To obtain a good harvest, the soil requires constant fertilizing and fertilizers. Experienced gardeners prefer natural ingredients. The use of oilseed radish as green manure provides many benefits. “Green” fertilizers nourish the soil and increase yields without any negative impact on garden crops.
Main beneficial properties of the plant
The long root system of the Pancake Day radish lifts nutrients up from the lower layers of the soil.The plant is successfully used in many industries: cosmetology, pharmacology, cooking, biofuel production. The description of the culture makes it clear the difference between ordinary radish and oilseed radish. The latter does not produce root crops. Its value lies in the abundant growth of greenery in cold weather.
The essential oils contained in the plant repel various insects and pests. Improves habitat for worms and suppresses nematodes. In addition, oilseed radish fights weeds, including wheatgrass, which is considered the most powerful weed.
Oilseed radish satisfies all the requirements that gardeners place on green manure crops. Its advantage lies in the large volume of vegetative mass, resistance to cold, thickening and low-quality soil.
Like green manure
They try to plant Maslenitsa radishes for the winter. It retains snow, as a result of which the soil freezes less and moisture accumulates in it. The use of the crop protects the soil from erosion. This is the most effective remedy in autumn and spring. As a fertilizer, radish saturates the soil with potassium, nitrogen, and phosphorus. It loosens the soil and improves its structure even in the deepest layers.
Radish is used as a green manure for almost all crops. The exception is the cruciferous family (radish, cabbage, radish and others).
Like a honey plant
Not everyone knows that Pancake Day radish is recognized as a honey crop. It produces nectar at cool temperatures, and its flowering period lasts up to 1 month. Honey is collected in early spring and after the flowering of other honey crops (mid-summer). The honey of this culture is valued for its medicinal properties and strong aroma. Despite this, it is not recommended to leave rare honey in the combs over the winter.This is due to its rapid crystallization.
As a forage crop
The value of oilseed radish lies in the fact that it ripens quickly and produces high yields. The formation period is on average 45 days. The greens of the crop are used to prepare grass meal, silage, and haylage. It is also used as feed for livestock. At the 3-4 leaf stage, radish is effectively used as an additive to corn.
In terms of the amount of nutrients, the crop is equal to alfalfa, clover, and mixed feed. It is cultivated for grazing animals in late autumn. The culture can withstand frosts down to -4 degrees.
Cultivation technology as green manure
Due to its high yield, radish grows up to 3 times in 1 season. This is one of the best solutions for protecting the soil in autumn and spring. Essential oils contained in the culture destroy harmful microorganisms: fungi, nematodes, bacteria.
Seed preparation
The seeds of the crop germinate well in clayey, sandy loam and drained soils. Slightly acidic soil is also suitable for growing. Oilseed radish is characterized by good germination and low maintenance, so the seeds do not require preliminary preparation.
When to plant?
Sowing of seeds is carried out from April to mid-September, it all depends on the tasks set. The highest yield is observed from April planting.
Note! The later the seeds are planted, the more of them are required. If sowing is done after mid-August, their number doubles. This is due to the fact that plant growth slows down in autumn.
If radish is used as green manure, it is left until the first frost appears.
Soil preparation
It is not necessary to dig up the soil before planting green manure. Most gardeners use a Fokin flat cutter or a regular sap. You can loosen the soil both before and after planting seeds.
How to sow?
It is optimal to plant the seeds 2–3 cm deep. For 10 sq. m take approximately 40 g of seeds. As already mentioned, later sowing requires doubling them.
Before planting, it is better to mix the seeds with sand. For 50 g of seeds, take about 200 g of substrate. After thorough mixing, the mixture is sown in the ground. The highest yield of oilseed radish is observed during the first sowing.
Plant care
The first shoots are observed after 4–5 days. Full maturity occurs within 40–50 days. The culture is dug up after an average of 40 days, it all depends on the intensity of growth of the foliar part. But this must be done strictly before the crop blooms, otherwise the plant will be re-sown.
Cleaning
If the upper part of the plants reaches a great height, gardeners initially mow down the greenery, after which they dig up the soil. You can also chop the stems using a bayonet shovel. If the greenery is not tall, then only digging is enough.
If the oil radish is overgrown, then the only correct solution is to place the torn plants in a compost pit. In compost, thick stems will decompose faster in the soil.
Soil greening with oilseed radish can be done in several ways:
- compost;
- digging the stem part;
- mulching.
The overgrown tops are cut off at the root, after which they are used as fresh fertilizer. You can mulch the soil with it, that is, leave it on the surface of the soil, or dig it up, first scattering it around the garden plot.
Digging the green manure rhizome is not recommended. This part of the plants must overwinter in the soil. Thus, the soil structure will improve significantly.
