Ciderates, or green fertilizers, have been used in agriculture for a very long time. They are plants that improve the structure of the soil and have a beneficial effect on its composition. One of such crops, widely used as siderat, is the oil radish. Let's find out about its features.
Cultivation of olive radish
This plant is one-year old, it is a honey and fodder crop. It is often grown on heavy and clay soils to loosen them naturally. The main property of the radish is the ability of its powerful and strong root system to go deep into the earth, lifting nutrients to its upper layers. This radish drains, structures and well enriches the soil, making it suitable for growing many vegetables.
In addition, the unique characteristic of the radish is the content of essential oils in it, which serve as an excellent prevention of fungal diseases of plants and pest accumulation. Phytosanitary qualities of radish are enough even to suppress the development of weeds, but this applies mainly to sowing in already cultivated soils.
Sowing of olive radish is carried out usually in the spring, from the beginning of April. Sow seeds should be at a depth of 3-4 cm, after which the soil should be slightly rolled. Approximate consumption of seeds is 200 g per one hundred square meters of land.
When sowing in the spring, the oil radish as siderat not only performs its phytosanitary and soil protective functions perfectly, but also gives a large green mass. For this reason, spring sowing is practiced for the use of radish as an animal feed, and also on compost. Until the end of the season, you can get 2 or even 3 crop rotation , but you should take into account that sown after 10-20 August, the oil radish will not give as much green mass.
We should also note that this culture should not be used as a precursor to cabbage cabbage. You should also know that when grown in vineyards, it stimulates the active growth of the vine.