The soil in the garden constantly needs fertilizer, as plants draw nutrients from it. To increase the yield from the site, organic and inorganic additives are used. Sawdust was used as fertilizer for the garden by our distant ancestors. This fertilizer has a lot positive properties However, there are also limitations in application. Let's consider the issue in detail.
Properties of sawdust
Many people know about the use of sawdust for. Spread in a layer of 25 cm, they reliably cover the roots from the winter cold and protect them from freezing. However, sawdust also has another purpose - it can serve as an excellent fertilizer for the soil and improve its mechanical characteristics. In particular, based on them you can make.
The composition of sawdust includes:
- essential oils;
- microelements;
- cellulose;
- resins;
- other substances.
Adding wood waste to the soil makes it loose, air- and moisture-permeable. Sawdust attracts soil microorganisms, which enrich the fertile layer with the products of their vital activity. As a result, you get a “living” and nutritious fertile layer on which a rich harvest will grow.
Sawdust absorbs hazardous substances (chemicals, pesticides) and prevents them from entering vegetable crops.
Fresh wood is saturated with resins, lignin, cellulose - these substances interact with the soil and form complex compounds that are not digestible by plants. Also, a huge number of bacteria formed during the decomposition of wood take nutrients from plants for their life support (they need phosphorus and nitrogen). A deficiency of phosphorus and nitrogen contributes to soil acidification, which negatively affects its composition. Therefore, fresh shavings are not added to the soil, but only used as mulch.
However, fresh sawdust binds excess nitrogen compounds found in acidified soil. Thus, they prevent the accumulation of nitrates and metal salts in vegetables and fruits, which are dangerous to humans. Also, fresh wood waste is added to soil with an excess of chemical fertilizers - for the same purpose.
Note! Only environmentally friendly wood is used for fertilizer. Sawdust from furniture and other wooden products is not suitable.
Is it possible to pour sawdust into the garden? Sawdust mulch retains moisture well in the soil, protects strawberries from rotting and prevents the growth of weeds. You can mulch with wood shavings until mid-July, when the sun dries out the soil greatly. By August, only memories will remain of sawdust - earthworms and other soil inhabitants will make a fertile layer out of it. If you spread sawdust in a thick layer in a rainy summer, this will become a big obstacle to the ripening of berry bushes and young fruit trees - the moisture will not be able to evaporate.
Of course, sawmill waste is inferior in its nutritional characteristics to manure or peat, so to increase its value as a fertilizer you need to know the rules and secrets of preparing compost.
Compost
When preparing compost from wood raw materials, you need to know the principle of its maturation. Processing sawdust before adding it to the soil has its own characteristics. Unlike manure, sawdust begins to rot from above, and not from the inside. This slows down the process of rotting of the wood substrate in the heap - you will have to wait at least five years until the entire mass rots. To speed up the process, organic additives are used and the compost is constantly moistened.
There are many ways to make compost from wood waste. They differ in the composition of additional components. The components can be:
- fruit waste;
- vegetable waste;
- vegetable raw materials;
- biological additives.
Pine waste is not used for compost, since the excess resin content prevents decomposition.
If you add tree bark or perennial plant roots to your compost, this will increase the ripening time of the compost. In order for the raw material to quickly rot, it must be crushed.
Compost boosters
Biological enhancer additives help turn sawmill waste into useful fertilizer. The following are used as amplifiers:
- slurry;
- bird droppings;
- mullein.
You can also speed up the maturation of sawdust using the drug “Baikal M-1”. To do this, you need to moisten the raw material well and then put it in a plastic bag. Having tied the bag tightly, it is placed in the sunniest place in the garden. To ensure that the compost warms up evenly, the bag is turned over periodically. In a couple of weeks you will receive excellent sawdust fertilizer with a crumbly consistency.
Preparation
The entire process of compost maturation is divided into three stages:
- decomposition;
- humus formation;
- mineralization.
At the decomposition stage it is released a large number of heat, due to which the wood structure decomposes. At this time, bacteria appear in the sawdust layer and actively process the material. They are joined by earthworms, speeding up the conversion process.
The formation of humus is achieved through the active saturation of the compost heap with oxygen. To do this, you need to regularly turn the layers over with a shovel and pierce them with a pitchfork.
The third stage is characterized by the release of carbon dioxide and the transformation of wood particles into salts and oxides. The substrate acquires mineral characteristics that are assimilated by plants: it is in this form that they can be easily absorbed by the root system.
Compost in 2 weeks
Nutrient substrate from wood waste can be prepared using cold or hot methods. The cold method is the longest, but also of higher quality. However, there is not always time to wait for compost to ripen for years, so gardeners use the second method - hot.
When ripening compost hot, it is necessary to ensure heat loss and establish ventilation. To do this, the mass is placed in a closed container - a barrel, tank, box with a lid or a plastic bag. Ventilation can be achieved by making holes in the sides.
Rules accelerated maturation masses:
- the container with sawdust should be in a sunny place in the garden;
- it is necessary to protect the compost from drafts so that the heat does not erode;
- sawdust and green additives do not need to be mixed;
- compost layers should not exceed 15 cm.
Note! The compost heap should be no more than a meter high in order for the substrate to mature properly. Ideally, the heap area should have a base of no more than 1 m2.
Layer distribution:
- lower - dry grass, foliage;
- the second - sawdust moistened with slurry;
- the third is a mixture of manure with green matter (weeds, tops);
- fourth - any soil (garden, forest);
- fifth - pre-shredded straw;
- then the layers are repeated, starting with sawdust.
When the layers of the pile are formed, it is covered with light-proof material. If the technology is strictly followed, the mass will begin to heat up already on the fourth day after laying. Be careful to maintain moisture, prick the pile with a fork and turn it with a shovel every third day. After two weeks, the finished substrate can be used to care for cultivated plants.
A sawdust compost heap should not emit bad smell. If this happens, it means you have violated the technology.
If an ammonia smell (ammonia) appears, you need to add paper to the pile - this will correct the situation. The paper is pre-shredded. When an odor appears rotten eggs It is necessary to carefully shovel the substrate and loosen it.
Application
Sawdust is used as fertilizer for open ground and in greenhouses. There are several ways to use this substrate. Let's look at them in detail.
Mulching
For these purposes, it is best to use a rotted substrate, or, in extreme cases, an under-rotted one. Fresh waste is not suitable, as it negatively affects processes in the soil. Mulch the soil both in spring and autumn. To prepare sawdust for mulching, do the following:
- fresh sawdust in the volume of three buckets and urea (200 g) are laid out on plastic film;
- the mixture must be well moistened with water;
- pour another layer of urea on top and moisten;
- tie the film to create airtight conditions;
- leave for a couple of weeks to ripen.
The substrate can be used for root powder or spread between rows. This procedure accelerates the ripening of fruits and protects seedlings from late blight and other diseases.
Note! The prepared mixture is used only for mulching and not for application to the soil.
Mulching strawberries with rotted sawdust is especially useful - the berries stop rotting and ripen well. However, instead of being useful, fresh wood waste can be harmful - it draws nitrogen necessary for plants from the soil.
When mulching, follow the rules:
- for vegetables and berry bushes - a layer of no more than a couple of centimeters;
- for raspberry/currant bushes - no more than 7 cm;
- for fruit trees - up to 12 cm.
For loosening the soil
Can sawdust be added to the soil? They are often used to improve the structure of the fertile layer. There are three application options for this:
- 3 parts each of sawdust and mullein are diluted with water and fertilized the fertile layer of soil in greenhouses;
- rotted sawdust is added to the ground when digging;
- rotted sawdust is poured between the rows during the growing season of plants.
Is sawdust used for fertilizer in the fall? If you add compost during digging in the fall, the soil on the site will thaw much faster in the spring.
Use for seed germination
For this purpose, waste from deciduous trees is taken; pine is not suitable. The rotted raw materials are scattered in a layer on a tray, and prepared seeds are distributed on top. After this, the seeds are lightly covered with compost to retain moisture and watered. The tray with seeds is covered with a transparent film and placed in a warm place. Be sure to leave a gap for air to enter. As soon as the first sprouts appear, they must be transplanted into a regular soil mixture for germinating seeds.
Gardeners recommend using sawdust moistened with slurry to germinate potatoes. 14 days before planting, you need to fill the boxes with moistened compost and place the root vegetables. You will receive seedlings with a strong root system. Potatoes prepared in this way give an early harvest.
Use in greenhouses
When using a wood substrate, it should be remembered that fresh sawdust draws nitrogen from the soil. Therefore, only rotted substrate is used in greenhouses. Compost in greenhouses provides additional warmth, which is especially valuable when growing plants early.
Mode of application:
- in the fall you need to fertilize the soil with plant remains - tops, fallen leaves, straw;
- in the spring, manure is distributed onto the beds and sawdust is sprinkled on top;
- then the manure is mixed well with the soil in the beds - dug up;
- then spread straw in an even layer;
- straw is distributed on top with the addition of agrochemicals and ash.
Note! To quickly warm up the soil in greenhouses, it is watered with boiling water or covered with plastic wrap.
Covering plants
Sawdust for the garden can also be used as a covering material. To do this, you can distribute the raw wood substrate into plastic bags and cover the roots of trees or shrubs with them. To protect plant shoots from the cold, they are bent to the ground and covered with a layer of sawdust.
Note! Compost can save seedlings from spring frosts if you take care of their protection in advance.
Some gardeners install caps filled with fresh wood waste over their rose bushes. This protects the bushes from winter cold. Cover the plants in late autumn: if you do this earlier, the shelter will be used by rodents to burrow.
Bottom line
Fertilizer from sawdust is used when digging the soil, making compost and mulching seedlings. Useful action sawdust is based on the attraction of soil organisms, whose vital activity enriches the fertile layer with substances beneficial to plants. Wood waste is used both to retain moisture in the ground and to absorb excess water during heavy rains.
Can sawdust in the garden cause harm? If used incorrectly, they can harm the plants. For example, fresh tree shavings draw nitrogen from the ground that is beneficial for plants, and using sawdust in dry areas will kill plants. If you compost with manure and do not stir the mixture regularly, mold may grow in it. Therefore, when working with wood waste, follow the rules and recommendations. In this case, sawdust will serve you well, and you will collect summer cottage good harvest.
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Many people don't know about beneficial properties sawdust, using them on your site only as mulch or insulation material. But With certain processing, sawdust can be used as fertilizer. Or rather, as a basis for an organic nutritional complex. The best way recycle them - put them through compost. This will help subsequently use them to enrich the soil with nutritious organic matter, and for the pre-winter hilling of heat-loving plants.
Sawdust as fertilizer
It is strictly forbidden to apply pure sawdust as fertilizer! This is the most common mistake a gardener can make. Waste from the wood processing industry of small and medium fractions, introduced into the soil in its raw form, greatly depletes it, binding not only manure, but also part of the phosphorus contained in it.
If you follow the theory that recommends using sawdust as fertilizer, then you need to apply it in the fall. They say that they will rot over the winter, and by spring they will turn into a nutrient. But for the normal process of decay to occur, high temperatures are required, which are not observed in winter. Accordingly, the decay process is slowed down. In the spring, the sawdust in the garden thaws whole and unharmed, only well-wetted. This happens not only because the soil freezes, but also because wood waste contains a lot of phenolic resins, which are preservatives.
Wood itself is not a fertilizer; it contains only 1-2% nitrogen, the rest is ballast substances, such as cellulose, hemicellulose and lingin, which form the trunk of the plant and serve as conductors of nutrients dissolved in the liquid. However, when it sits, various microorganisms settle on the surface, which saturate the wood with useful substances. If sawdust lies for 2-3 years in one place in the garden, it begins to turn black - this is a sign of the formation of humus. This process can be accelerated by placing wood in compost, where it is processed and enriched with various nutrients.
Compost enriched with sawdust matures faster as it helps create and maintain the pile. high temperature. In spring, this pile warms up rather than traditional humus. The resulting substrate is usually more loose, breathable, and nutritious. Its use helps to more effectively fertilize the soil with sawdust.
How to make compost from sawdust
It is best to lay the pile at the beginning of summer, when there is already material for composting, and there is still time for this substrate to overheat. Sawdust compost is prepared from the following ingredients:
Wood sawdust – 200 kg;
Urea -2.5 kg;
Water - 50 l;
Ash -10 l;
Grass, leaves, household waste – 100 kg.
Urea is dissolved in water, and this solution is poured over a “pie” consisting of layers of wood shavings, grass, and ash.
Another sawdust compost recipe includes more organic matter, and is used for plants that require significant doses of nitrogen. You can prepare it like this:
Oak sawdust – 200 kg;
Cow manure – 50 kg;
Mowed grass – 100 kg;
Food waste, any feces – 30 kg;
Humates – 1 drop per 100 liters of water.
Fertilizing the soil with sawdust fresh is also sometimes used, but with the obligatory enrichment of them with mineral fertilizers, otherwise the wood waste will “suck out” everything useful material from the ground. The following proportions are recommended for making the mixture:
Wood sawdust – a bucket (coniferous sawdust is not recommended for direct application);
Ammonium nitrate – 40 g;
Simple granulated superphosphate – 30 g;
Slaked lime – 120 g;
Calcium chloride – 10 g.
The resulting mixture is applied during digging to crops that require loose soil, at the rate of 2-3 buckets per 1 square meter.
Mulching with sawdust
The use of small shavings as mulch has long been practiced by domestic gardeners. Many gardeners use this method of cultivating the surface of the soil in their country house to suppress weeds, conserve moisture and improve soil structure.
Very often the passages between the beds are filled with sawdust, thus preventing weeds from germinating. This substrate is also used for potatoes, after high hilling, sprinkling it on the resulting furrows. This layer keeps the soil between the rows moist, which has a positive effect on the harvest. Moisture is well retained under the sawdust and the soil does not overheat, which creates optimal conditions for potatoes.
Cucumbers are often grown using fine wood chips. Pine sawdust is used not only to fertilize the land in composted form, but also as biofuel. They are placed at the base of a high bed and watered thoroughly with slurry. Then the bed is expanded with earth, and the heat source, which is created by wood waste rotting with manure, warms it up qualitatively throughout the season.
Raspberries are another fan of mulching with sawdust. They help this shrub retain moisture at the roots, which allows you to increase the number of berries during fruiting and improve their taste. Thanks to this method, raspberries can grow in one place for up to 10 years, since its root system does not dry out and, accordingly, does not degrade.
Almost all plants can be mulched with sawdust, subject to additional application of nitrogen fertilizers. After all, even by superficially covering the soil, wood shavings quite strongly draw useful nutrients from it. But, at the same time, it creates comfortable conditions that allow plants to grow and develop better, so the advantages of mulching with sawdust are much greater than the disadvantages.
Video: mulching beds with sawdust using strawberries as an example
Sawdust as a loosening agent for soil
Why do many gardeners, despite their low nutritional value, still use sawdust as fertilizer in their gardens? They are an inexpensive and easy to transport substrate with a large volume and low weight. But, since it takes time to process them into nutrient-rich organic matter, sawdust is often used fresh to loosen the soil. They are introduced:
In greenhouses, when preparing a soil mixture for cucumbers and tomatoes, pre-mix with mullein (3 buckets of sawdust, 3 kg of rotted cow manure and 10 liters of water).
Rotted sawdust can be added when digging the soil in the garden. It will become loose, and there will be no need for frequent watering, and in the spring such soil will thaw faster.
This woody substrate can be dug into the rows when planting vegetables with long term growing season. This will allow plant roots to use the space between the rows, under the thickness of the compacted earth.
Sawdust as a covering material
Residues from wood processing in the garden are used not only as fertilizers and mulch. Also sawdust are in demand as covering material. They are used in different ways. For example, stuffed into bags and wrapped around the roots and shoots of plants. This type of shelter is considered the most reliable.
For roses, grapes and clematis, which are left in the beds, protect the vines bent to the ground by covering them with a layer of sawdust along the entire length. To prevent field mice from getting under the covering substrate, it is necessary to sprinkle it in late autumn, just before frost, otherwise rodents will ruin all the plants over the winter. It would be even better to make an air-dry shelter over the wintering shoots. To do this, they knock together a frame from boards in the form of an inverted box, and fill it with sawdust on top, then put plastic film on it, and throw a layer of earth on top. The construction of such a mound gives an almost 100% guarantee of protecting the plant from any cold weather. Sawdust for insulation must be used very carefully. If they are used as a “wet” shelter, when the embankment is not protected from water in any way, they get wet and then freeze into an ice ball. Such insulation is suitable only for a small number of plants; the rest may rot under it.
But what is to the death of the rose, is to the benefit of the garlic. It winters well under a “wet” shelter of pine sawdust, since the phenolic resins contained in their composition perfectly protect this plant from pests and diseases.
Large sawdust can be used as a heat insulator by placing it at the base of planting holes. They will serve as a barrier to deep cold when planting such southerners as grapes and flowering vines.
This is interesting: cucumber seedlings in hot sawdust (video)
In your garden plot you can use materials that at first glance seem useless. In fact, they have interesting properties, thanks to which a vegetable grower can save hundreds and thousands of rubles.
Such materials include sawdust, which is available in large quantities at woodworking enterprises.
Beneficial properties and harm
In the garden and vegetable garden, sawdust is beneficial due to its ability to improve the structure of the soil, and that’s all that most summer residents know about them. Few people know that wood waste has other positive features. So, using them as mulch, you can retain moisture in the ground. This is especially important if we are talking about an arid region.
When biomaterial decomposes, it releases carbon, stimulating the vital activity of microorganisms that inhabit the soil. As a result, vegetables grow and develop better. IN populated areas Where there are frequent floods, sawdust is used to make a barrier that prevents water from reaching the roots of coniferous trees. To do this, dig a ditch around the plantings and fill it to the top with sawdust.
The gardener should take note that it is best to introduce sawmill waste into acidic soil in a mixture with peat. If there is none, first lay out the sawdust and mix it with the soil, then scatter limestone flour or ash over the surface.
Wood waste is rich in chemical composition, which allows them to be used as a complex fertilizer, only not in fresh, but in rotted form. All types of wood are suitable, except pine. The latter contains a lot of resinous substances, so it not only rots slowly, but also slows down the decomposition of everything that is nearby.
Until now, gardeners have not come to a consensus on whether sawdust should be used in the country. The use of this material can bring both benefit and harm. The advantages include good heat transfer, the ability to use in combination with organic and mineral fertilizers, the ability of sawdust to retain moisture and improve soil structure.
It is also important that wood waste is affordable and can repel some harmful insects.
Disadvantages of sawdust:
- when applied together with manure, there is a risk that organic matter, overheating, will draw nitrogen from the soil, so crop plants will not have enough of it;
- in arid areas, the material should be used with caution, because it absorbs moisture, which is already insufficient in the soil;
- when stored together with fresh manure (if the pile is not shoveled), a fungus will form, which will subsequently infect vegetables and flowers.
Problem solving
Most often, gardeners who use sawmill waste are faced with two problems: soil acidification and nitrogen “pulling.” Knowing how to use sawdust in the garden, you can avoid these difficulties.
The following substances will help cope with acidification:
- peat or wood ash;
- dolomite flour;
- a special deoxidizer (sold in the same place as fertilizers);
- ordinary lime;
- crushed chalk;
- ammonium or potassium sulfate;
- superphosphate;
- potassium chloride;
- sodium or calcium nitrate.
Any of these alkalis can be added with sawdust. Just keep in mind that for some plants, for example, rhododendrons, conifers and blueberries, acidified soil is even beneficial, so do not add alkali to them. If dolomite flour or lime is used, you will additionally have to enrich the soil with manganese and boron.
To understand the role that alkalis play, it is enough to recall the well-known culinary technique of slaking soda with vinegar. By the same principle, substances interact in the garden. When acid and alkali react, they neutralize each other. But before you add anything, you should stock up on litmus tests and check the acidity level in different parts vegetable garden Such tests are sold at garden supply stores.
The problem with nitrogen deficiency is also easily solved. When sawdust is already scattered over the area, it needs to be watered aqueous solution urea or calcium nitrate. Sprinkling dry fertilizer is not advisable, since the wood particles must be saturated with the solution.
Preparing seeds and tubers
You can germinate potato tubers and seeds in sawdust, but you can’t keep them there for too long, since the sprouts still need soil for proper nutrition. Vegetable and flower seeds are germinated in this way:
- a thin layer of sawdust is poured into a plastic container;
- lay out the seeds;
- moisturize from a spray bottle;
- pour a layer of sawdust of minimal thickness, just to cover the seeds;
- moisten regularly, not allowing the substrate to dry out.
You don’t have to add the top layer of sawdust, but then you’ll have to pay special attention to the humidity. The container is covered with plastic film and kept at a temperature of +25 to +27 degrees. When the sprouts appear, make sure that the air is heated to +23 degrees, adjusted for the requirements of the culture. At this time, the polyethylene is removed, and a layer of soil is scattered on top of the sawdust. It should not be too thick so that the sprouts do not die. When one true leaf appears (not to be confused with cotyledons!), the seedlings are planted in cups or peat pots.
In this way you can germinate the seeds of the following crops:
The method is not suitable for seeds of dill, parsley and other crops, which are usually sown immediately in a permanent place. In addition to seeds, potato tubers germinate well in sawdust. By spending a little time, you can ensure a good start in the development of the crop, which in the future will allow you to get an earlier harvest.
Germination should take place in the light, and it is advisable to take planting material of early varieties . Sequencing:
- 10 cm of wet sawdust is poured onto the bottom of a wooden box;
- The tubers are laid in 1 row, turning them so that the sprouts are facing upward;
- sprinkle with a layer of raw sawdust 3-4 cm thick;
- moisten regularly with water.
When the sprouts increase to 8-9 cm, carefully remove the potatoes and plant them in the holes as usual. You can spread straw, dry grass or film on top of the beds. This measure will protect the tubers from the cold and allow them not to stop growing. Thanks to the germination of tubers in wood waste, gardeners are able to harvest potatoes 2-3 weeks earlier compared to conventional planting.
Warming plants for the winter
Plants prone to freezing can be insulated using the same sawdust. The main thing is to understand that you can’t just scatter them around a bush or trunk. So the material will immediately absorb moisture, and in winter it will turn into a frozen block, and there will be no benefit from such insulation. The easiest way is to stuff plastic bags with oak or pine material and place them around the plants. This use of sawdust has only one drawback: the bags can be chewed through by mice.
Experienced gardeners insulate the vine this way:
- they knock down a box without a bottom from the slats;
- put it on the plant;
- filled with sawdust;
- cover the top and cracks where water can get in with polyethylene;
- cover the entire structure with earth.
It is important not to forget about protection from moisture and rodents. It is not recommended to use poison, as cats may accidentally taste it.
Mulching material
Another area of application of wood waste in the garden is soil mulching. The loose material prevents the evaporation of moisture from the upper layers of the soil, prevents overheating, erosion and weathering. IN winter time sawdust prevents the ground from freezing, and in spring, summer and autumn it prevents the growth of weeds. In addition, the fine substance stimulates the growth of additional roots.
For use as mulch, sawdust is prepared as follows:
At this point the preparation is completed, the resulting material is a full-fledged mulch. It is even suitable for strawberries: when the berries lie on sawdust, they remain clean, do not rot and are less damaged by slugs.
Fertilizer for plants
Use of fresh manure in pure form- wastefulness, if we are not talking about pumpkins or cucumbers. For most crops, a rotted mixture of mullein and sawdust is more suitable. It is prepared in advance, approximately 12 months before application.
For 1 cu. m of wood waste, take 100 kg of mullein (can be replaced with horse or goat manure) and 10 kg of duck or chicken droppings. Everything is mixed and placed tightly in a pile. Before laying, it is advisable to moisten the sawdust with a weak solution of chicken droppings or carbamide, and if none of this is available, pour in an infusion of green nettle. It is useful to add 2-3 buckets of fertile soil so that worms begin to multiply faster in the compost.
Subsequently, the pile is regularly moistened with water and small portions of organic matter are added. Leaves, tops of weeds before flowering, vegetable peelings, peels and other household waste that can rot are suitable. It is advisable to protect the heap from precipitation, otherwise the beneficial substances will be washed out. This method of processing allows you to apply sawdust as fertilizer in the fall for digging (ploughing) or in the spring into holes (when planting potatoes, seedlings, berries).
Application on the farm
Thrifty owners find uses for everything, including wood waste. Small shavings and sawdust are universal materials. They can be insulation, fuel, and the basis for creating crafts. Here are some examples of how sawdust can be used on the farm:
- Thermal insulation material. The raw materials are mixed with clay and coated with the ceiling, walls and floor.
- Fuel. Compressed briquettes are made from wood processing waste, which burn well and provide a lot of heat.
- Warm plaster. By mixing dry raw materials with cement or clay, you get an inexpensive plaster mixture that retains heat.
- Material for creativity. Sawdust can be painted in different colors using a gouache paint solution. The result is a bright material from which the child can make an applique painting. In order for the colored particles to stick to the base, it is coated with office glue.
- Maintaining the microclimate in the cellar. In this case, the ability of wood to absorb moisture is used. If in different places Put boxes with dry sawdust in the basement; it won’t be damp, which means the vegetables won’t rot.
- Filler. Small hardwood sawdust is used to stuff pillows, soft toys, and even parts of garden stuffed animals. Juniper can be placed in a linen bag and hung in the kitchen cabinet so that it always has a pleasant aroma.
- Litter. Large sawdust from fruit trees is suitable for this purpose. Walnut and coniferous should not be used.
Finally, sawdust is used to raise beds when the site is low. For this purpose, they dig a trench 25 cm deep and 50 cm wide. The earth is piled nearby. The trench is covered with hay and filled with sawdust, compacted, and earth is poured on top. It turns out to be a high bed. On next year the procedure is repeated, only now a trench is dug in the place where the row spacing was.
We have been planting a vegetable garden at our dacha for several years now. But this year the quantity and quality of the harvest has decreased significantly. Neighbors advised us to fertilize the soil with sawdust. Tell me, is it possible to use rotted sawdust as fertilizer?
Every gardener knows that a good harvest can only be obtained on fertile soil. Therefore, he carefully prepares for the onset of the summer season by fertilizing his plot. Nowadays, there are many new products in the field of fertilizers, but the good old methods are also widely used along with modern drugs and have never let you down yet. One such method is the use of sawdust.
Summer residents often wonder whether rotted sawdust can be used as fertilizer. The answer is obvious - it is not only possible, but also necessary, because sawdust is essentially a pure organic material. The main thing is to prepare them correctly before use. Sawdust not only enriches the soil, but also makes it looser and serves as an excellent mulch. In addition, they are more financially accessible.
Using sawdust to fertilize the garden
It is not recommended to add rotted sawdust in its pure form to garden beds, since it greatly acidifies the soil. Many plants simply will not survive on such soil. However, it is thanks to the process of decay of sawdust that the earth is saturated with oxygen. To neutralize acidity, sawdust fertilizer should be properly prepared:
- Pour fresh sawdust into the prepared hole.
- Sprinkle them with lime on top.
- Leave to rot for at least two years.
To speed up the decay process, the pile of sawdust is watered with liquid kitchen waste without any household products. When the sawdust rots, they fertilize the soil, spreading it over the beds.
It is better to fertilize with sawdust in the first half of summer, so that by autumn they have time to completely decompose. If you apply fertilizer at the end of summer, due to the increased humidity during the rainy season, water from wood waste will not evaporate well.
Using sawdust as mulch
Sawdust serves as a good mulch for various crops not only in the garden, but also in the garden. Rotted sawdust can be immediately scattered on the beds in a layer of 5 cm, but fresh sawdust must first be prepared. To do this, lay them out in layers, alternating approximately in the following proportion: 3 buckets of sawdust - 200 g of urea. Cover the top of the pile with film and leave for 2 weeks. After the specified time, the sawdust will be ready for use.
Shrubs such as raspberries are mulched with a thicker layer - up to 20 cm.
Mulching with sawdust will allow you to water the beds less often, since the moisture will not evaporate so quickly, and will maintain the loose structure of the soil. In addition, the presence of mulch between the rows will create obstacles to the growth of weeds.
Sawdust in greenhouses and compost
Rotted sawdust is added to greenhouse beds in spring or autumn to speed up seed germination. Such soil warms up faster. For greater benefit, they are mixed with manure, also rotted.
Sawdust is good to add to compost. At the same time, they must rot within a year so that the compost is more nutritious.
Using sawdust in the garden - video
Sawdust is wood waste that a good owner will always find a use for. Some people take this material lightly, while others consider it to be the most valuable material for use in the country house and garden.
Gardeners have found a large number of useful qualities and properties in sawdust. This material is an excellent soil loosener. It makes the soil breathable and prevents the appearance of a crust on the surface of the earth. A soil mixture containing sawdust absorbs and retains moisture well. Sawdust is also a natural organic fertilizer.
This wood waste can be used not only to protect and fertilize the soil, but also to disinfect, insulate and decorate your site and home.
How to avoid problems when using sawdust in the garden
To ensure that summer residents do not encounter additional problems when using sawdust, it is necessary to take into account some of the features of this material. For example, during the decomposition of sawdust in the soil, the nitrogen content decreases, and fresh sawdust in the beds contributes to an increase in soil acidity.
You can use fresh sawdust, but only for growing crops that can thrive in acidic soils. Their list is very large: fruit and berry plants (blueberry, quince, barberry, viburnum, honeysuckle, cranberry, dogwood), conifers, herbs and spices (sorrel, spinach, rosemary), vegetables (cucumbers, tomatoes, radishes, radishes, potatoes, carrots).
You can rid fresh sawdust of its ability to acidify the soil with one of the alkaline materials that neutralize the acid. These materials must be mixed with sawdust, and only then added to the beds. It is recommended to use both organic additives (egg shells, wood ash, chalk powder, dolomite flour) and various mineral fertilizers, which contain phosphorus, potassium, calcium, saltpeter, etc.
To prevent sawdust from absorbing nitrogen from the soil, you need to mix it with nitrogen-containing fertilizer. Two hundred grams of urea dissolved in water must be added to a full bucket of fresh sawdust. Wood waste is well saturated with the required amount of nitrogen. Instead of mineral fertilizers, you can add organic components: herbal infusions(for example, nettle based), freshly cut grass, bird droppings or manure.
In practice, rotted sawdust turns out like this. You will need a large piece of thick plastic film onto which you need to pour prepared fresh sawdust. The prepared liquid (200 grams of urea and 10 liters of water) must be thoroughly poured over all wood waste. You need to pour the same amount of solution onto one bucket of sawdust. Wet sawdust, saturated with moisture, should be placed in large garbage bags made of dark material, tied tightly and left in this form to rot for 15-20 days.
1. Sawdust as a mulch layer
Mulching is carried out only with rotted sawdust. The thickness of the mulch layer is about five centimeters. Most often, this type of mulch is used for berry crops (raspberries, strawberries and strawberries), as well as for garlic. It is advisable to apply the sawdust layer in May - June, so that by the end of September the sawdust has time to rot. Later mulching will have an adverse effect on preparing plants for the winter, as it will prevent excess moisture from evaporating from the ground.
2. Sawdust in compost
Compost using fresh sawdust can be prepared in two ways.
The first method is classic. Compost contains plant and food waste, cow manure and bird droppings, as well as sawdust. With their carbon content, they will help you prepare excellent organic fertilizer in a short time.
The second method is longer. To prepare the fertilizer, you will need a hole (about one meter deep), which needs to be filled with eighty percent sawdust. The top of the wood waste must be covered with lime and wood ash. The decay process will continue for two years.
3. Sawdust as a substrate
To germinate plant seeds, you need to take a small container and fresh sawdust. They are poured in a thin layer on the bottom of the container, seeds are laid on top, and then again a small layer of sawdust. Covered with thick film, the box with seeds is placed in a warm, darkened room until the first shoots appear. Further development seedlings should occur in a well-lit place. The top sawdust layer is sprinkled with a thin layer of earth. Picking of young plants is carried out immediately after the formation of the first full leaf.
It is recommended to germinate potatoes in sawdust substrate. First, ten centimeters of wet sawdust are poured into the prepared box, then potato tubers are laid out and sawdust again (about three centimeters). Before full-fledged seedlings (about eight centimeters long) appear, regular water sprays are carried out, after which the tubers can be transplanted into the beds.
4. Sawdust in warm beds
To build a warm bed, various organic wastes, including sawdust, are suitable. But with their help you can not only “insulate” the bed, but also raise it. Approximate order of work:
- Prepare a trench about 25 centimeters deep.
- Fill the trench with a mixture of sawdust, ash and lime.
- Spread a layer of soil from the trench on top.
The sawdust layer will be an effective component for retaining excess moisture and as a nutrient layer for plants.
5. Sawdust paths and row spacing
A covering of sawdust between the beds in a garden or dacha makes it possible to move around the plot of land even after rainy days. Your shoes will remain clean and you won’t be afraid of any lumps of dirt or sticky garden soil. This coating looks like plot of land neat and even attractive. When the layer of sawdust is compressed, not a single weed will germinate. Sawdust is not only protection against weeds, but also retains moisture in the soil and provides organic fertilizing.
6. Sawdust as insulation
If you store vegetables and fruits (for example, apples, carrots or cabbage) indoors in a tall box with sawdust, they will retain their freshness and taste for a long time. You can also save your harvest on the balcony in a specially made thermal box. Sawdust will be a kind of insulation in such a container.
7. Sawdust in seedling soil
The soil for growing seedlings of vegetable crops, such as tomatoes, sweet peppers, eggplants and cucumbers, also contains rotted sawdust.
8. Mushroom farming
To grow mushrooms, fresh sawdust is used, which undergoes special preparation, consisting of several stages. It is recommended to use only sawdust from deciduous trees for the substrate. Sawdust from birch, oak, poplar, maple, aspen and willow are ideal for growing oyster mushrooms.
9. Sawdust for insulating trees
Fruit trees need insulation for the winter. Sawdust must be placed in thick garbage bags and tied tightly to prevent moisture, frost and rodents from penetrating into them. Then these bags need to be placed around the young trees around the trunk. This method of insulation is proven and reliable.
The vine can be insulated in another way. To do this you will need a wooden frame made from small boards. It needs to be placed on top of the plant, filled with fresh sawdust to the very top and tightly covered with film.
It is very important that sawdust does not get wet when used as insulation, otherwise at the first frost it will become a frozen block.
10. Sawdust bedding for animals
Sawdust and wood shavings from fruit trees are excellent bedding in cages for rabbits, goats, pigs, poultry and other living creatures. This material can provide double benefits: minimal costs (or no financial costs at all) and organic fertilizer. Using wood processing waste, you can insulate the floor and not worry from a hygienic point of view, since sawdust perfectly absorbs all excess moisture. As it gets dirty, the old litter will still serve as a natural fertilizer in the beds.
11. Using sawdust in a smokehouse
For smoking meat, lard, fish, as well as vegetables and fruits, wood waste in the form of shavings, chips and sawdust of some types of trees is used. The most commonly used are alder, juniper, fruit trees, as well as oak, maple, and ash. The aroma of the smoked product depends on the type of shavings and sawdust. Professionals in this business prepare sawdust mixtures from several trees at once.
12. Use of sawdust in construction and finishing work
Construction specialists use sawdust to make sawdust concrete. This mixture of concrete and shredded wood waste is used for the production of building blocks and bricks, as well as plaster for finishing country houses and enclosed gazebos. You can also make a plastering mixture from sawdust and clay.
Since sawdust is a material that retains heat and is natural, it can be used to insulate floors and walls in any room.
13. Sawdust in classes to develop creativity
Creative imagination and imagination has no limits. Real craftsmen use sawdust both in pure form (for filling pillows or toys) and in colored form. A little gouache and colored sawdust will be an excellent material for appliqués.
