Lupine as a siderat - when to sow and when to bury

Many gardeners, having tried many methods and means, nevertheless returned to the old and proven methods of restoring the nutrient properties of the soil - with the help of plants. Lupine was considered the most popular green manure at all times; now its popularity has begun to increase again. Moreover, it not only brings tangible benefits to the garden plot, but also has an attractive appearance during flowering.

The benefits of lupine for the garden

Most often, gardeners use annual lupine as a green manure. The most popular are white, yellow and narrow-leaved. The demand for these species is explained by the fact that they have a taproot system that penetrates to a depth of 2 meters into the lower horizons of the soil, as well as the fact that they are equipped with nodule nitrogen-fixing bacteria that absorb nitrogen from the air and saturate the soil with them.

Lupines appearance

When using compost from lupine, mineral and organic substances are delivered and accumulated in the soil. The soil is loosened and the anaerobic microflora is destroyed.

There are many alkaloids in blue and yellow lupine, which repel pests and destroy pathogenic forms of fungi and bacteria, reduce the acidity of the soil, turning it into neutral or slightly alkaline.

What soils need planting lupine

If almost all nutrients are washed out of the soil (most often this is typical for sandy soil), or the productivity of nightshade crops has significantly decreased as a result of soil impoverishment, then it is definitely worth planting lupine. The plant is ideal for poor and depleted soils, uncultivated land and sandy loam.

As practice shows, lupine can enrich with nutrients, nitrogen and increase fertility in other soils, so you can safely plant a plant on the site. In this case, the timing should be selected in each individual case personally, depending on the depletion of the soil.

In front of what crops should you plant annual lupine

Experienced vegetable growers recommend planting lupine siderate before nightshade, cereals and strawberries. It is also a good precursor for strawberries, raspberries, gooseberries, plums, cherries, potatoes, cucumbers, tomatoes and peppers. As a result, the yield increases several times compared to the usual indicators.

Reducing soil acidity with lupine

What varieties of lupine are suitable for the role of green fertilizer

Some summer residents are wary of lupine as a siderat.They are afraid that after planting the plant will be problematic to remove. This opinion is due to the fact that for many, the plant is associated with a perennial or wild lupine, which is found in endless fields. In this case, indeed, it reproduces by self-seeding, and the rhizome captures all new territories.

However, it is absolutely not necessary to plant a perennial as a siderat. Especially for these purposes, there are annual varieties, which, despite the fact that they propagate by seeds, do not cause problems with timely mowing. These include narrow-leaved, yellow, white and white-grain lupine.

Lupine angustifolia (blue)

One of the most unpretentious varieties. The plant does not require special care and perfectly tolerates low temperatures and even frosts. Despite the name, lupine of this variety can be, not only blue, but also lilac, as well as pink and white. The plant reaches a height of one and a half meters.

The variety is narrow-leaved or blue

The most common types of narrow-leaved lupine are:

• Crystal.
• Change.
• Nemchinovsky blue.
• Siderat 38.

They are also grown as a fodder crop, but they have received great demand as green manure. Of all the listed species, Siderat 38 is considered the most common, which is known as a live fertilizer, thanks to the unique substances in the roots.

Blue lupine is often used as a green manure, not only for its properties, but also for its rapid growth, resistance to cold weather, deep penetration of roots, loosening and saturation of the upper soil layers with nitrogen.

Lupine yellow (Lupinus luteus)

The plant of this variety is low, grows no more than a meter in height with a spikelet-like inflorescence of light orange or yellow color. Compared to blue lupine, it is thermophilic, but at the same time it is still able to withstand frosts down to -6 ° C. In order for the plant to sprout, it needs the air temperature to be at least 12 ° C warm. During cultivation, lupines need to be watered systematically. Grows best on sandstones and sandy loams.

The most common are the following types:

• Peresvet.
• Gorodnensky.
• Torch.
• Siderat 892.
• Motive 369.

Lupinus luteus

White lupine (Lupinus albus)

The annual grows up to one meter and is considered to be a unique plant. White lupine is a very beautiful flower, thanks to its delicate leaves and snow-white flowers, located vertically on the stem. In addition, the plant is used as an excellent food for animals. In terms of the content of easily digestible high-quality protein, white lupine surpasses legumes.

Lupins are simply considered salvation for poor soils. Its powerful root shaft penetrates deeply into the soil, takes out trace elements and nutrients from there, saturating the soil with them.

White lupine siderat, like all other species, has the most popular varieties. These include:

• Gamma.
• Desnyansky.
• Degas.

The disadvantage of cultivating white lupine is that it is quite whimsical to the soil, requires systematic fertilization and fertilization, but at the same time it is very resistant to drought.

Lupinus albus

White-grain annual lupine

An unpretentious, medium-sized plant with fragrant flowers and large saturated green leaves is able to saturate poor sandy, clayey and loamy soils with the necessary elements and substances. In height, this species grows up to 50 cm. Inflorescences are bluish-white with yellow tips.

How to grow lupine as a green manure

Depending on the content of alkaloids in the plant, alkaloid and alkaloid lupines are isolated.Their difference lies in the fact that the former are bitter, and the latter are sweet, therefore, bitter and sweet roots are most often used as fertilizer, and exceptionally sweet varieties are grown on an industrial scale for animal feed.

Alkaloid lupins are generally recommended for planting in the fall or spring. But this should not be done in early spring. This is explained by the fact that the plant will develop slowly and the weeds will simply crush it. You should not leave the planting too late, since this plant will also not tolerate cold weather. When landing, all these features must be taken into account.

When to sow

Lupine should be sown so that, before mowing, the plant has time to bloom and beans begin to form on it, since it is during this period, according to the descriptions, that the green manure accumulates the maximum amount of useful components.

Basically, summer residents try to plant their garden with lupine around the second half of May, since in June it will be too late to do this. After growing any crops, you can sow lupine seed until mid-August. In the spring, you can plant any varieties, but in August it's time to pick up those that will be resistant to cold weather.

Growing seedlings

When to bury

Many novice gardeners who grow lupine as a siderat do not know when to sow and when to bury the plant, so they face certain problems. As practice shows, the most optimal time for planting a plant is mid-May and early August.

As for burying the plant, it is also important to do it on time, before flowering. Otherwise, the plant will give seeds, which will subsequently be difficult to remove, since they spread by self-sowing throughout the entire area of ​​the site. To avoid such a situation, it is necessary to timely harvest the plant, that is, its mowing. The most favorable period is considered to be the beginning of flowering, in the phase of the appearance of buds.

Under favorable conditions and timely moistening of the soil, Lupinus grows up to the beginning of budding for about 50 days, most often it takes about 60 days on average until this moment.

Basic rules of care

Leaving does not cause difficulties. The most important thing is that the soil is suitable, and then the plant can easily master completely different areas. You should pay attention to the fact that mainly weeds appear earlier than the plant sprout, so they should be systematically and promptly removed.

Lupines bloom

Watering and humidity

If the summer is not dry and it rains every week, then there is no need to additionally water the lupine. Otherwise, if it is hot and the earth systematically dries up, then the plant needs to be additionally watered abundantly. The plant can be watered either by rain or under the root. It is recommended that you take care of the mulch after each watering to prevent the appearance of an earth crust.

Fertilization and feeding

Often gardeners are wondering how to feed lupins grown as green manure. The answer to this question is very simple. Since the roots of the plant are saturated with nitrogen, it does not need additional feeding. The only thing that can be done is to apply potash and phosphorus fertilizers in the fall.

The main problems when growing lupine as a siderat

It would seem that there is nothing easier than growing a weed on the site that feels great in the wild and multiplies by self-sowing. But when growing lupine in your garden. However, certain difficulties may arise. This can happen as a result of certain factors.

Before planting a flower, you need to make sure that the soil is not alkaline, as it most likely will not grow on such soil.At first, the plant will drown in weeds and develop slowly, so they will have to be removed. But you should not worry about this, since soon it will grow, and no weeds can interfere with its development.

Diseases and their prevention

Like all plants, lupine is susceptible to certain diseases. The most common are:

• Rot - the disease can reduce the yield and quality of the plant from 17 to 50%. Rotten roots and cotyledons testify to the development of the disease. Fungi of the genus Fusarium can provoke the disease. Early application of phosphate-potassium fertilizers and seed dressing can prevent the problem.

Anthracnose on lupine

• Anthracnose - leads to the destruction of the plant up to 70 percent. The development of the disease is evidenced by the appearance of brown or orange spots on the cotyledons, which subsequently begin to spread along the main stem.
• Sentoria - spots of a languid brown or pale yellow hue begin to appear on the leaves of lupine.

Also, the plant can be susceptible to bacterial and viral diseases such as bacterial spotting and mosaic.

Frequent pests

Lupine is considered a hardy plant, but despite this, certain problems associated with pests and diseases can appear during its cultivation. The most common pests are aphids and sprout fly larvae. Aphids most often appear when buds are tied on the plant. Sprout fly larvae appear at a later date, when the first shoots appear. You can get rid of problems with insecticide treatment.

Aphids on lupine

Other problems and solutions

Often gardeners are faced with such a problem as the slow growth of the plant. It can be provoked by an unsuitable soil composition. In order to eliminate such a possibility, you need to check the soil for acidity before planting. If an alkaline reaction is detected in the soil, then the flower will not grow.

Gardeners often prefer to use lupine as a green manure to increase soil fertility. The plant is considered beneficial and helps to improve the biological characteristics of the soil and its yield. In this case, the most important thing is to choose the right plant variety and cultivate it according to technology. Otherwise, self-seeding lupine will fill the entire area and will not bring the expected result.