Oats are a grain crop that people learned about and began to cultivate long before wheat. It was this plant that began to be used as a green fertilizer, discovering the still unknown properties of oats.
There is more protein in oat grains than in wheat kernels, they are enriched with a set of vitamins. Oats are grown as a cereal, but it is much more useful to sow oats as green manure.
What are the benefits of oats as green manure?
Decomposing in the ground, young green shoots of oats saturate the soil with organic and mineral substances, potassium, and phosphorus. According to the ability to feed the soil, oats are compared with rotted manure.
One harvest of oats sown in autumn is equal to 500 kg of manure, on an area of 2.5 acres. If there is a need to saturate the earth with nitrogen, then oats or legumes are sown as green manure - vetch-oat mixtures.
The fibrous root system of oats promotes loosening, strengthening the top fertile soil layer during crop growth. Therefore, it is possible to sow oats on heavy soil, which it will loosen, structure and contribute to filling with moisture, nitrogen and oxygen. On light soils, oat cover will help strengthen the upper fertile layer, protectingsite from natural weathering and washout. Enriched with organic matter by growing oats on them, soils become more water-intensive.
Oats as green manure is a great way to get rid of weeds. In this regard, not only oats are good, but all cereals in general. Close crops of grain crops help to suppress the growth of weeds, covering the ground with a dense green "carpet".
In the area where oats were grown last year, you can plant any horticultural crop in the fruiting season, expecting a perfect harvest, with the exception of cereal crops.
When planning to sow oats in the country, be aware that cereals are attractive to wireworms who like to feast on potatoes. Therefore, sowing oats before potatoes is not recommended, but after that it is welcomed, because, like other crops grown on the site, oats have a preventive effect in the fight against potato scab, nematodes, fungal diseases, and root rot.
The advantages of growing oats include the unpretentiousness of the crop, which sprouts on almost all types of soil: chernozems, peatlands, acid podzols, clay and sandy soils, loams.
Oats – an irreplaceable cereal crop
Both annual and perennial types of oats grow in nature, although the latter are much less common than the former. This representative of cereals, at the beginning of the growing season, forms a loose bush with leafy stems with an average height of 50-120 cm. Oats is an early crop that feels great in a temperate climate, becausegrown everywhere. It is grown for the purpose of cultivation, as a grain crop, as a green manure - green manure. It is insensitive to low positive temperatures, which makes it possible to sow cereals in early spring, as soon as the soil reaches physiological ripeness.
Oats are a moisture-loving plant, therefore, when germinating seeds, it is important to take this fact into account and provide favorable conditions for the cereal. Agronomists register thin seedlings when grown in dry conditions and the further absence of the formation of a dense vegetative mass. Oats are a sun-loving crop. Although it is not demanding on the type of soil, but on the "poor" land, the coefficient of tillering and stalking is lower than usual. Therefore, if you are going to plant oats in fresh soil, it is recommended to multiply the seeding rate, especially if oats are grown as a fertilizer.
When is the best time to sow oats?
The timing of sowing oats is flexible. In central Russia, most people who cultivate oats start sowing as soon as the snow melts and you can get into the garden. Although farmers recommend waiting until the soil warms up and becomes “warmer” closer to mid-April.
If the spring sowing did not work out, then such a grain crop as oats can be sown until mid-September, even in autumn. Because cereals love moisture, be prepared to keep your crops well hydrated in dry weather.
Features of seed dressing
Beforesow oats by hand, do not forget to disinfect and pickle oat grains with potassium permanganate. This will help protect them from diseases and pests, and provide resistance to adverse weather conditions. Oat seeds are kept for 20 minutes in a 1% solution and washed with running cold water.
Technology for sowing oat seeds
Siderat is sown in bulk on large plots or in rows on small summer cottages. The soil is previously loosened and cleared of weeds. Seeding rates for sowing:
- in bulk - 16-22 grams per m2; 165-205 grams - per 1 acre of land;
- in rows - 10-11 grams per m2; 1000 grams - per 100 square meters of land.
After sowing, the grains are planted to a depth of 2.5-3.5 cm by harrowing the area with a rake. Now you know how to sow oats in a summer cottage or garden with your own hands and without the use of agricultural technology.
Fertilizers for oat crops
To ensure good seedlings and further growth and tillering of oats, use:
- granulated fertilizers and fertilizer mixtures regardless of NPK composition;
- granulated potassium chloride;
- granules or crystals of ammonium sulfate;
- fertilizers (Kaligmat granules are suitable).
How and when is oats mowing?
Early spring sowing of cereals provides early harvests of plant mass. At the same time, the timing of mowing directly depends on the goals of growing crops.
You can start harvestingafter 40 days, if you decided to sow green manure oats early. When the seedlings gain a height of about 17-23 cm, you can get to work.
When starting mowing, be guided by the timing of planting garden crops. If in the spring you are going to plant vegetables on the plot after oats, then mowing and planting greenery in the ground (as well as other green manure) is carried out no later than 14 days before planting vegetables.
Mowing and planting seedlings in the soil, you can ensure the systematic watering of the site. This helps to speed up the process of decomposition of green oats. To avoid souring of green manure, it is covered with a thin layer. Leftover green fertilizer is often sent to the compost pit, applied to mulch, or donated to pet food. In any case, the greenery will not be lost.
Oats are not only a useful grain crop, but also, as it turned out, a high-quality fertilizer of natural origin - green manure. Now you know how to fertilize the land without using chemicals to get a he althy and rich harvest for the fall. The subtleties of growing and cultivating oat greens, described in the article, will help you understand the intricacies of the process of fertilizing the soil and grow high-quality oats, regardless of how you plan to use it in the future.
