In the spring, I just want to start sowing faster in order to get a harvest as early as possible. The land is still cold at this time, and the roots of plants need warmth first of all. You can accelerate ripening and increase the yield by arranging a warm bed, it is very easy to do it yourself. Manufacturing technology does not require large financial costs, but the harvest can be obtained three times per season. Consider how to make a warm bed with step by step instructions, decorated with photographs. Watch an example of creating ridges in the video to understand what the final result should be.
To understand whether it is worth equipping warm beds on your site and spending your own time and energy, you need to understand the advantages of this method.
Council. In autumn, add all the available small organic matter and leaf litter to the garden bed and cover it with cardboard so that heat remains and nutrients are not washed out by rains into the lower layers.
With a close approach of groundwater, the bed is raised above the soil. In dry regions, on the contrary, it is deepened, making it flush with the soil or slightly higher. Raised beds are overbearing different materials... Most often they use wood or slate, less often metal. Set in the middle of the lawn, framed by a blind area of tiles, such a bed pleases the eye and decorates the site. Or they are made in the form of a meter-long hill without sides. In fact, a warm bed is a compost heap folded in the form of a puff cake according to certain rules.
The length of the bed can be any, the optimal width is about a meter. The depth will depend on the composition of the soil and the type of bed chosen. Recessed is done by 40 - 60 cm.The height of the raised bed is up to 1 m.
The air remaining in the cavities between large organic matter will provide breathing and quick heating of the bed. The process can be accelerated by spilling the soil with special bacteria.
Council. If the soil is initially good, then the need to dig up the beds will disappear by itself. Already in the first year, the soil is well loosened to a depth of 20 cm, for the next season it is enough to add compost and plant the plants.
Consider the process of making a recessed bed with a small wooden side from an unnecessary board.
A container filled with organic matter heats up quickly in spring. Heat-loving vegetables can be sown in such a bed ahead of time, covering with a film for the first time. By correctly calculating the planting time and the distance between plants, you can first grow radishes and greens. Put a trellis in the center, plant cucumbers and tomatoes. After harvesting radish, plant carrots, onions, beets. In the fall, plant radishes, salads and herbs again.
Experienced gardeners who have been using warm beds for more than one year, it is recommended to plan planting in this way:
The film can be tied to the bottom row of the trellis with clothespins. Press down the edges loosely with boards. So the garden bed will turn into a greenhouse. Air will be sucked in at the bottom and expelled at the top. If you forget to open the garden bed during the day, the plants will not burn. And if you have free funds, install a roof over the garden bed. It will protect tomatoes from late blight, and cucumbers from peronospores - these fungi germinate in water droplets on the leaves. Vegetables will stand healthy until the very frost.
Council. A deep hole and a large amount of organic matter holds moisture well and gives off heat. Raised boxes with a small layer of organic matter dry out faster and lose their nutritional value.
Once, having found the time and energy, as well as a sufficient amount of high-quality organic matter, and equipping a warm bed with an irrigation system, you will not only free up time for rest, but also get an early harvest of delicious vegetables. If in the open ground vegetables ripen a month earlier, then such a structure in a greenhouse will justify the work invested with interest.
Every gardener can't wait to get an early harvest with the onset of spring. But the ground at this time is still cold, and cannot provide the much-needed warmth to the root system of the seedlings. However, there is an easy way to solve this problem - do it yourself warm beds. We will tell you how to do this.
To make warm beds in the spring with your own hands, you do not need large investments. However, before starting work, you should weigh the pros and cons.
The advantages of warm garden beds:
Sort of heated beds are good, but plants also require plenty of sunlight. For this, polycarbonate greenhouses are well suited, which have an excellent diffusing effect, and you should not be afraid that plants on either side will receive less light.
Unfortunately, do-it-yourself warm beds have drawbacks:
But despite the disadvantages, there are more advantages, especially since there are ways to reduce the negative impact. To combat rodents, you can put a net. In order not to injure the plants, make the beds in the fall (during the winter the soil will shrink).
In this video, you will learn how to make warm beds yourself.
Warm beds are divided into temporary and permanent. The latter, in turn, are subdivided into in-depth, ground and fenced. Gardeners need temporary warm beds to grow seedlings. Permanent ones sometimes resemble greenhouses and can serve for a long time (up to 8 years)
Arrangement options and step-by-step instructions
If there is a threat of close occurrence of groundwater, then the beds are raised above the ground. To do this, use wood and slate, which frame the ridge. Such a bed is oriented from east to west, and its height is from 50 to 80 cm. Step-by-step method:
The air that remains in the space between large organic matter improves air circulation and heat transfer.
The arrangement of such a bed with your own hands begins with digging a trench 40-45 cm deep. The bottom is covered with sand. Subsequent layers can be separated from the cold from the depths plastic bottles with closed plugs. Plastic bottles are covered with a layer of sand, followed by branches, stumps, then chips, paper, sod, manure, and the top layer should consist of good soil. Warm beds made of plastic bottles do not differ in terms of filling from tall ones.
In the trench, you can make insulation beds with high and medium sides. As gardeners say, the last method is more acceptable, and we will stop at it. As for the size, the main argument is ease of use. Therefore, for the width the best option- 1 m, and the length can be any. Do not try to make a large number of beds, as they will need to be moved later.
For a large amount, you also need a lot of organic matter, and every year manure is getting closer to exotic and scarce goods. By the way, the most the best way- use horse manure, but to buy it, you need to try very hard.
You should start by making a box. If you want it to last longer, soak the material with antiseptic agents. The simplest thing is to cover it with linseed oil. After cutting the blanks, collect them into shields. Install the box on the surface of the ground, fix the geotextile or dense polyethylene inside, then start filling. We will talk about how to fill the beds below.
In the spring, you can equip warm beds in the form of mounds without a fence. Such a bed will save groundwater from excess moisture. The filling can be the same as in a tall bed. This will be a layered compost heap.
It is important that when arranging such beds, the water does not go away, since it is necessary for rotting and increasing the temperature. If your soil is peaty, then a warm garden bed made by hand from sawdust will come in handy. To do this, put sawdust scalded with boiling water at the very bottom and cover them with an old cloth. This layer should be watered with potassium permanganate solution.
The second layer will be plant residues. Add some soil, chalk and wood ash to the bottom. The third layer is a classic mixture of humus, sand, sawdust, urea, wood ash, boric acid, potassium sulfate and zinc sulfate taken in an appropriate proportion.
Large organic matter is usually laid at the bottom of the pit. It can be anything that is made of wood and is superfluous in the household. Wood retains moisture well. Here the rule applies: the larger the organic matter at the bottom, the longer the service life of the beds. The second layer is usually fine organic matter. It can be straw, fallen leaves, branches, paper.
Compost is usually the third layer. It is used to accelerate the decomposition of organic matter. Unripe compost or manure serves this purpose well. Then the sod with grass is laid with the roots up. In conclusion, everything is covered with ready-made compost.
Agronomist from Russia Igor Lyadov is opposed to the use of chemical fertilizers, as they harm the environment and natural resources. Its technology uses natural farming methods. According to this technique, the soil is treated without aggressive intervention of "chemistry", the nutrients after the cultivation of garden crops are returned to the soil, the soil is protected from sudden temperature fluctuations. Next, we will tell you how to make a warm bed for cucumbers according to Lyadov's method.
A flat plot is being prepared for building. A structure of logs 0.8-1.2 m wide is laid on the soil. The gardener chooses the length himself. To protect against insects and overheating, the structure is coated with water-based paint. The logs are fastened together with screws. To combat perennial weeds and pests, cardboard is laid on the bottom. Sand is poured on top, and then layers are alternately made of organic fertilizers and manure. Everything is covered with a 10 cm layer of soil.
The author's technique also includes feeding the beds with herbal infusions, which you can easily do yourself. This is the best alternative to "chemistry". Vegetables grown in the garden, in such warm beds, are in many ways superior to their counterparts grown in the traditional way.
The average life of a compost bed is about 4 years. In such a bed in the first year, excellent conditions are created for the growth of pumpkins, cucumbers, zucchini and other thermophilic plants. In the second year, the ranks of the aforementioned garden crops are replenished with tomatoes and cabbage.
The main thing is not to sow nitrate accumulators (greens, radishes, salads) at this time. In the third year, in the insulation bed, created favorable conditions for growing potatoes, beans, peppers, beets, tomatoes. The fourth year is a great place for greens and peas. Then it's time to arrange new ridges, and the soil from the old ones can be added to the ground for the garden.
A heated bed can be called a puff cake made from different organics. Before laying each layer, the previous one is well moistened. During the entire period of operation, the heated bed needs frequent and abundant watering, since the layers should not dry out. It is not recommended to water in the hole, so as not to cause disease when water gets on the stem. You can insert a plastic bottle into the ground and water it through a funnel.
If you made a bed in early autumn, then you need to cover it with a film so that weed seeds carried by the wind do not get into the well-prepared soil.
Evgeny Sedov
When hands grow from the right place, life is more fun :)
Content
The device of warm beds is a universal technology in agriculture, used in spring and autumn, in a greenhouse and in open ground, based on compost heat release. Using this technology, the gardener plants vegetables earlier and gets a harvest longer than under normal conditions. There are several types of beds, choose the one that suits you.
With this technology, organic residues, decomposing, release heat, heating the roots of vegetable crops. Plants tolerate spring temperature changes better, ripen faster. Decomposition of organic matter forms nutrients, vegetables are fed throughout the season, there is no need for additional organic fertilizers.
The basic principle of the device is that dissimilar organic matter is laid in layers. The deeper, the coarser the layers should be - branches, stems and chopped trunks are placed on the bottom. This layer will be the "fuel", drainage, allowing air to enter. The next layers are finer - newspapers, shredded branches, grass. Before placing the next layer, it is necessary to water the previous one well so that the layers do not dry out. An important rule is that raw materials should not be affected by diseases or rot.
There are four types of beds. If the site is located close to groundwater, you can construct a high bed - it is not afraid of spring flooding, if the site is dry - buried - it rarely needs watering. Via different types you can make the most of useful area suburban area for planting vegetable crops. An important condition: the layers must be watered frequently, since the work of microorganisms that process organic matter is possible only in a humid environment.
A bed located on the ground is called high. Its height ranges from 50 to 80 cm. The basic principles of its construction:
A type of high bed can be considered a bed-hill or "hilly ridge of Holster". The principle of laying out the layers is the same, only it is not fenced timber frame, and the edges are rounded. Outwardly, it resembles a mound, about 1 meter high. This warm do-it-yourself garden bed is convenient in that it increases the usable area of the garden: its surface is wider than the base. Filling:
The opposite in terms of the device is high - buried or trench, it is necessary for difficult watering or in regions where the soil warms up for a long time after winter. She lasts longer high or hilly - about 8 years. For it, a trench is dug with a depth of at least 2 bayonets of a shovel, sand is poured into the bottom of the trench, then layers of biofuel. Gardeners, to protect the layers from cold deep soil, suggest laying out the bottom with closed plastic bottles. Further filling of the buried bed is similar to the previous ones.
If the summer cottage is located in places of occurrence of groundwater, you can build a combined bed. This is a shallow trench with a drainage layer at the bottom, on which the box is installed, so that part of it is in the ground, and part of it is above the ground, 30-50 cm high.The combined bed is filled with the same material as the rest, the top layer should be level with the sides of the box. Care and watering are the same for all species, except for one difference - the deep water is less often watered.
This technology has earned the love of gardeners because it is universal: with its help, a vegetable garden can be arranged anywhere. Even on infertile soils, warm beds will bring good harvest... An additional advantage of the technology is that beds of any type can be made with your own hands from improvised material. They do not require laborious maintenance, and, subject to simple rules, you can grow any vegetable crops on them.
This method can be used both in spring and autumn. The season does not matter in the device, the differences are only in the composition of the biomaterial of the upper layer. If you make a warm bed in the fall, layers of fresh organic matter - leaves, small branches - any organic debris will go into it. It is made after harvest: in October, November - before frost, so that during the autumn and winter it has time to go through the decomposition process. In the spring, after the snow melts, already rotted manure, compost, the upper fertile layer of soil are laid, it is done a month before the seedlings of vegetables.
This technology is successfully used in northern regions with unfavorable climatic conditions for agriculture. Plants planted using this technique are not afraid of temperature changes. The beds are located in any convenient place on the site, well-lit by the rays of the sun. In the southern regions, this technology is ineffective, it is hot in summer, sunny and there is no need for additional heat.
The convenience of the method lies in the fact that the layers are filled with any organic residues; the material does not need to be procured or purchased. It can be:
Such a bed has been working for 4 years. The first year, while the heat transfer and the amount of nutrition are maximum, plants are planted that are demanding for heat and the amount of fertilizer. In the following seasons - less demanding vegetables:
The disadvantages of this technology are called frequent watering and labor costs during the arrangement. However, the laboriousness pays off by the availability of materials and ease of maintenance:
Warm beds in the fall allow you to start planting in the spring almost a month earlier than in open ground... They differ from spring ones only in the amount of biomaterial:
If you have not taken care in the fall, you can make warm beds in the spring with your own hands, the main thing is that they are ready by the beginning of planting work:
You can arrange warm beds in the greenhouse with your own hands. This will allow you to plant seedlings in mid-April, without fear of freezing seedlings:
Warm beds made with your own hands are a great opportunity to get a harvest earlier than usual. Our capricious Russian spring often harbors unpleasant surprises, for example, sharp drops in temperatures up to frost. In this article, we share our experience in creating warm beds for the purpose of growing vegetable products.
Nikolai Kurdyumov, the famous agronomist and propagandist of natural farming, said that fertility is not a state, but a dynamic process that takes place in the soil. Layered warm beds are designed to create this continuous living process.
Vegetable crops develop much better on a living substrate of insulated beds, it is easier for them to cope with superficial night frosts, to endure temperature fluctuations. Vegetables on insulated ridges ripen faster, and the labor costs of summer residents are reduced.
The whole process of vegetable growing according to Lyadov's system can be reduced to two technological operations - the cultivation of vegetables on specially organized narrow ridges according to the Meatlider method and natural farming without the use of pesticides.
For many years in a row, Igor Lyadov's garden was in disrepair. Vegetable crops in the Far Eastern climate felt uncomfortable, they suffered from waterlogging, soaking.
Regular fertilizing with mineral fertilizers did not save the day, the taste of vegetables was unsatisfactory, the degeneration of potatoes was observed, the yield of vegetable crops decreased every year.
The gardener enthusiast decided to take up his plot seriously. He noticed that when using wide traditional beds, the leaves of only those plants that were on the edges of the ridge develop normally.
The farmer concludes that the presence of fresh air masses and spaciousness affects the processes of plant growth and development. Igor Nikolaevich finds confirmation of his ideas in the method of growing vegetables by Meatlider. It boils down to growing crops on narrow strips of land with a fairly large row spacing (75 cm or more). 
The Russian plant breeder decides to modify the technique and raise the warm, hand-made beds above the dirt paths by 20 cm in order to get rid of regular floods, which are not rare in the area where he lives. An enterprising gardener put together a wooden fence - a box, and fenced the ridges.
Such a fence served as protection against soil erosion. It turned out to be an impromptu container.
The advantages of containers are obvious:
Soon Lyadov decides to abandon mineral fertilizers... Plants grown in his garden receive only organic matter in the form of manure, herbal infusion, compost, mulch. Also used. Igor Lyadov's warm beds and amazing vegetable garden are a great example of natural farming in the open field.
So that the plants do not suffer from recurrent frosts, and also in order to accelerate their development, it is recommended to grow cucumber seedlings under a film cover until the last days of May. Before making beds in the greenhouse, it must be thoroughly disinfected, remove last year's remains and replace damaged elements. In a small greenhouse, you can build three narrow beds, leaving two aisles for maintenance.
The materials for the construction of warm beds are used the same materials as for the beds in the garden. Put all the necessary components into well-fixed boxes.
Plants feel much better on a warm bed under a reliable cover made of polycarbonate or polyethylene, they grow faster and painlessly endure nighttime cold snaps on the ground surface.
If you want to get the first production of early cucumbers earlier, then you need to grow them through seedlings. When grown through seedlings, expensive or scarce seeds can be saved, each seed will yield a harvest and will not get lost in the soil.
Cucumber seedlings are planted in a permanent growing area when four true leaves appear on the plants.
Immediately before planting seedlings on insulated high beds make holes. The depth should be equal to the depth of the cup in which the cucumber seedlings were located.
On such ridges in an unheated greenhouse, cucumbers are planted in one row in the center of the ridge, leaving a distance of 20 cm between plants.
After a week, the plants must be tied to pegs, or better to a trellis. The lower edge of the rope is tied to a cucumber lash above the third leaf, 12 cm above ground level.
A warm bed with warming compost and manure under a polycarbonate cover or foil provides optimal temperature regime for plants.
The temperature is regulated by ventilation, for this you can simply lift the plastic wrap or open the window.
A wooden box will keep moisture longer. Cucumbers are a vegetable that loves moisture very much. Before entering the fruiting period, it is necessary to water cucumber plantations every 2 to 3 days, while the water consumption per plant is 0.5 liters.
During the ripening period, the cucumbers are watered daily, consuming 1.5 - 3 liters of water for each root.
With the onset of stable heat, the covering material is completely removed.
Modern greenhouses, even those built with their own skillful hands, are quite expensive for a summer resident, so zealous owners try to make the most of it.
Even if the greenhouse is without additional heating, and you live in the country for a limited time, you can develop such agricultural techniques so that the harvest ripens under transparent arches from April to November. Of course, this applies to stationary greenhouses, year-round covered with glass or polycarbonate.
In an unheated greenhouse, sowing of cold-resistant crops begins in early April, or at the end of March, if the weather is warm.
Radish, parsley, dill, lettuce, arugula, Chinese cabbage, mustard.
No matter how the greenhouse protects, for early plantings it should be possible to additionally cover the plants with non-woven material.
Likewise, you can grow all of these crops in the fall, extending the season for the consumption of fresh herbs until the end of November.
How to make a warm bed in the fall for growing greens by the end of November?
A warm bed, built in an unheated greenhouse, will allow growing greens until the last days of November
There is such a rule of the farmer: everything that is taken from the ground must be returned to it back:
How to make a warm bed:
Tall, warm beds will save water for irrigation. It is recommended to mulch the ground with cut grass, slightly dried in the sun.
