Organic farming in the country from scratch - video. Where to start with natural farming and building smart beds

Personal experience of an experienced gardener

How do most gardeners sow in their garden beds? Usually, “how everyone does it” and how convenient it is for the owner of the site. It would be better to sow the way the plants need it! This is the principle of organic farming - to do as in nature. It turns out that it turns out to be much more effective. Yields become higher and work becomes less! Do you doubt that this is possible? Check it out in the new season!

Typically, the planting process looks like this: digging up the soil - leveling the surface of the bed - cutting grooves - sowing (laying) seeds in them - filling the grooves with earth from their side walls - watering.

As a result:

Too much effort is spent, since digging is a very labor-intensive process;

The fertility of the soil is lost (its air-water permeability is disrupted, since the porous structure of the earth created by channels and voids formed in place of already rotted roots and worm passages is destroyed;

Soil microorganisms that process plant residues into food for plants die;

The grooves cut for sowing have variable depths, as a result of which the seeds also fall on different depths. This leads to their germination and inhibition of weaker late shoots by earlier ones;

The rows of sprouted seeds are tortuous. Because of this, the width of the row is different, and it is larger than that of an even stitch. As a result, weeding becomes difficult. This happens because it is impossible to cut (even with flat cutters) straight narrow grooves, and also due to the displacement of seeds already in the ground when watering them after planting;

Few gardeners know that plants grow better if the seeds (as in nature) are placed on dense, naturally porous soil, and a loose, loose “blanket” (mulch) covers them on top. Then the best conditions for plant growth are provided, because in the dense underlying soil, due to the capillary effect, soil moisture constantly flows to the seeds (it’s not for nothing that the soil is compacted with windrows before sowing wheat); and air constantly flows from above (through the mulch).

How to ensure the same conditions? You can repeat a theory a thousand times and not convince anyone. I will tell you about my experience, which I have been using for many years.

1. I don’t dig up the soil, but only loosen it by 5-7 cm with a Fokin flat cutter (without bending my back and with much less effort).

2. I combine this loosening of the soil with proactive weed control, as long as the plants being grown do not “interfere” with this. It is known that with regular mowing (or mowing with a hoe), weeds degenerate; just mow them before planting 2-3 times, coming to the dacha once a week, so that there are significantly fewer weeds. At the same time, I spend no more than 10-15 minutes on such a “passage” of a ten-meter bed with a Fokin flat cutter.

3. I water the loosened bed... before planting.

4. Then I press grooves in the damp soil with one or 2-3 slats, nailed together with cross members. The distance between the slats is equal to the distance between future rows of plants and slightly greater than the length of the blade of a small flat cutter. This allows me to later (in front of the grass) loosen and weed the rows with one movement of the flat cutter underground along the rows.

5. I flood the grooves with a solution of biological preparations “Siyania-2” or “Vostok EM-1” in a concentration of 1:1000 (tablespoon per 10 liters of water) - to restore soil capillarity, increase its fertility and sanitize it from pathogenic microorganisms.

6. I sow seeds in grooves pressed by slats.

7. I fill them with compost - and... don’t water them!

At first glance, this technology takes longer. And you re-read it again. How much benefit there is in this technique, and how much we did “at the same time”: we mowed down the weeds with a flat cutter, compacted the rows for sowing, and introduced EM-useful microorganisms into the soil...

As a result, we get what we were striving for - the seeds lie “in line” and at the same depth, on a solid, moist bed, covered on top with “loose” compost, which also has plenty of nutrition! And the fight against weeds is made easier - they are weakened in advance. And I suppress the remaining ones, covering them in the spaces between the grown plants with a layer of mulch of 5-7 cm so that light does not pass through it. Chopped grass is used as mulch. In addition, as the grass decomposes, it feeds the plants + there is no need to water frequently, since moisture evaporation is reduced + there is no need to loosen the soil under the mulch (a crust does not form after rains and watering).

Conclusion: there is less work, and higher yields. That's what you need!

Observe nature

Finally, I want to remind you of the wise advice: “trust, but verify!” Adapt to the conditions of your site!

On my “sand” I water the bed before pressing the grooves, and on clay soil This technique can lead to clay sticking to the rail and uneven grooves. In this case, it needs to be moist in advance, but not sticky.

Use any advice wisely! And even better - learn from the “smartest” - from nature! Check with her, copy her - she is wiser than any adviser!

Today we will discuss the so-called “secrets” of natural farming, because many gardeners and gardeners have long been accustomed to growing crops on their plots with the help of shovels, hoees and all kinds of fertilizers - both natural and chemical. This method of farming has been established for quite some time and has become familiar to us. Eco-farmers have a completely different approach to gardening, so let's look at natural farming methods on garden plot more details

All the secrets of natural farming in one bottle

Usually we “help” plants go through the entire growth cycle from germination to ripening, pulling out weeds, hilling the beds and watering them with preparations advertised on TV. And few people think about the fact that natural processes themselves are ideal, and there is no need to invent anything, but you only need to “strengthen” natural development in order to get more bountiful harvest, which, moreover, will also be completely environmentally friendly, without containing chemicals and pesticides in its fibers.

Therefore, let’s look at nature. No one helps her either by digging or watering with fertilizers. Everything goes naturally. In the fall, plants “die”, their foliage falls to the ground, where it is processed by all “earthly” microorganisms - bacteria, microbes, fungi, and after them - worms. All this results in a fertile layer of soil - vermicompost, and this happens from year to year. Everything that grows returns back to the ground. And the plants themselves decide which nutrients, obtained during natural processing, they need for full growth and development.

It is this cycle that organic matter performs that creates the fertility of the earth, and it is indestructible. All natural processes are balanced. This means that by interfering with them with our blades and preparations, we definitely lose in the quantity and quality of our harvest. Therefore, let’s listen to the natural development of plants and strengthen the natural processes occurring in nature. Using natural farming, you can not only grow an environmentally friendly and harmless product, but also increase the amount of harvest significantly! Let us consider the principles and technology of the natural farming method in order.

Beds in natural farming

Where does any vegetable garden begin? Of course, from the garden. A lovingly created, loosened and fertilized garden bed is the ideal of any gardener. But not in natural farming. In natural farming, nothing is done to the beds - they are not dug up, loosened or fertilized. These plots of land are left in their natural position, as they are! If the garden has just been purchased, or, for example, the location of the beds is not satisfactory, then the only thing they do is mark out the area (for the first time or again). Using pegs, future beds are marked, a passage is made between them using a shovel, and the soil from the passage is dumped onto the beds. After that, the bed cloth is leveled with a rake and that’s it. We will no longer need these tools - a shovel and a rake. If the beds are created, then nothing is done to them at all - they do not dig, do not loosen, do not fertilize, and never - neither in spring nor in autumn.

The only processing point that natural farming allows is slight loosening using a flat cutter. Loosening depth – maximum 8 cm! It is carried out only when necessary.

This is one of the options for organizing stationary beds, but there are other, so to speak, “natural” methods - these are high beds, Rozum beds, trenches, etc. The main thing is that they are constantly replenished with organic matter. And in some cases, for example on peat bogs, to start fertility (at the very beginning) you cannot do without small doses of mineral fertilizers.

The role of mulch and mulching in natural farming

With the help of such a simple action as mulching the soil, we will reproduce natural processes. We will “give” to the earth as much as we want to take from it, and even more.

Fertilizing the soil with organic matter throughout the growing season is perhaps one of the main points of natural farming. After all, this is what increases the fertility of the soil and accumulates necessary nutrients in it.

So, let's look at what mulch is for plants and soil:

1. Soil protection. There is no weathering, leaching, or overheating of the earth.
2. Weed growth is virtually eliminated. Firstly, it creates a shadow in which they do not grow much, and secondly, high layer mulch (which we create) simply prevents any weeds from germinating.
3. Maintaining moisture levels. Mulch prevents the soil from drying out, which means the plants also have a supply of moisture.
4. Loosens the soil. Therefore, there is no need to forcibly loosen it; in such soil, plants develop much more willingly and quickly, since the root system does not need to “break through” to find nutrients.

Fresh grass (both lawn and meadow), weeds, green manure, leaves, hay, etc. are used as mulch.

Mulching begins as soon as the seedlings are planted. The grass is laid on the beds as a sheet between the crops, in fairly large quantities. But there is one caveat - the grass can tightly touch the stems of garden plants, but you can’t put it near tree trunks - it will cause the bark to become warm.

Organic matter should be supplied to crops only from the soil, in already processed form. You need to apply mulch without sparing. Throughout the growing season, as the “mountains” of grass decrease, it will be necessary to report it - approximately once a week, but this must be determined by the rate of its decrease. At first, as soon as you start this process, it will be difficult and long for the mulch to rot and rot, and then, after some time, faster and faster.

Please note that even roses can be mulched. Who will say that this is ugly?

If the crop was planted using seeds, then, naturally, there is no mulching at first - the seeds need to germinate. As soon as the shoots begin to appear, we immediately begin laying mulch around.

shoots from seeds before mulching
grown shoots with mulch

As for the condition of the grass, it is best if it is fresh and chopped - this will make it easier for microbes, fungi, worms, etc. to eat it. The ideal option is a lawn mower with a chopper. But if this is not the case, then it’s okay - any grass, of any size, is suitable as mulch - from a meadow, from a field, and even ordinary weeds that grow everywhere. But soil organisms eat dry grass quite reluctantly, so the most important rule- This is constant watering of mulch. Yes, the grass laid between the rows must be kept moist at all times. It is advisable to check this condition regularly, and if it dries out, repeat watering. It is important that the layer between the soil and the grass is always moist. Please note that in natural farming the plants themselves are not watered - neither at the roots nor on the leaves. Water exclusively the mulch that is spread around.

On average, water deeply once a week under normal weather conditions. If it rains, then we reduce the amount of watering, or stop altogether, but if it’s scorching hot, then on the contrary, we increase irrigation.

After harvesting from the “natural beds,” as mentioned above, we do nothing with them - we neither dig them up nor remove them. Lightly level it with a rake and apply a thick layer of new mulch - grass and fallen leaves. And in this state the bed overwinters. Another option for preparing a garden bed for winter is to sow green manure, so let’s move on directly to the next method of organic farming – green manure.

Green manure in natural farming

Here is another almost obligatory point in natural farming. What are green manures? These are oats, mustard, lupine, radish, sweet clover, buckwheat, peas, etc. These crops structure the soil layers very well because they have a very wide and developed root system. Using this system, they create a “breathing” layer for the soil, and it is also saturated with oxygen. Since the roots of green manure penetrate deep into the soil, they extract from there all the necessary nutrients that “cultivated” plants simply cannot reach. In addition, these crops reduce soil acidity and suppress the growth of weeds. And, perhaps most importantly, they nourish the soil with organic matter, nitrogen, potassium and phosphorus, which is simply necessary for our future plants.

We recommend sowing green manure in beds in early spring– this will be the preparatory stage before planting the main plants. Green manure will prepare the soil for planting, and will subsequently serve as mulch. We sow them thickly, scattering them over the area, and sprinkle them with a little earthen soil or compost, otherwise the birds may eat everything. Before planting the crop in the garden bed, about 2 weeks in advance, the grown green manure is simply trimmed (not cut, not pulled out) and left in this trimmed state on the garden bed. Then seedlings or seeds are planted between them.

A very important point! We must not allow green manure plants to overgrow, that is, the moment when they begin to scatter their seeds. You need to have time to cut them off before that.

It is good to sow them before winter, as already mentioned, on already harvested beds. After the crop is harvested, instead of mulching with new grass, green manure can be sown in the beds. This is also great for overwintering an organic bed. The main thing is to never leave the ground bare in winter. Green manure crops are sown thickly before winter. Firstly, most often not all of them germinate, since, after all, it is already September, and secondly, by forming their roots, they will not allow the ground to freeze early. After the green manure “dies” it will turn into compost, again improving the structure and nutrient layer of the earth both upward and deep. Many green manures also perfectly sanitize the soil, so this is the most safe method disinfection of soil in the garden.

Perhaps, only rye should be used with caution as a green manure, although it also belongs to this group. The fact is that she completely occupies the territory and does not allow all other crops nearby to grow - she is a very allelopathic young lady. It’s good when this applies, for example, to weeds, but they can also come under attack valuable plants.

Fertilizers and preparations in natural agriculture

With the natural method of growing food, fertilizers are used only the same “natural” ones. No store-bought drugs, no mineral supplements, under any circumstances. The plant must take all its nutrients from nature! Only organic matter can be used as fertilizers. And this is humus, compost and the creation of warm beds.

In natural farming, diseases and pests, as a rule, do not besiege crops much, because here everything is aimed at prevention. But if this does happen, then you can only fight folk remedies, suitable for a particular case. So look into the plant protection section at the address and select safe remedy.

The role of crop rotation in natural farming

Another point in natural farming that improves soil fertility is crop rotation.

We should not forget that plants not only consume nutrients from the soil, but also give it some organic elements. All crops have different amounts and types of nutrients consumed and released into the soil, which is why there are recommendations about which crops should be planted after others. This alternation allows you to maintain soil fertility and provide adequate nutrition to plants without additional fertilizers.

We have reviewed the main pillars of natural farming. From all this we can conclude that this method of growing food does not require a lot of time and labor; there is no need to dig, weed or loosen, either in the fall or in the spring! You just need to take care of crop rotation, mulching, sowing green manure, plant protection and watering. In fact, these are all the secrets of natural farming, and most importantly, in the end we get not only an abundant, but also an environmentally friendly harvest from our organic beds.

Human health directly depends on nutrition. Eating foods with GMOs or grown with the use of pesticides and fertilizers leads to irreversible consequences for the body. Modern agronomists propose turning to the experience of our ancestors and making natural farming the basis of agriculture.

Organic farming - what is it?

Ecological farming differs from traditional soil cultivation by its gentle approach to natural ecosystems existing in nature. The use of pesticides and deep cultivation has become detrimental to the land, reduced fertility, disrupted the natural cycle of substances, and negated the benefits of worms and microorganisms. Eco-farming is based on the awareness of the free interaction between soil, plants, animals, and organic residues, while humans should play the role of a helper, not a pest.

Organic Farming Basics

The principles and basics of organic farming are easy to understand and are as follows:

1. The earth is a living organism, the structure of which should not be disturbed. Intensive cultivation of the topsoil, excessive digging, loosening, mineralization, and other agricultural work are very labor-intensive and lead to high material costs with low efficiency. Natural farming on a farm or garden leads to minimal costs, while allowing you to harvest good harvest.
2. Mulching is the main method to improve soil quality and create favorable conditions for the natural system. Mulch is straw, sawdust, hay, fallen leaves, roots and trimmed weeds - everything that covers the beds on top protects the black soil from excessive evaporation of moisture, erosion and hypothermia.
3. Reasonable feeding, which is designed not to destroy beneficial microbes and fungi that utilize organic matter, but to give them the opportunity to multiply, suppress pathogenic bacteria, fix mineral elements, and process everything that can serve as natural humus.

Agriculture according to Ovsinsky

The initiator of parting with the classical method of digging up a vegetable garden was the Russian scientist I.E. Ovsinsky, author of many scientific works, an agronomist by training. Farming according to Ovsinsky is an ideal way to allow the earth to recover itself without interfering with the natural course of nature. As evidence, the innovative breeder in 1899 wrote the work “A New System of Agriculture,” in which he argued for minimal plow intervention in the soil structure, which ensures an environmentally friendly environment and the production of high-quality, safe products.

Organic farming - Kizima method

Galina Kizima can be considered a modern authority on the benefits of organic farming. Having received her PhD degree, the woman seriously took up issues of increasing productivity through the correct approach to soil cultivation practices. Organic farming using the Kizima method has become widespread and is described in books and articles. The basic principle of her garden is the three “don’ts”: don’t weed, don’t dig, don’t water. The author introduced the concept of a “smart” bed into use and proved the effectiveness of her method from personal experience.

Organic farming – beds

The agricultural technology of natural farming is designed to create conditions for plants in the beds similar to those that exist in the wild. The goals of the method: improving the quality and volume of the harvest, preserving natural fertility while saving time and effort. To bring this idea to life, the following are used:

• gentle loosening of the top 5-7 cm of soil in spring and autumn;
• the use of exclusively organic fertilizers in the garden plot, including compost, manure, humus, green manure, as well as microbiological developments;
• biological products, agricultural products that protect plants from pests and diseases.

Organic farming - where to start

The question of when and where to start organic farming is increasingly asked by rural residents and owners garden plots. The answer is encouraging: transfer your household farming to a completely new system, known as “organic beds”, can be used at any time of the year, but the most suitable is considered autumn period. In practice, the main task of agriculture will be the rapid restoration of the upper fertile layer, the correct selection of protective equipment, maintaining the natural ecosystem, and preserving it in this state through basic actions.

Natural farming in the garden plot - practice

Periodic, deep digging is not acceptable if your goal is organic farming in the country. The desire for perfect soil cultivation spoils the soil, has the opposite effect on it, making it heavy, dry, lifeless, hard as stone. As practice shows, this can be avoided using certain techniques:

• divide the area into small beds, depending on the species composition of the plants that will be planted;
• try to cover the soil with natural, organic materials, since bare soil is unprotected and less fertile;
• Regularly mulch the soil to a depth of at least 10 cm, which will reduce the growth of weeds, protect plants from pests and exposure to ultraviolet radiation, and ensure long-term retention of moisture in the soil.

Natural farming methods. Intensive beds – “Active mulch”. System – “Compost paths”. Green manure-no-till agricultural technologies. Agriculture or Agrochemistry.

Natural farming for beginners.

It is interesting to consider in one article three options for “natural farming” agricultural technologies, or simply, three agricultural technologies related to Agriculture.

"A". Intensive beds –" - (A.I. Kuznetsov, N. Smorchkova - in small areas.)

The difference between the beds and the work of Kuznetsov and Smorchkova - very briefly - can be explained as follows:

KUZNETSOV – “difficult” organic matter, sawdust, and cold climate. We have to pay serious attention to bacterial preparations and fungi (saprophytes and symbionts). Mulch can be laid once for the entire season.

MORECHKOVA – “light” organic matter, grass cuttings, warm climate. Saprophytes grow well on their own, without special human attention. But quickly consumed mulch needs to be replenished frequently during the growing season.

Video. Results of natural farming.

"B" Constant mulching root zone and composting organic matter in passages between permanent beds.(Year-round composting in specially created “microagrolandscapes”)

Oleg Telepov, from Omsk, once began to alternate in the garden cultivable and non-cultivable, but densely mulched strips, observed and described the life of plants at their border.

In this case, the stability of the soil formation process, the growth of fertility and plant nutrition are provided mainly by the compost path. And we get considerable freedom of action with mulch and work in the garden.
Novosibirsk scientists have built and studied such a system of alternating cultivated beds and permanent compost paths over large areas, using equipment, peat, manure, and introducing earthworms into the paths. "

"IN"— In “green manure-no-till” agricultural technology, new organic matter is not brought from outside, but is constantly grown in the garden bed when the green manure vegetation does not interfere with the vegetation of cultivated plants.

Refusal to dig up the root and green mass of green manure ensures the most complete circulation of organic matter “according to natural type”, or, Biodynamics according to Tarkhanov.

We try to get both the maximum benefit and the maximum comfortable beds, I told you about this

Natural farming in practice.

Options “A”, “B”, “C” differ from each other in timing and in the method of introducing new organic matter into the beds, and in the type of this substance.

"A"— The mulch becomes “active” right in the garden bed; fresh organic matter is deposited throughout the growing season of the cultivated plants. New organic matter is placed on top of the old one and kept moist.

"B"— Absolutely any organic matter can be placed in the “Compost Paths,” new on top of old and at any time. Organics can be used small, large, both fresh and partially humified.

"IN" A variant of green manure-no-till agricultural technology. Winter garlic bed late autumn –

Purely externally, and in terms of accessibility for a particular gardener, options "A B C", are very different from each other. But, in fact, they all relate to Agriculture, and not to “mineral-machine” or “organic” Agriculture.

In these options, both productivity and complete, natural nutrition of plants are ensured by maintaining and increasing natural soil fertility. In many other agricultural techniques, the required yield is ensured by reducing natural soil fertility, but is maintained at high level by means of Agrochemistry. The process of feeding our plants (the quality of our harvest) is very different in Agricultural and Agrochemical agricultural technologies.

It is useful to remember that Our Plants are captive creatures. We are the ones who are free to choose how and what they will eat, and what quality of harvest we need. We choose whether to engage in Agriculture or Agrochemistry.

Agriculture or Agrochemistry.

It is useful to know that “Farmer” is not some kind of “praise” or “kind” word. And “Agrochemist” is not an “abusive” or “frightening” term. And “Agrochemistry” is not at all powders from bags that can be used to “sweeten” or “poison” plants and your own food...

“Agriculture” and “Agrochemistry” are two very different Technical (Agronomic) Sciences, based and built on various Natural Sciences.

In the fields and gardens, these Technical Sciences manifest themselves in specific agricultural techniques.

Any field grower, vegetable grower, grain grower, gardener-dacha owner inevitably chooses one or another agricultural technology, one or another nutrition option for his plants, and an option for working with the soil. And even the definitions of “SOIL” and “FERTILITY” are different in different sciences and have different meanings in different agricultural techniques.

And bags of fertilizers are not Agrochemistry yet, but just bags of fertilizers.

But “Black Steam”, when the earth is allowed to “rest”. They do not plow it, but only finely cultivate it, clear it of harmful, voracious weeds, and naturally “enrich it with mineral elements” without “any chemicals from bags” - this is pure agrochemistry.

And many people’s favorite digging of beds before winter, or in spring, is the same, Agrochemistry.

And wonderful manure and wonderful straw, buried to a wonderful land - the same, Agrochemistry.
And the green manure raging in the garden remains a tool of Agriculture only as long as until they are buried in the ground. And after digging, they turn into an Agrochemical tool...

And all this, in its own way, affects the nature of plant nutrition and the quality of the harvest.

Green manure, manure, a shovel (not being “mineral fertilizers”) can become tools of AGROCHEMISTRY - they can destroy soil fertility and disrupt the proper nutrition of plants.

The modern practice of mineral “feeding” was generally born later than AGROCHEMISTRY itself, and modern science AGROCHEMISTRY originated before scientific farming. Until about 1875, AGROCHEMISTRY existed under the “brands” of AGRICULTURAL STATICS or SOIL SCIENCE (obsolete, abolished in 1876).

At the end of the 19th century, Russian science gave the world a new (more complete, modern) understanding of what SOIL is. Modern SOIL SCIENCE, the concept of the biosphere and biosphere processes, appeared. Then the concepts of dynamic (thermodynamic, biodynamic) processes and systems in living nature began to emerge.

Everyone makes their choice between Agriculture and land use - Agrochemistry. And each Farmer chooses agricultural technology that is convenient for himself, or uses different agricultural technology for different cultures, or elements of different agricultural techniques.

I will answer your questions in the comments.