effective.

They are sown after harvesting early vegetables or potatoes, and dug up in late autumn. Sowing winter rye at the end of August and then digging it up in the spring also gives excellent results. By rotting, all these herbs enrich the soil with organic matter. And most importantly, clay soils become looser.

In the absence or lack of organic matter, various types of perennial clover are also often sown to improve such soils. The crops are mowed periodically, leaving the grass in place. Living and dying clover roots have a beneficial effect on the soil. Once every 3-4 years, perennial clover is dug up to a depth of 10-12 cm.

It is also very useful to populate areas with heavy clay soil with worms, which help loosen it. And plant all available spaces with ground cover plants. They prevent the formation of crust after rain and watering, and also, when rotting, replenish the top layer with organic matter.

Liming of clay soil is carried out only during autumn cultivation. Usually it is carried out once every 5-6 years. It should not be forgotten that adding lime not only deoxidizes the soil. The addition of calcium increases soil fertility, since without it a water-resistant structure cannot be formed. When liming, heavy soils become looser, which significantly improves the water-air regime of such soil.

The dose of alkaline materials depends on the calcium content in them, the acidity level of the soil and its mechanical composition. For autumn liming of the soil, a wide variety of alkaline materials are used - ground limestone, slaked lime, dolomite flour, chalk, marl, cement dust, wood and peat ash.

After liming, the conditions for processing heavy soils improve, they are much easier to dig, and light soils, on the contrary, become more cohesive and moisture-intensive. Liming enhances the activity of various microorganisms that assimilate nitrogen or decompose humus, thereby improving plant nutrition.

With a higher percentage of clay content. Depending on the composition, it is divided into several varieties. The fertility of such soils is quite high. But there are some peculiarities of construction on loam soil. Its qualities can affect the strength of the foundation of a future home. And in order to avoid negative consequences, you need to first conduct a thorough analysis of the land.

Types of soil

There are many types of soil. These include pure sand or clay, the processing of which, as a rule, causes many difficulties for gardeners. The sandy loamy rock also needs improvement: it is thoroughly fertilized before planting. But it is actively used in construction, especially in the construction of road surfaces.

Rocky soils are ideal for engineering work. However, they are quite rare. As for loam, it is a non-rocky type of soil. Due to its high clay content it is also called bound.

Also well suited for the construction of monumental structures and small buildings. However, the foundations of these buildings may be susceptible to failure due to increased moisture content. Therefore, it is necessary to accurately study the composition of the loam and determine the further procedure for construction.

Types and characteristics of loam

A large number of territories of the Russian Federation are located on loamy soil. There are three types of loam. They are distinguished depending on the ratio of sand and clay present in the composition. Light - more crumbly and less dense, rolls with difficulty. Its plasticity coefficient is not higher than twelve. In heavy loam there is less sand and there are large lumps of clay.

There is also an intermediate option between these two. In this case, the soil can be rolled into a small cord. But due to low moisture content, it will soon fall apart.

According to another classification, dry and wet loam is distinguished. In silty water, the percentage of sand particles does not reach forty. This is its difference from sandy. The density of loam depends on the total moisture content and varies from 1.8 to 2.1 tons per cubic meter.

Carrying out analysis

There are several ways to determine soil composition. The simplest is a visual inspection and taking a small amount of soil in your hands. The degree of friability is determined, and attempts are made to roll the soil into a lump or cord. Attention is paid to viscosity, stickiness, and the presence of small particles and dust in the mixture. Increased moisture and clay content will cause the soil condition to change during frost. And since winters in Central Europe can be cold and long, you need to try to build the foundation of the building, taking into account possible threats and according to all construction rules.

Another good way to find out the consistency of loam is to place a small amount of it in a container of water. It is desirable that the vessel be transparent. The liquid is thoroughly mixed. After some time (no earlier than 15 minutes), you can observe the precipitate that has formed. Sand particles will remain at the bottom of the container, while clay will float to the surface. Based on the approximate amount of substances, the general composition of the soil is determined by eye.

If accurate data is needed, you can use the services of special chemical laboratories.

Preparation

It is advisable to inspect the land plot in the spring season. It is then that the groundwater level becomes higher and closer to the surface. In some cases, the area is flooded, indicating unfavorable terrain. Perhaps there is a swamp or large body of water nearby, which means that the water level will rise every year and have a destructive effect on the foundation.

On the building site, the most level and dry place is chosen. Several wells should be drilled from different sides. This will help to study the soil in more detail, its uniformity and moisture. After the study, development planning begins. Construction methods depend on the financial capabilities of the owners, their wishes and the condition of the land.

Construction of the foundation

Having decided on the design of the structure, they begin to lay the foundation. In some cases, before building a foundation on loam, the soil underneath is covered with a small layer of wet sand. This will protect the concrete slabs from serious deformation during frost. The foundation is laid to great depth.

To do this, you need to know what the soil freezing level is in winter in a given area. If the slab is located deeper, it will not be displaced. It is also important to avoid groundwater underneath the building.

When all materials are ready for construction, the site is marked and prepared. The layer of vegetation is removed and the area is carefully leveled. The next stage is the installation of pillars at some distance from the future house. Dimensional boards are attached to them. All dimensions must be indicated clearly and strictly in accordance with the project. In case of high humidity, drainage must be done. The method involves installing trenches (pipes) near the foundation where excess water will drain.

Other technologies

There is another option to avoid the consequences of building on loamy soil. This is the so-called “floating foundation”. It consists of the strongest possible solid plate. Another type of structure is also used - a lattice. A thick layer of sand or crushed stone is laid under them. As a result, after frost, the soil begins to rise, and with it the base of the building rises. This deformation is imperceptible, and strong, thick concrete slabs do not break or crack. The only drawback of this method is that construction will require quite a lot of time and patience.

In order not to fear for your home in the future, you can use TISE technology. They love it for its low cost and the ability to lay a foundation on absolutely any soil. Wells are dug to great depths and supports are installed in them. It is important to reinforce the system. Then the structure will be as strong as possible and able to withstand any structure. This option is ideal for areas with groundwater near the surface.

Treatment and improvement of soil composition

Loam is not only soil on which you can build a house, but also used for planting plants. In this case, you can use organic fertilizers or add sand. If the clay content is high, then you should not mix in soil: it will only add moisture and stickiness. You should try to loosen the planting sites more often. Gardeners even make some protective structures against “trampling” the soil. These can be wooden boards, broken bricks, remains of cut plants.

The beds should be raised by ten centimeters, since after rains deep puddles can form that do not dry out for a long time. To avoid problems, sand and manure are also added. Excess sand in the garden bed is also not recommended: it will harm the vegetation.

Possible consequences

A thorough study of the soil and selection of the type of foundation will help you avoid mistakes during construction. The most common is tape, but its use on loamy soils should be done with caution. It is important to consider the level to which the ground can freeze. The foundation should be located several tens of centimeters lower. Otherwise, in a few years, after the change of seasons, cracks will appear in the concrete slabs. Such a house will be unsuitable and even dangerous for habitation. Often, repairing such a structure is impossible.

Developing a dacha plot where nothing cultural has grown for a long time is not a quick task. How to make beds that will give a good harvest next year? The famous gardener and gardener Nikolai Kurdyumov tells how to improve clay soil, sandy soil and how do-it-yourself beds differ from ordinary ones.

My friend in his youth lived in the famous village of Starocherkasskaya - the capital of the Don Cossacks. Floodplain of the Don, meadow chernozems, two meters deep, soft. And his garden was also on the site of the old regimental stables.

I remember he sincerely complained: well, it’s a complete pain to collect the harvest! Potatoes in the weeds - almost a bucket from the bush, beets - two of them won't fit into the bucket anymore! Of course, improving such soil will only spoil it. It is enough for her to return as much organic matter as has grown on it. And digging it is a crime. But we have few such happy places. My friend was just lucky.

For us, simple clay people, in order to achieve good fertility, we need to work with the soil. And in order not to wait years, it is better to immediately improve the soil in the beds - the first and last time, but radically. Oh, how many times have I regretted not doing this right away!

Improving the soil when developing a site: where to start

If your soil is heavy loam, then you need humus, sand, and, if possible, fine screenings of expanded clay. If it is a poor sandy loam, you need clay and humus. In both cases, a third of the new volume of the bed should be organic matter, rotted to varying degrees. And only the peat bog needs fresh nitrogenous organic matter: grass or hay, kitchen waste, unusable grain or spoiled feed. And also some clay and sand.

The famous Austrian permaculturist and naturalist farmer Sepp Holzer uses his method of quickly creating a humus reserve in extremely poor soils and harsh climates. In place of the bed, a trench is dug 40–50 cm deep and the same width. It becomes clogged with dry trunks, branches, and rotten wood. This is the primary reserve of slow-moving organic matter and a “sponge” for moisture during drought.

Then the trench is dug, and in Sepp's version, the earth is piled up from the sides, placing it in a shaft 70–100 cm high. The meaning of the shaft is the huge difference in microclimate. Sunny windward side - hot and dry. Sunny leeward - hot and humid, subtropical. Shady without wind - humid and not hot, shady with wind - not hot, but it blows away moisture.

On the shady side, the plants will climb up to the ridge. In the sun, they will bush and fly, just like on the beach. Taking all this into account, Sepp sows the shaft with a mixture of different plants - cereals, pumpkins and squashes, beans, corn and sunflowers - everything that has large seeds and quickly increases biomass.

By the way, the area of ​​the slopes of the shaft is one and a half areas of its base.

The finished shaft is covered with straw or hay, strengthened from the wind with branches, and the branches with longitudinal poles. The huge advantage of the shaft - early and rapid heating of the soil. A trench was formed between the ridges; branches were also placed in it and covered with straw. The roots will reach here too.

Sowing is done directly into the straw using a pointed peg. The seeds germinate after the rains. All plant remains remain on the ridge. A year later, potatoes, various rutabaga with turnips, pumpkins and zucchini are planted here, and on top is a wall of corn.

Beautiful, deep, natural! But I’ll be honest: this is for the hectare owners who are most passionate about permaculture and Sepp personally. For my three-acre garden, this is not an option. We are not used to climbing steep shafts and unraveling wildly mixed bushes. We don’t know enough about the behavior of different plants. I won’t take it from the raid. Therefore, I lean towards more conventional methods.

In my early books - "according to John Jevons". In fact, all smart gardeners and winegrowers do this. But it just so happened: Jevons wrote a bestseller, I read it in the late 90s and was impressed.

John is an American organic farmer and hard worker, the inventor of “bio-intensive mini-agriculture” (BIMA). The yields from his beds were many times larger than traditional ones - you must agree, this is impressive.

He began to invent on extremely bad, poor soil. Therefore, I improved it immediately, and then increased its fertility, not from scratch. The idea is simple: you need to mix the soil with organic matter (and if necessary, with sand or clay) to the depth of two shovels. Well, two bayonets - this is in hot California. One and a half (35–40 cm) is enough for us. And three or four shovels wide.

Jevons suggests mixing soil with amendments, gradually moving around the bed: removing the top layer, mixing the bottom with compost, putting back the top layer, mixing it with compost, moving a little further... I keep it simple. When improving my clay bed with sand, I take out the most fertile top layer entirely and put it on the edge. I mix additives into the bottom and return the top layer to its place, also mixing something in.

The top, most organic layer has been removed, it is on the left. The bottom is mixed with sand. The top layer is also returned with sand. This is the only way I was able to radically reduce the density of my clay soil. The comfortable zone for roots has almost doubled in depth. All that remains is to restructure the soil - this will be done by worms and roots.

So, let's take the best of both worlds. We take out the top 10–15 cm of the most fertile soil. We deepen the bottom with a trench as deep as a shovel bayonet. In the trench there are logs and thick branches, but not too many, so that the capillary connection with the subsoil is quickly restored.

It is harmless to lightly powder this windfall with some nitrogen fertilizer, moisten it with manure mash or the contents of a dry closet - it will rot faster. It is useful to throw in some fresh weeds - the same nitrogen. In the dry south it is extremely harmless to sprinkle hydrogel, one mug per square meter.

We return the subsoil down from the trench, pushing it between the pieces of wood. We spread the excess subsoil in the aisles or take it away. At the bottom we place one or two strips of unripe compost or grass, flavored with EO, “Shine” or another bioactivator. Then we fill the bed with the removed top layer mixed with additives (sand/clay) and humus.

The result is a raised bed - a convex, gentle shaft. The convexity adds a fair amount of space and illumination to the plants, and in the spring it better receives the rays of the sun. For the damp Non-Black Earth Region, this is an ideal option for do-it-yourself beds. In the steppe zone and is needed.

The photo shows ridge beds on Irina Kalmykova’s property in Taman. They warm up much earlier and better. Here, in a very dry area, they are covered with a special mulch film, under which there are drip tapes.

The result of our sweating: the bed is ready to immediately produce a decent harvest. The difference is visible in the first year. Look at the photo. The three cucumber bushes on the right are on improved soil, the two on the left are on normal soil. L. Lobanov's vegetable garden, Ivanovo.

In the next photo: the soil on the right has also been improved. Adding organic matter and bioactivator also added warmth to the soil. The eggplant yield is 9 times greater than from the left control bush. Experience of A. Bushikhin, Yaroslavl.

Already a lot! But this is just the beginning. The soil is not yet inhabited by living creatures, not structured, not penetrated by roots, not seeded with coprolites of worms and other poop. Now we will annually improve it with natural forces: plants, worms, microbes and fungi. But this is no longer difficult. Our main activity is feed soil workers and all sorts of organic matter. Another important work - don't disturb them. They will do the rest themselves. And I assure you - they will do it as wonderfully as you never dreamed of.

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01.05.2018

In one of the previous articles we wrote about how to determine. If it turns out that clay predominates, do not despair. You just need to work on improving the quality of the soil, and then use it for the garden, flower beds or vegetable garden.

Features of clay soil

The main problem with clay is that it has a dense structure and, accordingly, does not allow air and water to pass through. After rains, stagnant water forms, which has a bad effect on the development of the plant’s root system. Clay is also considered a cooler soil and warms up more slowly. And if it’s already warmed up, it can dry out so much that its surface will resemble cement. If the soil is not moistened in time, the plants, especially young ones, may die.

Another unpleasant quality of clay soil is its increased acidity, which has a bad effect on the growth of many plants. Only some fruit trees and roses are ready to put up with such land.

But clay also has positive properties, and they are quite significant. Clay soils are rich in nutrients, and due to their structure they are able to retain useful microelements supplied with fertilizers, unlike sandy soils, through which everything flows away without being retained.

Therefore, if you take clay and refine it, you will get excellent high-quality soil for planting.

How to Improve Clay Soil

The first step is to influence the density of the soil and add loosening components.

In the last century, bricks broken into small fragments were used to improve the structure of clay. Adding and digging bricks into the root for several years changed the quality of the soil for the better. But we don’t always have a sufficient amount of brick waste on hand, so let’s consider other methods.

• Gardening waste is burned: weeds, plant remains (not nightshades) and dry branches, and then dug into clay.
• Peat, rotted manure, compost are added at the rate of 1-2 buckets per 1 sq.m. They are embedded to a depth of about 10 - 15 cm. Worms will quickly settle in this layer, loosening it, making it more airy and capable of accepting water.
• Sand is added in the amount of half a bucket - a bucket per 1 sq.m.
• Straw and sawdust are added. The straw is pre-cut so that its length is about 15-20 cm and laid out on the surface of the soil. After which she digs up. The same can be done with sawdust; for a good result you will need about 1 bucket per 1 sq.m of soil. When adding these substances, it is necessary to enrich them with nitrogen before digging, that is, water them, for example, with urea diluted at the rate of 150 g per 10 liters of water.
• When digging the soil in autumn, large lumps of clay are not broken. Having been set by frost, they will become less dense and more accessible to processing in the spring.

This improvement of clay soil must be carried out over a period of 3-5 years. As a result, the clay turns into high-quality loam.

To determine if your soil has enough organic matter, place a spade on a bayonet and see if there are earthworms in the soil. If there is, then there is enough organic matter.

You can resort to the method of natural farming that has become widespread in recent years. Adherents of this method get excellent harvests from their gardens, putting in much less effort than usual.

Its essence is not to dig up the soil, but to loosen it to a depth of 5-7 cm. For this, not a shovel is used, but a Fokina flat cutter. Just like in Rus' of old, no one dug huge fields, and the peasant walked through them with a harrow. During further work in the garden, it is actively used with green manure or grass. In this case, much less time is required to cultivate the land, energy is saved and more time is left for rest. The harvest is magnificent.

Helper plants

Separately, I would like to say about plants that can improve clay soil. These are the so-called green manures. Their seeds are sold in garden stores. These include:

• peas,
• Vika,
• phacelia,
• rape,
• mustard,
• lupine.

They not only loosen the soil with their roots, but also improve its quality if they are cut and dug into the ground. The height of the plant ready for cutting is about 15-20 cm.

They can also be planted in late summer, cut before flowering and left on the surface of the soil over the winter. In the spring, loosen it into the ground.

A little about soil acidity

As a rule, clay soils are characterized by high acidity, but not every cultivated plant likes such soil. We wrote about how to determine acidity here.

Acidic soil must be deacidified. For this we use:

• ash,
• dolomite flour,
• lime.

Please note that dolomite flour should not be added to the area where you plan to grow potatoes, as they may develop scab. Use other substances in these places.

The volume of deoxidizers applied depends on the acidity of your soil. If the soil is very acidic, then you may need about half a kilogram of dolomite flour per 1 sq.m of soil, if not very acidic, then half this dose will be enough. Much more ash needs to be added for deoxidation.

Have a good harvest!

House project “Time to create gardens”

Tsyganova Oksana