Soil fertility

Often growers hurt by the fact that Labour have invested a lot, and the harvest has turned low, because the soil is poor. A wise Russian proverb says: There are no bad soil - there are bad owners. To make this proverb to do with us, let's see what fertile soil, and how to determine the composition of the soil.

Soil - treated the upper layer of soil, which has a singularity due to its property - fertility.Soil composition
Fertile soil is called, which has enough nutrients to plants growing on it. Most fertile soil - black earth, which has a strong surface layer of humus (humus) - up to 110-120 cm poorest believe podzolic soils, the layer of humus it has only 2-W, see
In the middle zone of Russia is dominated by soil composition of sod-podzolic and gray forest chernozem with a humus layer of 10-30 cm
Under the garden plots are often withdrawn neudobitsy - clay, sand and peat soils unsuitable for growing crops, requiring significant effort and cost for cultivation.
However, the bad and the composition of the soil have some advantages over the others. For example, clay soil, poorly ventilated, and slowly warming up, retains moisture well, which is important in the dry summer, securely holds and absorbs fertilizer. Has these properties and the peat soil.
For the majority of plants are equally harmful acid and alkali soils, their degree of acidification (the presence of soil acids) determines the pH value of pH. The highest it in neutral and alkaline soils. These soils need to be lowered acidity, improved physical properties. Most often this is used liming materials.Determine the texture of the soil
For competent and cost of cultivation is necessary to know the original data on it. You can read the Table of soil types in order to understand what type of soil in your garden site and how to cultivate it.
Getting to the development site, it is best to take soil samples and to go with them to the nearest agrochemical laboratory to analyze. After consultations with specialists, you will know how to cultivate the soil, well-balance its composition. Agrochemists determine to what extent are acidified soil.
If there is no laboratory, the mechanical composition of soils can be approximated by themselves. Method is quite acceptable for practical use, based on the property of plasticity of soil.
Pinch of soil is moistened with water until the consistency of dough, roll in the palm of a cord with a diameter of about 3 mm, wrap it in a ring. At the same time get these results: the cord is not formed - the sand, the rudiments of the cord - sandy loam, crushed with a rolling - light loam, continuous cord, the ring Minimize splits - medium loam, continuous cord, the ring cracked - a heavy clay loam, continuous cord, the ring of integer - clay.
More accurately determine the mechanical composition of soil using a simple experiment. A handful of soil placed in a glass jar, add water, stir and let stand. In the settled soil at the bottom will fall out sand, and on it a layer of clay. By adopting the height of the column with settled soil at 100%, it is easy to calculate what proportion of sand.We define the acidity of the soil
Themselves more or less accurately we can determine the acidity of the soil. For this purpose soil mix in water and solid fraction when the precipitate is formed, drop into a vessel litmus test (they are sold in stores Agrochemistry). If the soil - acidic, a piece of paper turns red.
The answer can be given, and plants. Thus, at high acidity at the site will prevail sorrel horse, horsetails, Ivan da Marya, plantain, speedwell, mint, buttercups, etc. The slightly acidic and neutral soils grow chamomile, coltsfoot, couch-grass, red clover, Field bindweed, nettles.