Hilling is one of the types of tillage near cultivated plants. Some gardeners and gardeners neglect it, believing that this is not at all a mandatory procedure. Others, on the contrary, are too fond of them. And here it should be noted that everything is good in moderation, including the hillock.
Loosening, weeding, hilling: what's the difference?
The abundance of "gardening" terms causes misunderstanding and panic among novice gardeners. Let's do a little educational program and look at the three basic concepts of plant care processes.
The main difference between them lies in the purpose and method of the procedure:
- The main task of weeding is to destroy weeds. Weeding can be done with furrow cultivators, chemicals (herbicides) or by hand.
- The purpose of loosening and hilling is to retain moisture in the soil, saturate the roots of the plant with oxygen and restrain the growth of weeds. Loosening differs from hilling in the depth of tillage: loosening is a more superficial treatment, and, unlike hilling, it does not involve raking a mound on plants.
More about hilling
Hilling is deep looseningsoil between rows of plants, carried out in such a way that furrows are formed between them. Most often they spud potatoes, and there is an opinion that only this culture needs it.
In fact, hilling is a necessary procedure for a number of plants:
- corn;
- cucumbers;
- tomatoes;
- cabbage;
- leeks and garlic "for greens"
How to determine which plant needs hilling and which does not? It's simple: crops that are able to form roots-appendages on the stem have such a need. “Then why hilling onions and garlic?” - quite naturally you ask. It allows you to grow the most delicious and fleshy white stem at the base.
Rules of hilling
How to properly hill plants? It's not difficult at all if you follow the rules:
- Hill up after watering or rain in the morning. The soil should be neither sticky nor dry.
- Rake the soil as close to the plants as possible, avoiding pits at the top, otherwise excess moisture can accumulate in them, which will lead to bacteria or fungi infecting the crop.
- During the hilling, try not only to heat the earth on the plants, but also to spread its stems to the sides. So the tops will grow better.
- Before hilling, fertilize the ground with ash. It will serve as a very good fertilizer.
- If you prefer liquid organic fertilizers as top dressing, then water the aisles with a watering can without touching the leavesplants.
- You can sprinkle the grooves with mulch. It slows down the growth of weeds and keeps the soil moist and loose.
Benefits and harms
Despite the seeming obvious benefits of hilling plants, it has both supporters and opponents.
The first are convinced of the benefits of the procedure and give a number of arguments:
- The growth of tops and underground roots and aerial roots accelerates;
- Additional shoots form;
- Weeds are removed;
- The kidney becomes more loose and airy;
- The plant becomes wind resistant;
- The large layer of soil that is piled on the tubers allows them to develop better.
Opponents of hilling believe that it is not necessary to carry out it and argue this with the following facts:
- Hilling is a threat in the form of evaporation of moisture (after all, water evaporates faster from loose soil);
- Overheating of loose soil causes tubers to stop growing and die.
Are the statements of the opponents of the hillock true? There is certainly a grain of truth in them. The fact is that in a dry climate (for example, in the steppe), it is not worth hilling plants, this will only harm them. The same applies to too hot summers in any climate zone.
How many times to spud potatoes?
Most often, potatoes are spudded twice. The first procedure is carried out after the emergence of shoots, and you can not be afraid to fill them with earth completely.
Spendthe second hilling is better during the formation of buds (as for potatoes, for example). It was at this time that the tubers began to actively develop.
Spudding plants too early is not necessary, it simply does not make sense. Later re-hilling will only harm the tubers. After the first procedure, especially if it is carried out in the middle of summer, the root crops will begin to actively grow in breadth, and can grow so wide that they will be under the furrow. During repeated hilling, you can damage them, then you will not see the harvest.
Hilling is a laborious process. But if you do everything right, the plant will definitely give you large, he althy fruits.
