This is a very healthy way for the environment that also benefits humans to be able to eat a healthy and nutritious food based on organic products. Here we tell you what are the main cares to consider for a vegetable garden!
1. Draw up a plan: before starting to plant it is important to draw the design of the vegetable garden to determine the size, location and distribution of the different species of crops.
2. Correct location: it is necessary to choose a place that receives good sunlight during the day and avoid humidity so that the plants do not become moldy.
3. Soil preparation: before planting, it is necessary to prepare the soil with compost and other organic products as fertilizer to improve the characteristics and nutrients of the soil.
4. Adequate irrigation: it is very important to ensure that irrigation is correct for each type of vegetable being grown, not too abundant but not too little, thus stimulating their development and maturation.
5. Pest control: it is necessary to monitor daily the state of the plants and some orchards can place homemade traps to reduce the proliferation of insects that can affect the health of the crops.
6. Pruning in fruit plants: in the case of fruit plants such as apples or pears, it is important to prune them properly at the beginning of the season to remove dry branches and stimulate the appearance of new shoots.
7. Harvesting: once the plants have reached maturity it is necessary to harvest them gently so as not to damage crops that are not yet ready.
How humidity damages a vegetable crops
Moisture is one of the most important elements in supplying the soil with adequate nutrient nutrition for vegetable crops. However, it can also cause crop damage if the moisture level is maintained for an excessive period of time. This can affect the health and production of vegetables, often resulting in a reduced number of healthy plants, as well as loss of time, labor and a lot of investment in plant care. In addition, excess moisture also has the potential to spread disease and damaging insects, which can greatly reduce yields.
Excessive soil moisture can affect the growth of vegetable plants in several ways. First, excessively moist air increases the risk of insect and pest attack, as excess moisture provides the primarily ideal environment for many pests. Pests that attack vegetable crops include fruit fly larvae, potato moths, and potato predatids. These pests can destroy the crop in question and can be difficult to detect, as the damage is usually done subway. In addition, high soil moisture can block oxygen uptake, limiting the ability of plant roots to breathe. This lack of oxygen slows growth and, in some cases, can lead to crop death due to lack of oxygen for food production. In addition, excess water can also block nutrient uptake as well as enrichment of chemical elements such as nitrogen, potassium and phosphorus. This shortage of nutrients can also limit overall growth and yields.
In addition, an excess of water in the soil can also lead to diseases, mainly due to fungi and bacteria that thrive in a moist environment that is poorly ventilated. These diseases can destroy the vegetable crops in the blink of an eye.
Why prevent the vegetable from being in contact with the soil?
Growing vegetables vertically without soil contact is an excellent practice for many people due to the great benefits it brings to food production. This technique is known as free-core growing and has brought exponential growth in vegetable production and a decrease in growing costs.
This technique involves growing in elevated structures-typically wooden frames-for multi-tiered shelves with a narrow soil bed over the bottom for the plants. These shelves, called ponds, are designed to allow soil-free vegetable growth. This technique allows multiple plants to grow vertically on the same surface with the minimum amount of soil needed for production. This reduces soil, fertilizer and water costs for production and allows growers to increase their production with the minimum amount of available resources.
In addition to increasing vegetable production and reducing stabilization costs, vertical cultivation without soil contact brings many other benefits. This technique significantly reduces the amount of land required and, as a result, minimizes problems related to fertilization, soil disease and erosion. In turn, growing in structures significantly frees up adjacent soil area to be used for other purposes. Reducing the amount of land used also minimizes mechanization costs for lifting, transporting and harvesting crops, which also contributes to lower operating costs.
An additional great contribution of cultivation in structures is its application in complicated climatic conditions. This technique has proven to be an excellent solution for cultivation in hot climates where the soil dries quickly and cools down faster than desired. This technique has also been successfully applied in drought situations, allowing growers to harvest their produce in drier times. Free-core cultivation also favors urban farming, which allows vegetables to be grown on small plots of land near cities, resulting in lower transportation costs and greater food security.