Organic fertilizers are used in gardening and vegetable gardening due to their naturalness and harmlessness. They enrich the soil with useful substances and have a beneficial effect on plants. The most popular types of organic matter are green manure and manure, but sometimes it is difficult to decide which of these elements is better to choose for fertilizing the soil.
What is better?
Experienced farmers note that green manure can easily replace manure. After all, these substances are practically no different from each other in composition.
But there are still differences between them that indicate that the first option is better:
- Plant organic matter is the purest product. It does not contain bacteria, larvae or parasite eggs, or weed seeds. Unfortunately, this cannot be said about manure, because it is a product of animal activity.
- Plants can be used without restrictions. They can be sown in any season, although it is best to do this in early spring. But manure is added to the soil only in the fall.
- Green manure is a plant that is used immediately after germination. And manure must be stored properly or immediately mixed with compost. Otherwise, it will lose most of its beneficial properties.
Of course, it cannot be said that with the advent of plant-based fertilizers, farmers have completely stopped using manure.This is not true, because the waste products of cattle also bring great benefits to garden crops, so stopping their use is out of the question.
What to choose?
There is no clear answer to the question of what to choose - manure or green manure. Although in the professional agricultural industry, preference is given to the second option.
In home gardening and vegetable gardening, both types of organic matter are useful in their own way. And it is even better to use a combination of both types of fertilizers.
Manure should be applied in the fall, without digging in the ground. Thus, by the next season of gardening, the soil will receive all the necessary nutrients, vitamins and minerals.
But green manure is used in the spring. Shortly before sowing the main plant, the organic matter must be mowed and incorporated into the soil. Nothing else needs to be done: the green mass will gradually begin to disintegrate, feeding the soil and the crops growing on it. Sapropel for seedlings: for which plants is it suitable and how to use it correctly to get a good result
What do you choose?